Little Miracles, a Local Independent Charity started Koestler artist Michelle King, has experienced an overwhelming increase in demand for their services. This is the case across the whole area of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough. In April alone, the organization supported over 5,000 individuals, highlighting the urgent need for its offerings, which include counselling, therapy, activities, and family support.
The highest anxiety about this increased demand is coming from families with children with more involved needs. King reflected on what is at stake, commenting, “It’s terrifying to fight for so many lives. Like many charities, it is struggling to keep up with the increased demand for its services. Alarm bells are sounding as grocery store deliveries dry up, jeopardizing their critical capacity to serve hungry families.
Little Miracles’ running out of food went viral last week, shining a spotlight on the dire straits the organization has been operating. King acknowledged that these conditions are a sad state of affairs from what she had hoped for when opening the doors to Little Miracles 15 years ago.
“This is not what we expected when we set up 15 years ago,” – Michelle King
Support for families often feels like a patchwork, but it has become even more confusing in light of many recent policy announcements. We are still reeling from last month’s Spring Statement, where Chancellor Rachel Reeves unveiled her planned benefit cuts. She’s specifically aiming at amendments to Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and Universal Credit. These cuts are intended to save £5 billion through 2030 and incentivize people to enter the workforce.
In her emotional speech, King underscored what the cuts would mean for low-income families. She stated, “The new proposals are scaring people. They are feeling uncertain and anxious. It is a very tricky time.” Little Miracles is preparing for a more challenging demand. That’s a significant change given that more families will likely look to them for help.
As a result, the charity’s dependence on fundraising has grown more and more fragile. King remarked, “We are so dependent on our fundraising, but there are less people who are in a position to give now.” She underscored how unacceptable it is for millions of families to be in such anguish and want, describing the situation as “heartbreaking.”
“There shouldn’t be so many families in a state of worry and in dire need really. It is a heartbreaking situation,” – Michelle King
King also highlighted that the bar for qualifying for social services is ridiculously high. As a consequence, charities such as Little Miracles are filling the gap and working with those who don’t fulfil these criteria. This reality has placed an insurmountable stress load on the organization.
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