Tag: Family Fund charity

Charity calls for families with young disabled adults to seek support

Families caring for young disabled adults at home are being offered help by a forward-thinking national charity to improve quality of life. 

Faced with three times higher costs to bring up disabled children, the continuing cost-of-living crisis is placing families in financial jeopardy. It is therefore even  harder to afford the things that improve their disabled young adult’s day-to-day living.  

National charity Family Fund is now urging families with a disabled 18-24 year-old living at home to apply for wide-ranging grants through its Your Opportunity scheme. 

Set up four years ago, to help young disabled adults lead more fulfilling lives and realise ambitions – the scheme offers grants to support the transition to adulthood and includes technology, training and leisure activities.

Your Opportunity has supported over 1,200 families across the UK in the last 12 months and immediate funds are now available to help many more.

Family Fund is the UK’s largest grant-making charity for families living on a low income, raising disabled and seriously ill children and young people. Last year, it provided over 170,919 grants and services worth over £37 million to families across the UK.  

The charity’s latest research, based on polls with the families it supports, shows that over four out of five families (82%) say they cannot replace worn out furniture and nearly four out of five (78%) say they cannot afford to repair or replace major electrical goods such as cookers, fridges or washing machines.

For nearly half of families with disabled children and young people, paying for a beneficial activity or hobby for their disabled child is out of the question.

Cheryl Ward, Family Fund’s Chief Executive Officer, said: “We continue to see families with disabled or seriously ill children and young people increasingly struggling to afford the most basic household essentials like food and heating as costs rise and many face mounting debts. 

“This means there is  very little room for the extras which improve a young person’s quality of life- yet when a child reaches 18, they lose an average of 57% of the support and benefits they had before they reached adulthood.

“Raising a disabled or seriously ill child is three times more expensive than raising other children and this financial cliff-edge at 18 can be very tough for parents and carers of young adults. With the cost of living continuing to increase, we’re urging families to apply to us for grants as soon as possible, through our Your Opportunity scheme.”

Your Opportunity grants include:

  • computers or tablets to support young people with further education, online hobbies and the overall building of independence;
  • transport costs for bus fares for appointments, or to support independent travel to clubs or hobbies;
  • help with the cost of membership fees, season tickets, computer games, and music systems to promote recreation and days out; 
  • help with the cost of buying a provisional driving licence, and other learning materials to support driving ambitions;
  • white goods to help with independence, or help make mealtimes easier for carers;
  • sports, or lightweight, wheelchairs to enable participation in sport activities, or access to activities that would not be possible with a day-to-day wheelchair. 

The Your Opportunity scheme was initially set up in 2019 by Family Fund,  with funding from Edward Gostling Foundation, Pears Foundation and funding raised by Family Fund.

Cheryl Ward added: “We are extremely grateful to The Edward Gostling Foundation and Pears Foundation for recognising the need to support our work in improving the lives of young people across the UK.” 

Families are eligible to apply if the young person lives at home with their parent or main carer. 

Families interested in making an application for a young person should go to: 

Your Opportunity: Help for 18-24 year-olds | Family Fund

George’s story:

George, 22, has Down’s Syndrome and autism. He lives in Derbyshire with mum, Jemma, step-father Shaun and brother Charlie, 19, has breathing problems and requires an oxygen machine when asleep.  

Jemma said: “The cost-of-living crisis has impacted our lives hugely. I worry about it a lot because when you have a child, like George, who requires the use of an oxygen machine overnight, your bills are horrendous. 

“After George turned 18, a lot of the support finished but life didn’t get any easier. Our lives didn’t change, and we still need support. 

“I’ve always been frugal with things but it’s getting to a point where I think I literally can’t cut back anymore. I shop in the cheaper supermarkets and buy the reduced items. I do everything that I can but it comes to a point where there’s nothing more that you can do. We don’t ever eat out or have takeaways. 

“We’ve not been on holiday, or go on day trips. Also, because I’m a carer, I can’t even do more hours at work because I don’t have anyone else to look after George. Everything is going up but we don’t have any more money.

 “The biggest worry for me is the cost of electricity and running George’s oxygen machine. I genuinely have no idea if I’m going to be able to run that at Christmas. If the cost goes up even more then I probably won’t be able to. 

“Furthermore, the cost of fuel is huge. It’s got to the point where I only drive to work and back. I used to take George on drives to visit places, but we can’t afford to do that anymore.”

George enjoys singing and performing arts at his specialist college and his family are anxious to be able to support activities that further improve his quality of life at home.  

Grants from the Your Opportunity scheme have helped the family purchase items  – a swinging garden chair and a computer – which they could not otherwise have afforded.

Jemma added: “George absolutely loves the chair. He never used to sit outside before, but now he spends hours on it rocking, so when the weather is fine he is able to sit out and enjoy time in the garden.

“George also uses the computer for his specialised programmes that help his conditions through education and entertainment. He loves technology.” 

Picture shows: George in his swinging garden chair

Day-to-day living spirals down for families with disabled children

As winter approaches, families with disabled or seriously ill children face dauntingly grave financial challenges, according to latest research findings.

In its latest poll, national charity Family Fund shows how prospects for the families it supports continue to worsen, as they grapple with the ever-rising cost of living for day-to-day needs. 

As the UK’s largest grant-making charity for families raising disabled and seriously ill children, on the lowest incomes, Family Fund provides essential goods and services to families including kitchen appliances, clothing, bedding, play and sensory equipment and much-needed family breaks.

Last year, it delivered over 170,919 grants and services, worth over £37 million, to families on low incomes across the UK.  

The charity’s Cost of Caring report, published last month for the first time, showed deteriorating conditions for families with disabled and seriously ill children. The report covered four quarterly polls in the year that followed the pandemic.

However, the latest quarterly poll, from September this year, shows an ever worsening picture, with families facing hunger and spiralling debts as they struggle to meet the needs of their children.

Families face a triple whammy of sky-high costs on top of severely reduced incomes, due to intense caring responsibilities and three-times-higher costs to look after a disabled child.

Over 70% of parents and carers report not being able to work at all, or as much as they want to, because of the care their children need, a post-pandemic reduction in support services for children, and parents being furloughed and living on reduced benefits.

Cheryl Ward, Family Fund’s Chief Executive Officer, said: “Our latest figures show that families with disabled and seriously ill children continue to face daunting financial challenges, which are worsening as winter approaches. 

“The majority of families who have been supported by Family Fund have shared with us how they are struggling to cover mounting debts and worry constantly about how they are going to clothe and feed their children, fund transport for medical appointments and heat their homes.  . 

“We are doing everything we can to support families whose costs are already three times higher to care for, and raise, their disabled children than costs for other children. We urge families who need support with urgent and essential items this winter to go to our website (Family Fund) to see if we can help them.”

Key findings from latest quarterly poll with UK families raising a disabled child or young person:

Impact on households:

  • average household income for families has fallen by over £660 in the last 12 months;
  • almost 60% of families (59%) report an increase in household bills of more than £100 a month;
  • 9 in ten families report they are struggling or falling behind on household bills (92%);
  • one in five families (21%) say their debt levels have risen by more than £1,000 in the last 12 months;
  • nearly 80 per cent of families (78%) have no savings to fall back on;
  • 75% of families say they would not be able to save £10 a month;
  • 58% have cut or skipped meals;
  • 40% have gone hungry because there was not enough money for food;
  • 48% are cutting back on energy;
  • over one third (35%) of families are cutting back on transport costs;
  • over one third (31%) of households said they have gone without carpets because they can’t afford them;
  • 11% have gone without a cooker or fridge;
  • 23% have gone without curtains;
  • 20% have gone without beds;
  • 27% have used a food bank;

Impact on disabled children:

  • 63% of families have cut back on play and recreational activities with their disabled child;
  • 31% are cutting back on toys or sensory toys for their disabled child;
  • 16% said they would like fresh fruit or vegetables every day for their disabled child;
  • 10 % said they would like a warm winter coat for their disabled child;
  • 76 % said their disabled child’s health and wellbeing had declined in some way over the last 12 months.

The Cost of Caring: Report reveals families raising disabled children are ‘struggling to survive’

Stark research findings released today by national charity Family Fund show 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 Cost of Caring” covers research with 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 (54%) report skipping or cutting the size of their meals because there wasn’t enough money for food (a 9% increase since September 2021)  and more than one in ten (13%) say they have had to cut back on items that are essential for their disabled children. 

Four in five families (83%) raising a disabled child or young person are in debt, with rising debt levels for two in five families (43%) polled, and over 40% report they can’t afford to keep accommodation warm – a 13% increase since last December.

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. Families receive only one hour a week of respite and support, on average, and less than one in four parents and carers are able to work full time, with over half not able to work at all.

Family Fund’s report highlights the, now, unsustainable strain on families raising disabled and seriously ill children and young people , as they try to cover sky-high costs on top of severely reduced incomes due to intense caring responsibilities, three times higher costs to look after a disabled child and critical levels of debt.

With sustained cuts to support services, which have not recovered post-pandemic, families are now having to pay, themselves, for therapies and specialist equipment for their children, such as educational and sensory items and toys.

As the UK’s largest grant-making charity for families raising disabled and seriously ill children on the lowest incomes, Family Fund provides essential goods for families including kitchen appliances, clothing, bedding, play and sensory equipment and much-needed family breaks.

Last year, it delivered over 170,919 grants and services, worth over £37 million, to families on low incomes across the UK.  

Wider research findings include:

·       Almost all families raising disabled children (98%) report paying more than families with non-disabled children due to specialist needs – clothing (74%), food and groceries (73%), technology such as tablets (66%), toiletries and hygiene products (60%) and replacing worn or broken household items (60%);

·       In September 2021, families raising disabled children reported an increase in their household bills of, on average, £800 a year. By June 2022, even before current price rises, this increase was over £1,500.

·       Three in five families (62%) reported cutting back on play, leisure and recreational activities with their disabled children during the last year;

·       In the past year, 50% of families report their disabled children’s physical health has worsened and 68% say their disabled children’s mental health has deteriorated.

·       1 in 5 families report taking on more credit to keep up with existing credit commitments

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.”

West Midlands parent: “How will I be able to keep my disabled child warm for medical reasons…this coming winter when I’m struggling to pay gas and electric in summer?

“How will I afford petrol, which I need as I have two children with physical disabilities including one in a wheelchair. And the cost of food, and availability of safe food for an autistic child if shortages start happening. I worry every day and night over this.”

North West England parent: “Caring for our child is not the issue, she is the light of our lives. Being able to access the right care, education and support in order to provide me the opportunity to work is the key.”

The Cost of Caring features research from the charity’s last four quarterly family polls, from September 2021 to June 2022, ahead of a new September poll coming soon. 

1055_ff_cost_of_caring_report_website_versionDownload

Disabled children’s charity calls for further cost-of-living support

National charity, Family Fund,has welcomed the Government’s one-off £150 cost-of-living payment for 6 million disabled adults and children from September, but warns more support will be needed given today’s uplift of the Energy Price Cap.

Cheryl Ward, Family Fund Chief Executive, said: “We know that current severe inflationary pressures are affecting millions of people across the land, but for families caring for disabled and seriously ill children, who have even greater costs, the outlook is very grave. The choices between putting food on the table, paying for energy or clothing and sensory equipment are stark”.

Family Fund, the UK’s largest grant-making charity for families with disabled or seriously ill children and young people, acknowledges that the much-needed Government cash will go some way to ease the burden of bills, as the cost of living soars, but that more support will be needed in the coming months.

The charity provides essential items for families on the lowest incomes, including kitchen appliances, clothing, bedding, play equipment and much-needed family breaks.

Parents and carers raising a disabled or seriously child can face costs some three times higher than for other families. A grant from the charity can make all the difference for parents; helping to relieve their everyday stresses by providing essentials needed to care for their children.

“We very much welcome this latest £150 payment from Government”, said Cheryl Ward, “but we know from the increasing calls we are now getting from our families, facing spiralling costs on every front, that more support will be needed. We are therefore, along with other charities, asking ministers to consider urgently how future support can be given.”

In recent research, three quarters of families supported by Family Fund say their financial situation has worsened significantly since the pandemic. 

Even before today’s Energy Price Cap uplift, two thirds of families with disabled children are struggling to pay energy bills and nearly one quarter say they are already falling behind with bills.

The cost of living crisis is, therefore, hitting many who are already in an extremely financially vulnerable position.