The ‘cost of living’ crisis continues to take a toll on organisations and individuals across our communities. The reality is that, for those who were already facing disadvantage, the issues are often compounded.
We launched our ‘cost of living’ fund in 2022 to support the many local organisations providing essential services to their communities. Since this time, we have seen further increases in the number of organisations applying for financial support.
Large numbers of our charitable and voluntary sector organisations are seeing many more people walk through their doors; and those that do often have more complex problems. Not only this, but these same organisations are facing additional challenges themselves, with rising costs and sometimes falling levels of funding. Over the last 12 months, with the support of our partner organisations and fundholders, we have distributed grants to front-line organisations offering vital support with food and fuel poverty, debt advice, and health and mental wellbeing support. We have worked in partnership with local authorities, including with Bristol City Council with whom we have run grant programmes to support welcoming spaces across the city and multiple rounds of small Social Impact grants.
Our grants programmes are often inundated with far more applications than we can fund. We know the crisis is not easing any time soon, so it’s vital that we continue to provide this much needed funding.
You can donate any amount, no matter how small or large.. If you are considering making a significant donation, please do speak first with our Philanthropy Director, Ronnie Brown. He will be able to offer advice on how best to give and provide further information if needed.
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