A Glasgow family has revealed that they spent evenings in libraries to avoid using their heating at home to save money.
Ali (not his real name) lives with his wife, Fatima, and their three children. One of his daughters, Farah, suffers from cerebral palsy.
The 11-year-old wears a split on her right foot to keep her stable.
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The father of three said: “From the time we wake up, to the time we go to sleep, myself and my wife are constantly caring for Farah. We do everything for her, including changing her clothes, taking her downstairs, feeding, toileting, and getting her to sleep. It’s turned our life upside down.
“The weather is mild at the moment so we don’t need to put the heating on, but when winter comes and it’s cold I’m worried about what we’ll have to do. We’ve spent evenings in the library or at my parent’s house so that we don’t have to use our energy. It’s horrible to think like this but we’re forced to do it. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would have to have this thought process.
“The rising cost of living has meant we had to stop our weekend swimming and football classes [which] are far away and the fuel prices mean we can’t afford to travel much by car. Additionally, we don’t go anywhere which is fee paying so we now spend time in the garden or go to the park.”
Research carried out by national charity Family Fund, shows that families raising disabled, or seriously ill, children and young people across the UK now face serious financial jeopardy and are struggling to survive, due to the scale of the cost-of-living crisis.
The study looked at 4,264 families across the UK, with a disabled child, showing that nine in 10 families are struggling, or falling behind on their regular household bills and many are forced to forego living essentials such as food, heating, basic furniture like beds, flooring, washing machines and fridges, to try to make ends meet.
Over half of parents and carers report skipping or cutting the size of their meals because there wasn’t enough money for food and more than one in ten say they have had to cut back on items that are essential for their disabled children.
On average, families raising a disabled child live on £17,000 a year and spend 60 hours a week caring for their disabled children, with one third caring for over 100 hours a week
Four in five families raising a disabled child or young person are in debt, with rising debt levels for two in five families polled, and over 40 per cent report they can’t afford to keep their house warm.
Family Fund aims to provide essential goods for families including kitchen appliances, clothing, bedding, play and sensory equipment and much-needed family breaks.
Ali's family used the help of the charity to travel to London to visit the theatre and other tourist hotspots.
He said: “Without Family Fund, we wouldn’t have had the chance to leave our city considering how expensive it is, especially on our salary. The breaks give us a chance to recharge and have a break from the pressure. When we come home we feel so relaxed, refreshed and energised.”
Last year, the organisation delivered over 170,919 grants and services, worth over £37 million, to families on low incomes across the UK.
Cheryl Ward, Family Fund Chief Executive, said: “The outlook for families raising a disabled, or seriously ill, child is now graver than ever. They are unsure how to cope with ever-rising caring costs with winter approaching, they are having to borrow more credit to pay for intense levels of debt and feeling more isolated than ever, with worsening mental and physical health.
“These are families on the lowest of incomes, due to caring for their children round-the-clock and having far-reduced available support services, post-pandemic.
“When caring costs have spiralled so far out of control that families are having to cut back on the very essentials their disabled child needs, something has to change.
“Along with our sector partners, we are urging Government to ensure that family benefits are increased in line with inflation, rather than reducing at a time when the escalating costs of caring are already jeopardising families’ lives.”
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