The cost of living crisis is having a damaging impact on charities as they struggle to access the funds they need to help others. Local community investment company Neighbourly carried out a survey this summer with 1000 charities and community organisations. The survey revealed that:
70% of charities and community organisations have found it harder to access funds
80% have seen a rise in demand for support in the last 3 months
96% believe the cost of living crisis is creating a demand from people that have not needed to ask for help before
The Wickes Community Programme is helping bridge the gap with a product donation fund of a quarter of a million pounds to support local community organisations and charities. So far Wickes has helped well over 500 but is looking for more to help.
Gary Kibble, Chief Marketing Officer at Wickes said “We’ve noticed a significant increase in the number of charities applying for product donations. As a business, we take pride in being a part of our local communities and are always looking at ways to make a material difference in the community. Food and baby banks have received storage solutions, schools have received soil and timber to create sensory gardens, Scout groups have received paint and community gardens have received timber and gardening tools. These are just some of the organisations that we have supported so far. Our aim is to provide relevant products to help with essential maintenance, renovation or to complete new projects to help take the pressure off their fundraising efforts and we know it's making a real difference to them”
Matt Hipperson, Head Teacher of St Lukes Primary school said “School funds are always stretched so this donation from Wickes has made a real difference to us.”
Sue Kaye from the Holbeck Project said “We struggle to get funding especially now in the current climate, so having this donation from Wickes has made a huge difference to us as a charity. Without it we would not have been able to create this ’’
The Wickes Community Programme is open to all local community groups seeking help for improvement projects. Any groups interested in applying for a donation should head into their local store to speak to the manager.
