A Pride of Manchester winner has documented the stark reality for people living below the poverty line after being called to help a desperate young family.
James Anderson, who helps provide free or heavily-subsidised services to help keep people warm, said he was "appalled" to see the conditions mum-of-two Katie, and her two young children, had been living in.
He said the family, who agreed to be pictured and live in a rented flat in Burnley, can't afford gas, have minimal electricity, no carpet, not heating or hot water and no functioning oven.
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James compared the contents of their fridge to war rationing as he pictured a half open tin of chopped tomatoes, baked beans, and 50p supermarket butter spread.
On the same weekend that the nation came together to celebrate the Queen's jubilee, the Pride of Manchester winner said he was disgraced to see that families' in Britain can be allowed to live this way.
On Twitter, he wrote: "A day of celebrations. They have no Gas or Electricity, no carpets, no heating or hot water. They have no oven, just a hob. The food you see in the fridge is rationing like WW1."
Speaking to the Manchester Evening News , James said he had bought the family a £150 food shop, and had written to Katie's local council to make them aware of her situation.
"A lady contacted me and asked what we could do for her. I wasn’t at all happy with what I saw. The house has no carpet and is full of concrete floors," he said.
"She can afford very little electricity and can’t afford gas at all. There were a couple of tins in the cupboard and two tins in the fridge which have been opened with a knife because they can’t afford a can opener.
"I think one was a tin of chopped tomatoes and baked beans. It almost looked like the kind of rationing you’d get during the second world war. It was terrible."
James said he gave the family £20 to get some basic supplies, and later returned with several bags of food shopping. He said Katie was living with her two young children aged four and five, and her partner.
He said: "The council says they are going to look into their situation tomorrow so hopefully we can get the ball rolling. Up until now nobody has cared. They have been let down by society."
James, who is the founder of community interest company Depher, was announced as a Pride of Manchester winner this year after helping more than 39,000 families since March 2017 especially with free boilers, plumbing and heating emergency services.
During 2020 to 2021 they supplied £60,000 of PPE and food to families, care homes, front line workers and emergency services.
He told the M.E.N he has been seeing more and more family's like Katie's as a result of the cost of living crisis, and says he is doing everything he can to help 'before it's too late.' "When is the help coming for people like this," he said.
The government has introduced a package of measures to help support households with the rising cost of living including a one-off £650 cost of living payment of £650 for those on benefits, and a £400 grant to help with the cost of energy - on top of the £150 council tax rebate issued to those living within bands A-D.
But some have argued the government's £15bn handout won't be enough to help struggling families, with the boss of Asda branding the package a "drop in the ocean."
Sir Stuart Rose, the chairman of the UK’s third largest supermarket, said he welcomed the one-off payments but said: "There is still going to be continuing pressure and a lot of toughness for people."
Speaking on the BBC last week, poverty campaigner Jack Monroe said: "Everybody needs to be looking after those, in our society, that are the most vulnerable and have the least recourse to power.
"People are being priced out of their own dinner. The rise in food banks is astronomical, and it's set to get worse."
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