2022: cost-of-living emergency appeal
Channel: Church Action on Poverty
Date: 2022-04-14

Millions of people face being swept into poverty this year, by soaring living costs and squeezed incomes.

Make no mistake: people will go perilously cold, go hungry, and become isolated and destitute on a scale none of us has seen before. 

In a compassionate, rich country, this should be unthinkable and we must not stand by. That’s why we have launched this emergency appeal.

An emergency lifeline
Church Action on Poverty has always pressed for lasting change to tackle the root causes of poverty. We continue to do so, day in day out. But right now, we are also asking for donations to help alleviate the immediate emergency facing people up and down the country.

We know many will not be in a position to help, due to your own financial situation. But if you are able to ride out this storm, and can help people in more pressing need, please do so.

The Government has announced some lifelines, and you may find you receive one you don’t personally need, such as the council tax rebate this month. If you don’t need that lifeline yourself, could you pass it on to help someone who does?

How your gift will help
We will use 75p from every £1 to support Your Local Pantry projects run by our partners, such as the one at North End Baptist Church in Portsmouth. There, co-manager Jo Green says members are petrified of putting the heating on, as bills soar.

Pantries enable households to save up to £780 a year on groceries in a way that maintains individual dignity and choice. They create community togetherness, something we urgently need right now. 

“Being a Pantry member means ‘healthier meals, less stress, more money to pay bills’”
(St Andrew’s Pantry, Liverpool)

None of us is comfortable seeing our neighbours going hungry or desperate. We saw that during the pandemic, when neighbourhoods all over the country pulled together to look out for one another. We need a similar unity now.

“It saves me so much money and I know I will always come away with things I wouldn’t usually be able to afford.”
(Dusty Forge Pantry, Cardiff)

Donations will ensure Pantry volunteers can support as many people as possible, and will ensure shelves remain well-stocked for people with no other wriggle room in their budget. The remaining 25p in the pound will support Church Action on Poverty’s wider work of partnering with people and communities to tackle poverty together.

“Being a Pantry member I pay the bills, I didn’t make ends meet before”
(Manna House Pantry, Birmingham)