Council funding is 'too late' to help families in need

Children in Poverty Inverclyde's chairman Pat Burke told the Tele that he was unable to apply for a Warm Hand of Friendship grant because it wouldn't have come in time to provide outdoor clothing.

Inverclyde Council introduced the scheme to support activities, warms spaces, and resources during the winter months, with the first grants coming in December.

Pat Burke  (Image: George Munro) Instead he had to use donations which would have otherwise went towards holidays next year to get winter coats and jackets to youngsters in time for temperatures plummeting.

He said: "I have seen some pretty awful things in recent weeks and we are getting drawn further and further into providing beds, carpets, food, clothing vouchers which of course other agencies are set up to do.

"The two child benefit cap and removal of the Winter Fuel Payment will result in a pretty desperate for many at Christmas.

"From our perspective, their need is more immediate than in January and February."

He added: "For the last couple of weeks we have been handing in warm outdoor clothing to help with freezing temperatures.

"We wouldn't have been able to that if we waited for the Warm Hand of Friendship funding."

Children in Poverty Inverclyde (Image: George Munro) The charity chairman said that he was frustrated by the bureaucracy despite his appeals to the officers and took the decision not to pursue the funding.

He added: "It's a pity that officers cannot factor this into their decision making.

"It cannot be that difficult to release funds for successful applications by November 30, which would benefit the most deprived families in what shall be a very cold and bleak winter."

Instead he used nearly £5,000 from local donors that would have been put towards their holidays throughout the year to instead help those in crisis.

Children in Poverty Inverclyde's Christmas appeal includes donations of winter coats for children from low income families, as well as funding activities for the Christmas holidays. They also hand out hundreds of toys to frontline services.

Pat thanked the likes of the  Provincial Grand Lodge of West Renfrewshire along with The Regent Club for coming to the charity's aid.

Inverclyde Council’s Warm Hand of Friendship initiative was established in 2022 and has been extended for another three years until 2027.

An Inverclyde Council spokesperson added: "The initiative is on top of various other supports we provide throughout the year, such as clothing grants, crisis grants, and Council Tax discounts, to protect the most vulnerable in our communities and ensure help gets to the families and individuals who need it the most.

“Grants totalling £200,000 have been distributed to hundreds of community groups in each of the last two years and, in turn, supported thousands of residents through Inverclyde’s Warm Hand of Friendship with another £120,000 committed for this year and also in 2025 and 2026 to continue the scheme through until March 2027.

“That’s a financial commitment of £560,000 to help struggling families and individuals during the harsh winter months."

The scheme opened for applications on October 10, around seven weeks earlier than in 2023, and applications received before October 31 will start to receive grants in early December.

The spokesperson said: “Staff have worked incredibly hard to launch the scheme, process applications, and administer grants as quickly as possible and in a very short space of time.

“The charity applied for Warm Hand of Friendship funding last year and received a grant of £2,250 in December 2023."