Sheppey Island on the Thames Estuary ranks among Britain’s most deprived areas, and like millions of people living on low incomes, its residents are struggling with rising food and fuel costs. . All are braced for even more difficult times this winter.
In an island pub parking lot early last week, a small group of locals stood holding shopping bags, waiting for the arrival of the “Sheppey Support Bus”, a mobile community supermarket that provides leftovers and free fruit and veg for a £3.50 a week subscription fee.
“It’s been a bit of a relief,” said David Fuller, 66, who lives on a monthly pension of less than £1,000.
“Everything has gone up – food, gas, electricity – but wages have stayed the same. Three years ago I didn’t need somewhere like this, but now I do.”
It’s an increasingly familiar story as food bank usage increases across the UK. But the sponsors’ logos on the side of the double-decker Sheppey Support Bus tell a less well-understood story about how the philanthropic and volunteer sectors are now an integral part of the social safety net. of the United Kingdom.
After a decade of austerity saw local government funds cut by a third in real terms and the value of many benefits fell to “historic lows” according to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, the Charities are playing an increasingly important role in helping people make a living. meet.
But charity money only comes in areas like Sheppey that are lucky enough to have a network of volunteers. Too many others are being left behind, warn volunteer experts and bleak outlook for the Bank of England predict a prolonged recession and the worst strangled standard of living in 60 years.
The Sheppey Support Bus is the founding of the Oasis Charitable Foundation, which runs a local academy school. The trust has assembled a network of supporters to provide the service, including charities such as the Salvation Army and Feeding Britain, the supermarket chain Wm Morrison from the private sector and parish councils and local district.
Lynne Clifton, Salvation Army officer on the Sheppey, said the bus will also offer full-service services, including debt counseling, literacy and mental health services.
“There’s been a regular coming in lately, and I can tell she doesn’t look like usual,” she said. “As we talked, she burst into tears and pulled out a huge £2,000 gas bill. We were able to help read the meter and deal with her energy company.”
Everyone involved in the Sheppey Support Bus enthusiastically praised its work helping families who are no longer able to cope, often after mounting debt as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
However, experts warn that relying on the volunteer sector to collect pieces risks overgrowth and deepens inequalities across the UK.
Maddy Desforges, executive director of the National Association for Action for Community and Volunteering, whose members support about 200,000 local charities and volunteer groups across the country, says the field is now increasingly “filling” for the state.
“The state is relying on volunteers in a way that I don’t think is helpful,” she said. “So of course, for the time being pandemic volunteers have been involved, but one of my worries is that the state is now turning to volunteers to enhance services.”
The first challenge of relying on charity to fill the gaps left by the government is cost of living crisis That overwhelming demand in the sector is also limiting its ability to raise capital. Charities are hit by the same economic hardships as businesses: rising energy bills, a tight labor market, and inflation eating away at the real value of donations.
Analysis by Pro Bono Economics, a supporting consulting organization charity organizationshows that even before the current crisis, the sector became increasingly reliant on public fundraising as the value of government contracts dropped.
And the falling cost of living has hit donations, which totaled £10.7 billion last year. One regular survey of Charity Support shows that in the first quarter of 2022, 4.9 million fewer people have donated in the past 12 months, compared with pre-pandemic.
But experts warn that the more fundamental problem with increasing reliance on charities to provide social services is that it risks leading to inequality as many of the country’s poorest regions. little support from charities.
Parliament research Looking at Britain’s 225 most “left-behind” neighborhoods, people in those areas receive an average of £7.77 in national charity funding per person, much less compared to the national average of £12.23. Half get less than £5.
Lord Gus O’Donnell, former cabinet secretary and president of Pro Bono Economics, said: “We know the philanthropic sector is much stronger in more affluent areas. “In poorer places, the chances of getting community help through charity are much weaker and the amount contributed is lower, so you are in a vicious circle, reinforcing inequality. Equality.”
Desforges was equally concerned. “You’re relying on people who are already having a hard time, so it’s almost the opposite of a promotion,” she said, referring to Boris Johnson’s flagship policy to reduce inequality in the region.
The outgoing Prime Minister was in part motivated by a dramatic shift in the number of seats for his Conservative party from Labor in the poorest parts of the UK at the 2019 general election.
Johnson sought to capitalize on the community spirit that has always been valued during the pandemic. He has commissioned a report from Conservative MP Danny Kruger on how charities can help level up. But as the UK awaits a new prime minister next month, there is much skepticism in this area about the government’s commitment to reducing inequality.
The government says it has recognized inequalities in the region, which is why it is “promoting the full range” of its upgrade agenda while providing a 37-dollar emergency support package billion pounds for households to address immediate cost of living issues.
It added: “By investing in the areas that need it most, improving schools, supporting regeneration and creating better paying jobs, we will improve the lives of the poorest of the poorest. in regions across the UK.
However, Kruger said the next prime minister needed to tackle the problem more aggressively, perhaps using some of the nearly £1billion assets that are dormant in the UK’s financial system. to fund a community wealth fund. “Fixing this is about money and power: money for social infrastructure and power for localities,” he added.
Will Tanner, director of Onward, an influential center-right think-tank that has helped shape the upskilling agenda, says it’s important to empower local volunteers because they often provide services that people need better than central or local government.
“While we should be concerned about the distribution of that support, that is not an argument for discouraging such activity where it is present,” he said. “The question is, ‘Can it be seeded and encouraged in areas that currently lack it?'”
Steve Chalke, founder of the Oasis Trust, agrees but says the government should realize that to foster more such collaborations on Sheppey, it is necessary to work with charities in an equal partnership. than. “We need a new civil contract between the government and the voluntary sector; he added.
Another example of grassroots empowerment can be found in Northwood, the most deprived area of Kirkby, a Liverpool satellite town. The area is one of the UK’s 150 poorest regions, selected to receive £1m each over 10 years as part of a £200m National Lottery-funded initiative called Big Local.
In Kirkby, the money goes to Northwood Together, a community project that has supported everything from a “newly opened” second-hand clothing store to food and cooking classes.
Lisa Cover, director of community development, said the pandemic has hit the poorest families hardest because many rely on the gray economy or unsupported part-time jobs.
The group dining spot, supported by donations from local Morrisons and Liverpool football clubs, is open all day. And – unlike some local government services – it comes with no strings attached.
“We started getting a lot of discreet questions, saying, ‘Do you have to get benefits to come?’ and we explained, “No, just come down,” said Cover. “The working people you see now often just can’t cope.”
A group of Northwood Together board members, all of whom are locals, say the Big Local program is invaluable to families on the brink of poverty who are now dreading the season. winter is coming, with the average annual fuel bill predicted to exceed £4,000 early next year.
Ally Middleton, chair of the board, said government support of up to £1,200 for the poorest families with their energy bills “won’t feel like it’s touching the two sides” households are in debt.
She added that many children will go hungry around holiday time without a school dinner. She recalls a boy who attended an event and, after eating his sausage, quietly came and asked if he could get something for his brother who was at home and was also hungry.
As at Sheppey, the volunteers at Northwood are passionate about what they’ve accomplished, and admit it’s necessary because the pay and benefits system puts too many people down, including some people who are working, fall into a difficult situation. .
“It might just be a sticky plaster, but at least we’re stopping people from bleeding,” Middleton said.
