Families are facing difficult choices this winter as they will be forced to choose between heating or eating, community groups worry.
As the cost of living crisis continues, with concerns it will worsen over the next few months, many households will be finding themselves in hardship and needing much needed support. Already, some people are struggling with their mental health as they fear for the future.
One community group in Wirral, the Spider Project, is a creative arts and wellbeing recovery community project helping those through misuse abuse and mental health struggles. Business development manager Caroline Williams told the ECHO: "People come to us with all sorts of issues and we help people as much as we can here but we believe a network of support is important so we refer and signpost where appropriate.
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"People have nowhere to go and they feel they don’t have a voice. Through the pandemic, instructions were to stay away from everyone and that’s the opposite of our message so we saw an increase in mental health issues but unfortunately with the cost of living, it’s worsening.
“If people are struggling they are more likely to turn to misuse. There’s a lot of stress at the moment and people are struggling to make ends meet which will worsen in the winter. People are needing to make difficult choices that they shouldn’t have to make."
The Spider Project is one of many community groups to have been awarded funds from Wirral Council as part of the Government’s Household Support Fund. Although bids to the scheme were oversubscribed, 32 local groups successfully applied for up to £20,000 to address welfare needs in their area.
Using their £20,000 grant to provide community meals at the Centre, emergency fuel vouchers and "survival packs", Caroline said the funding has already been a huge help to those struggling. She told the ECHO of one pensioner who found herself unable to buy food, adding: "Carol has attended Spider for two months and she comes for support around her mental health.
"She is a pensioner and has recently had to leave her home and move into sheltered accommodation. She receives pension credits and has previously managed on this benefit but recently has found she is struggling not only financially, but also mentally. Carol is finding that she can't buy food as she was previously able to as she feels she needs to put money away for the future months to pay her energy bills."
Affecting her mental and physical health, Carol only has a microwave to cook her meals which would be "financially better" in the long run, but added the hampers was a "wonderful gesture" and allowed her to have much-needed items she would have otherwise been unable to buy.
Caroline added: "We provide a hearty meal every week allowing people to come together and make friends and provide them with skills such as cooking. The second part of the project is survival packs containing perishable foods and household items as well as fuel vouchers and blankets to those in need. We felt like this project was addressing the issues everyone has got at the moment, it’s called survive and strive.”
Leader of Wirral Council, Cllr Janette Williamson, recently visited two organisations following their grant as she said: “After talking to service users and the staff and volunteers of organisations on the frontline in our communities, it is clear that the cost-of-living crisis is worsening by the day, with more and more people finding it difficult to make ends meet.
“And just as they did through the pandemic, Wirral’s community groups are using their incredible local knowledge to make sure help is given to those who are most in need and in the most accessible and appropriate way.”
The current (Summer) round of HSF funding is the latest from the Department for Work and Pensions which has provided more than £6 million since December 2020 under the Covid Winter Grant Scheme and Covid Local Support Grants. We spoke to some other organisations that received funding, and how their vital support means so much to those in need.
The Heart of Egremont Community Centre
The Heart of Egremont Community Centre was given £13,000 for the provision of family crisis hampers containing food and essential items, as well as cooking hot meals for service users and providing white goods in emergency cases. A spokesperson said many people have been helped already, who would otherwise be left struggling at home.
The spokesperson added: “I don’t think the crisis has truly hit yet. People who come to our lunch club we’ve noticed were once buoyant, are now very anxious. One person was saying she can’t afford her TV licence at home, she had come on leaps and bounds but has gone back down again and it’s so sad to see.
“We have a community shop also but despite being cheaper, prices are also having to go up slightly. It’s hard to say don’t worry it will be okay because I don’t think it will be.”
The spokesperson added that one lady was speaking about how she was “suicidal” and needed support as they said: “Quite a few people come to us lonely and unhappy or recently bereaved and what tends to happen is people comfort one another. But they benefit from it.”
Wirral Change
Wirral Change was granted £22,000 to help with the emergency delivery service for Wirral's vulnerable BAME households, helping those in need of food and support, especially those with specific dietary requirements.
Sabra Ahmed said this support is needed “now more than ever” as the cost of living has “shot through the roof”. She added: “What we’ve found as well is it’s not just people on benefits, people who work are also struggling. People can’t pay for food or bills and it’s a choice they have to make.”
She said: “No-one knows what’s going on or what’s going to happen, a lot of people are struggling. No matter where you are from or live, everyone is struggling. People are so grateful, one woman set us a thank you card after we gave her a hamper because she was struggling for food.”
'A real need'
Amy Butterworth, of Make It Happen Birkenhead, said their scheme of providing essential food and clothing for local residents, as well as supporting projects such as Community Cook Up has been a "huge success" as there was a "real need".
Other community groups doing great work across Wirral include Rapid Response North West, Rock Ferry Salvation Army and Wirral Youth Zone. Information about other support available to people in need is available on the Wirral Council website or by calling the helpline on 0151 666 5050.
The helpline can also advise on assistance that may be available from Age UK Wirral for anyone digitally excluded. Information about other support for residents is also available on the Wirral Infobank website at www.wirralinfobank.co.uk.
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