Cambridge Aid is one of the Cambridge City Mayor’s charities for this year
Each year, the Mayor chooses two charities to support, and this year it is Cambridge Aid and Romsey Mill. We are delighted to have been chosen. Mayor Mark Ashton spoke of his desire to reduce inequality in Cambridge, and to make sure that when people are struggling, they know that there is help for them to turn to.
Our longstanding treasurer Paul Ray (pictured above) has just been awarded the British Empire Medal for services to the community in Cambridgeshire. Paul has been our Hon Treasurer for 15 years.
Our trustee Caitriona Bearryman went on Lewis Herbert’s podcast to talk about how Cambridge Aid works with partners across Cambridge and the surrounding area to give joined up, meaningful help to people who are struggling.
Working in Partnership
Jimmy’s often applies to Cambridge Aid for grants. Their Communications Manager was kind enough to write a piece about how Cambridge Aid grants help Jimmy’s to support their clients.
“Jimmy’s Cambridge supports people in the city experiencing homelessness, providing a range of housing options as well as ongoing support to our residents.
“Grants from Cambridge Aid have enhanced the day-to-day life of the people we work with in many ways. One resident with gout received a grant which allowed him to buy decent footwear to make walking a less painful experience for him, along with a good winter coat and some new underwear. For others, the purchase of tablet computers has allowed them to get online, communicate electronically and even watch television. Grants have also been issued so that residents can buy bicycles. This has meant that they are now better able to get around town, vital for attending appointments or getting to and from work.
“As one of our Housing Support workers puts it: “Charities like Cambridge Aid are a real lifeline”. These small grants genuinely make a tangible difference to our residents’ lives.”
Find out more about Jimmy’s Cambridge at www.jimmyscambridge.org.uk
An Appeal for Your Help
Donate to Cambridge Aid online to help us support people through crisis.
We are all facing a squeeze on our incomes, but for some of us there is nothing left to cut. Every day, Cambridge Aid sees applications for help from people who have no room in their budgets for prices to rise. We have already given 22% more grants than we usually would, and economists are predicting that this crisis will continue to develop through the year.
Our trustee Anna was interviewed about how the poorest households are being hit hardest by the cost of living crisis. A higher proportion of their household spending goes on energy bills and food and the IFS estimates that the poorest tenth of households are dealing with an inflation rate of 10.9%. Meanwhile, benefit rates were increased by only 3% in April and won’t be revised until April next year. Councils are struggling to get the £150 council tax rebate out to poorer households because they are less likely to pay their council tax by direct debit, and many people will find that any extra cost of living support they get will be eaten up by debt payments.
The £150 council tax rebate was the same amount as our average grant. With £150 we can help people fleeing domestic violence to buy furniture for the new home they have had to move to; we can help people buy bikes so they can get to work and move on from homelessness; we can help a family to buy a washing machine so they can keep their children’s clothes clean. If you can afford it, please consider donating to Cambridge Aid so we can continue to extend a lifeline to stop people in our communities from falling into crisis.
