We are raising funds to allow us to continue providing our service to local families living in financial hardship.
by Baby Bank Scotland in Hamilton, Scotland, United Kingdom
We support families living in financial hardship by appealing to the local community to donate items they no longer use in order for us to pass on to those in need. Each pack is prepared to the specific needs of each family ensuring they receive the items they need to support their young children. Families are either referred to us via a support worker, this could be a health visitor or social worker, or families may also self refer themselves by submitting an application for to our service. The families we support are mainly new mums or those with very young children. They can be experiencing financial hardship for a multitude of reasons, poverty, ill health, domestic abuse, immigration. Through the support we offer, we relieve the financial pressures these families are under, the items we provide would in large be entirely unaffordable to these families and this would have a huge impact on family life and the ability to provide a safe and secure start in life for their children. In offering our support, we not only ensure a better start in life but we also relieve the financial pressures on families, allowing them to create some disposable income to focus on food, heating and electricity costs. This eases the burden of limited finances and allows these families some breathing space to become more financially resilient.
In turn, we are repurposing tonnes of baby equipment, clothing and footwear that would otherwise be going to land fill and therefore creating a more sustainable community.