Are you seeing much poverty and despair where you are at the minute?

[whereisitgoing]

I'm not sure if I can face doing my volunteering shift this weekend at a street soup kitchen (still have time to cancel) as not sure I can be tough enough and keep my mask in place. It is the first Christmas since my mum died and I'm crumbling.

Usually I love my volunteer shift, it's really brutal though to see the dire straits people are in. So much despair. The numbers needing help have exploded since covid and this winter are considerably higher again. At the moment I just don't think I can do it, everything seems quite bleak.

Sometimes people are at the end of their tether when they get to us and they are understandably and justifiably stressed and irritated - normally I can handle this without any bother, but not sure I can do it this weekend.

The kitchen will have loads of volunteers so it won't matter if I'm not there anyway. But it has me wondering, are you seeing more people needing help where you are this winter? Is there more palpable despair and anger out there, or am I just projecting my own shit year?

Yes, lots of people struggling. I’ve volunteered with the local baby bank recently and the demand has surged. My job involves lots of home visiting, and some things I see are really shocking.

Our family is just about making ends meet and DH and I are both on decent salaries so it’s only logical that those on lower wages or income support will be struggling with cost of living.

I see desperate poverty. Yes, through my work, but never seen poverty like it. Children are hungry, food banks are overstretched, people can't afford to heat their homes, feed and clothe their children. The cold leeches into your bones. It is the most depressing, heartbreaking thing. Especially with the elderly and the young.

I'm sure Marks and Sparks are booming. That's not a barometer for the how the vulnerable in society are managing. They are a world apart and will be suffering right under your nose.

You might think all is ok. You might give to charity each month and feel you've done your bit. You haven't done enough. Every day at work now I'm fighting for food, clothes, fuel vouchers for my clients. 5 years ago this would be a small part of my job, now it's most of my time.

I work in a supermarket, there is a trolly for donations for the food bank.

The first Christmas I worked there, there was a 2nd trolly full of toys/games. Yes I know some of that could have come from the supermarket itself.

This Christmas the trolly is barely half full each week - and I know the contents are collected every Monday by the charity that holds the food bank so I know it's not half full because it's just been emptied.

Every single week on the local social media page there is someone asking about food banks /where to get help.

Every single week there will be a post from a family that has been served a section 21 notice - and they are looking for a 2 or 3 bed rental.

Most of these families will become homeless, that means they will be placed into emergency temporary accommodation by the local authority - where they are placed depends on what the Council has available that day.

So it could be one room in a travelodge or one room in a ' hotel ' - not the type of hotel that most MN's would book a holiday in, or it could be a room in a HMO.
It may not even be in the town that they lived in previously, it could be in a town in the next Local Authority.

These families will be moved on a frequent basis - something to do with Local Authority or National Govt guidelines or figures ( am sure someone else can come along with the correct reason )
It might just be a move from room 8 to room 13 in the same HMO - its still a move ! and it's only something like 24 hours notice :(

It will be a long time before the majority for these families get offered social housing. They will be heavily encouraged to find a private landlord and now they are homeless they are ' less desirable ' for most landlords so they have to look at homes that previously they would not have touched with a bargepole.

A quick look at the results page on Devon Home Choice shows a 3 bed house went to a family who had been on the housing list since Oct 2018, band C and 146 other families had bid for it, the lucky family were 33 on the list.
band C is a fairly normal rating so I guess the family were in a 2 bed property previously.

Another property went to a band B family, 153 families had bid on it, and the family that were successful were 2nd in line They had been band B since March 2022 so that would indicate they were a homeless family.

So not all homelessness is visible, and not all homeless are rough sleepers.

Gosh ! I think I write far too much.

I hear what you are saying, but your post seems to suggest that people are being smug and don't care. I've read all the posts and I'm.not sure what else.you want everyone to do. I've already posted previously that as you point out, I give to charity and consider who I vote for. I also do a few other things that hopefully contribute to supporting those who are struggling. I'm a teacher and have worked in some.really deprived communities where the educational opportunitues we offer make a real difference for long term change. I'm.not sitting back and smugly chilling out thinking that 'I've done my bit'. I just dont know what else I can do. It doesn't mean I shouldn't do anything.