THOUSANDS of people in the North East are left to suffer the consequences of rising everyday costs. The continuous increase means people are having to pay more to keep warm and fed as the country endures the worst cost of living crisis in three decades.
“I am finding it tight, so places like the foodbank are a lifeline,” Paul Kelly told The Northern Echo on a visit to the King’s Foodbank off Whessoe Road, Darlington, which provides food and financial and employment support and advice to people affected by hardship.
Mr Kelly’s energy bills have shot up rapidly in the last few months, even though he’s using similar amounts of fuel. The past year has seen him in and out of work and although he’s currently unemployed he’s confident of receiving a salary soon.
However, the current £270 monthly benefits payment he receives means he has to prioritise heating his home over food supplies.
Households are facing the highest inflation for nearly 30 years and more pain is on the horizon with rocketing energy bills and a tax hike due this spring.
Calls are growing for the Government to do more to tackle the cost of living squeeze, including axing April’s planned national insurance increase.
Mr Kelly visits the foodbank “once every couple of weeks” and praises the camaraderie and dedication of all the volunteers who go out their way to help people struggling financially and mentally.
“When I was working I was receiving £500 a week and then that went down to £270 a month. What they are giving me and what comes out of my funds leaves me with just pennies - it’s a bit of a vicious cycle.
“Places like this are a godsend.”
Caroline Todd, manger at the King’s Foodbank, summarised the dilemma people in Darlington are facing.
“The people who are coming back to us is because of the cost of living,” she said. Ms Todd lamented the lack of produce available on the shelves, which is having a detrimental impact on receiving supplies at the foodbank she manages.
She added: “Every time I have gone in to get food there’s hardly anything on the shelves. How are people going to cope?”
The food bank has been helping residents for 10 years and operates an “open-door policy”, welcoming visitors new and old to use its service.
“We want to empower people to deal with their situations and not just give out food,” Ms Todd said. “That’s why we see if we can signpost people to anything that can help them deal with their circumstances.”
Yet volunteers at the facility have, worryingly, documented an increase in visitors, especially since the coronavirus pandemic.
Ms Todd explained: “It feels like it’s gone full circle since we opened in 2012,” said Ms Todd. “It was a case of heating or eating then too. Each season brings along a new crisis.
“We have got people living on £250 a month and families are getting benefit caps. It’s like a Victorian tax. It breaks my heart - why should children have to suffer?
“The cost of inflation is so huge that the rise in benefits does not match it. What’s a couple of pounds now?”
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