Progress towards £30,000 target
100%
Donate now

Thanks to our supporters, we reached our Big Give Christmas Challenge target of £30,000. In just one week!

Donations made towards our Money Matters project through the Big Give Christmas Challenge were doubled, and so have double the impact too. Funds raised are helping our expert staff to enable people with learning disabilities and their families to cope through the cost of living crisis by providing a diverse range of activities and support. 

Thank you - your gift will make a difference to the lives of local people with learning disabilities, today and in the future.

We'd like to say a big thank you to our charity champion Monday Charitable Trust and to our pledgers including Southwell & District Lions and local individuals.

If you have any questions would like more information about our Money Matters project and our plans for 2023, please email laura.carr@reachuk.org.

When Guy was short-changed in a shop recently, he was able to ask for the right money because of skills he’d learnt in Reach Newark’s numeracy class.

“I was dead proud that I felt confident enough to tell the man behind the counter that I got given the wrong change. He was really helpful. Every penny makes a big difference.”

– Guy, Reach Newark.

The cooking class has helped me to do more in the kitchen and more ideas of what to cook. Using the one pot cooking has helped save me time and money."

– Sarah, Reach Southwell

Catherine is supporting family carers to explore ways to cover the additional costs of caring for someone with a disability.

“Imagine worrying about the running costs of your son’s CPAP machine which helps him breathe at night. Or maybe you need extra help to remember how to shop and cook economically. For some, it is going to be a long, hard winter with worries about future cost of living increases.”

– Catherine, Carers Manager.

Image
Image
Watch a short film of our previous holidays and days out - a lovely reminder of the fun times we've shared and can hopefully look forward to again thanks to your support. 

Watch a short film of our previous holidays and days out - a lovely reminder of the fun times we've shared and can hopefully look forward to again.

Why people with learning disabilities and their families need your support

Hi I'm Catherine and it's my role to support family carers of people with learning disabilites.

The current cost of living crisis is having an increasingly negative effect on family carers, many of whom are unable to work because of their caring responsibilities. Unfortunately, the benefit system provides minimal financial support to carers themselves and, even when combined with statutory benefits for the person they care for, the financial impact can be devastating. It is well documented that benefits have not kept pace with inflation. It is perhaps less widely understood that people who have care and support needs met by their Local Authority must now pay a large portion of these benefits towards the cost of that care and support.

The rising costs of fuel and food means that carers are having to be more cautious than most. Some of the work I do entails maximising benefits for both the carer and the person whom they support, reducing council tax costs where possible and reviewing income and expenditure to consider what costs might be reduced. It is especially important that lone carers can call on Reach to support them when they feel that they have no-one else to turn to. For some, it is going to be a long and hard winter with worries about future cost of living increases.

Reach will continue to work side by side with families through this difficult time. With the help of our supporters, we can see people through.

Many of our clients and families have approached our Centre Managers for help with worries over increased costs-of-living. Some report they are feeling more anxious, others that eating well can be challenging on a tight budget. Our Carers Manager hears every day from families not accessing their full entitlement to benefits & support.

Donations towards our Money Matters project will help us to offer support to people with learning disabilities and family carers to gain the skills and knowledge needed to stay healthy and well on a budget.

  • learn how to stay healthier on a budget by taking part in courses and activities eg numbers in everyday life, healthy cookery on a budget and low-cost social activities
  • have opportunity to gain budgeting skills and feel more confident about managing their money.

Funds raised will also help Centre teams to enable family carers to find out about the full range of support to which they could be entitled.

This year, we are once again taking part in the Big Give Christmas Challenge, aiming to raise £30,000 towards our Money Matters project. We know how tough the cost-of-living crisis is for many of our clients and families, and just how worried people are. So we have developed our Money Matters project to help people with learning disabilities gain the skills and knowledge they need to stay well on a budget. We're also supporting family carers who may be struggling with extra worries over increased costs.

#ChristmasChallenge22 #onedonationtwicetheimpact

Share this Page