News on how the third sector is supporting communities during lockdown
Vital service misses out on cash
A north-east domestic abuse charity faces missing out on government support due to the cash only being made available to a national organisation. A surge of violence in homes has been reported across Scotland during the coronavirus lockdown. The Scottish Government has announced an extra £1.5million for charities Scottish Women’s Aid and Rape Crisis Scotland to help victims. However, Moray Women’s Aid faces missing out on the money because it is not affiliated with the national organisations. The Elgin-based charity reported a record year in 2019 with assistance provided to 582 women and 114 children. Manager Elle Johnston explained groups in Dumfries and Galloway and Falkirk had also been affected by the “unfortunate oversight”. She said: “I was both dismayed and upset when I learned that we were not to receive a penny of this funding because we were not affiliated to the national body. “Our victims of domestic abuse here in Moray deserve the best support available and we would find it difficult to provide services to meet the anticipated increase on demand of our service due to Covid-19.”
Soap for care homes
Charity, Glasgow’s Caring City, has been forging a fight against hygiene poverty, by ensuring that everyone has access to soap during and after the coronavirus lockdown. The charity, which works under the banner SoapAid, has so far handed out nearly 250,000 bars of soap to care homes and care services in Glasgow and the surrounding areas. The service, which usually donates and ships soap and hygiene products abroad, have diverted use back home after the coronavirus left services in need of supplies. Ross Galbraith, founder of Glasgow Caring City, said: “Normally working across the world, we never would have thought that we would have to use this service here at home. “We’ve delivered around 250,000 bars of soap already to places such as care homes and care services.” According to Ross, one of the advantages of working during the lockdown is the community that has developed as a result. “One of the biggest things we’ve noticed during this is the bonds and contacts that have come out of this period, bonds and networks between charities that just didn’t exist in Glasgow before this.”
Sikh community feed thousands
Glasgow's Sikh community has helped over 50,000 people in the city. As lockdown commenced Glasgow three Gurdwaras came together and seven weeks later, the community has since become mobile, helping more than 50,000 people through their mobile foodbank deliveries and other initiatives. Co-founder of the Sikh Foodbank Charandeep Singh said the collective response has been great. He said: "We opened the foodbank on the 21 March. The Gurdwara closed, and they are the hub of our communities. They are not only places where people worship, but where they eat, socialise, and seek advice and comfort. Since then, we have delivered over 25,000 meals in seven weeks.” Charandeep stresses the response effort is multi-faith, both in those delivering and those receiving. One quarter of food parcels go to Muslim households as the project’s reach continues to grow. Alongside these, they also deliver medicine and provide a language service to ensure everyone understands the crisis and developments as they unfold. Volunteers speak Punjab, Hindu and Urdu.
Can you spare a few moments to help fight poverty?
The Poverty and Inequality Commission wants to understand the experiences of community organisations that are providing emergency food aid in Scotland. It has launched the Local Action in Scotland to Tackle Food Insecurity during the Coronavirus Crisis survey, and wants groups to detail their experiences. The commission is keen to ensure that experiences in communities across Scotland are shared in the national survey. The survey is open until Friday (May 22) and take part by clicking this link
Businessman helps Bangladeshis
An Edinburgh businessman is trying to help thousands of Bangladeshi garment workers hit by cancelled orders during the coronavirus outbreak. Cally Russell said the country was left with mountains of unsold clothes in factories after UK retailers pulled out of their contracts. Now the 32-year-old is planning to sell the clothes in the UK at half price in boxes based on customer's preferences. The money will then go to help clothing workers who have lost their jobs. Mr Russell, who is the CEO of online clothing retailer platform Mallzee, has created the new venture called Lost Stock. Shoppers can buy a £35 box of clothes worth £70 after filling in a questionnaire about their size and taste in clothes. The boxes will then be made up in Bangladesh before being shipped to the UK. The shoppers do not get to choose the items but the boxes have been tailored to each customer.
