Call for local financial hardship stories to inspire better services
January 19, 2023
“What’s YOUR story?” That’s the question that Stella Sukram and Lois Sparling of the South Lakes Poverty Truth Commission (PTC) are asking people across South Lakeland this new year. Could you step up and share your story to improve services for your local community?
Hosted by Cumbria CVS, the project aims to capture the real-life experience of anyone who has struggled financially in recent times – before, during and after Covid – and through the current cost of living crisis. Those stories will be shared with the people who run our local charities, businesses and services and followed up to make sure that the needs of individuals and families at the sharp end are taken into account at every stage.
The idea for the Commission was initially sparked when local councillors read a report on the number of households in poverty during the first year of Covid. Suzie Pye, Portfolio Holder for Health, Wellbeing and Poverty Alleviation at South Lakeland District Council, recalls: “We were shocked to see the percentages of children growing up in relative poverty in our hub towns of Kendal, Ulverston and Windermere and felt we had to take action to address it.”
Jointly funded by local government, the NHS and the National Lottery, the project aims to uncover and get to grips with the issues behind all aspects of poverty in the area by talking to the people who really know.
“Nationally, prices are rising, wages and benefits are not keeping pace and people who were ‘just about managing’ find themselves struggling.” says Lois. “But in our area, property prices and rents are much higher than average, social housing is scarce and the work available is largely shift work on minimum wage, often seasonal and not in places with affordable housing. Even those who own their homes – like many of our farmers – are facing huge rises in their costs at the same time as real-term reductions in their income.”
Stella adds, “Local services are doing what they can to support people through the current crisis with very limited resources, but they know that there are still people falling through the gaps. Roughly half of people claiming universal credit in our area are also working – work just isn’t paying enough for them to cover their bills. We need the expertise of people with real-life experience to inspire real-life change. Whatever your story, we’d love to hear it.”
To share YOUR story with the Commission, or offer help with the Commission’s work, email southlakesptc@cumbriacvs.org.uk, or give Lois a call on 07458 058536.
