The charity seeks to help very vulnerable children from some of Glasgow’s most deprived communities and their families overcome the effects of alcohol, drug abuse and domestic violence to ensure they get a decent start in life.
Research has shown that thousands of families struggle at this time of the year simply to ensure that their homes are heated. Many will go without food and Christmas gifts for their children in a desperate fight to keep their homes lit and heated.
If a family gets into arrears with their fuel payments their supplier can grab up to 70% of these payments to pay off the arrears. That means only 30p in every one pound spent goes into heating the home.
With Kids, Business Development Manager, Angela Beattie said: “At this time of year a distressingly high number of families and their children are at risk of freezing in their own homes because they simply cannot afford to heat them. And the winter we are currently experiencing is causing real material hardship for the most vulnerable in our city.
“We have also found that hundreds of families will be unable to provide their children with Christmas gifts because they scraped together what little they have to prevent their gas and electricity supplies being turned off. And although families with children under the age of five will rarely have their supplies stopped they find it impossible to struggle free of their fuel debt and will go without food to keep paying.
“One of the ways in which we try to help combat this is to organise a Christmas party on Christmas Eve with the help of Strathclyde Fire and Rescue. This year’s event at Calton Fire Station will see 200 families being given presents that they otherwise wouldn’t have. This means they have one thing less to worry about as they fight to pay the winter fuel bills.
“But the bigger issue remains: what are government and fuel suppliers, whose prices are set to jump again this winter, doing to ensure the most needy in our society can be helped.”
With Kids is one of the Evening Times Community Champions. This year’s Christmas Party will see poor kids experience for the first time what others take for granted. This will include a Christmas meal, games and a visit from Santa Claus. The Calton firefighters will be on hand to give the children rides on the fire engines and they’ll host the party.
For those who want to donate cash or gifts to help pay for the With Kids Christmas Party please contact Angela Beattie on:
Telephone 0141 550 5770 or e mail a.beattie@withkids.org.uk
You can also donate on line by visiting www.justgiving.com/withkids
Written by Kevin McKenna, The Word Agency. Email kevin@wordagency.net
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