ANGLICARE launches winter appeal
Community organisations like ANGLICARE Sydney are struggling to meet the demand for their services as the need grows with the worsening financial crisis.
Launching its winter appeal today, ANGLICARE Sydney says their emergency relief centres, already working at capacity, are being stretched to the limit to meet the needs of an increasing number of people.
Data collected from four out of six ANGLICARE Sydney emergency relief centres during the second half of 2008 indicate a 19.1 per cent increase in the number of people requesting or receiving assistance. This compares with an increase of just 4.7 per cent for the same period in 2007.
“Workers at our Campbelltown ER centre indicated that they had to refer 145 people to other places in January 09 compared to 85 last year. Furthermore, while 955 clients were interviewed between October and December last year, 461 people were unable to get an appointment,” says ANGLICARE Sydney CEO Peter Kell.
In many instances, the increase client interviews mirrored a rise in utility and rental costs adversely impacting social security recipients. Problems have also been compounded by insecurity in the job market and reductions in part-time or casual employment hours.
Four out of the six emergency relief centres are also seeing an increasing complexity and a higher incidence of mental health issues. One ER centre has seen people come in after hospitalisation following suicide attempts. All were in serious financial difficulties and felt there was no other way out.
Felicia Fitzgerald, an ANGLICARE Sydney Emergency Relief Coordinator has been at the forefront of the increase in requests for food and rent assistance in Mt Druitt and its surrounding suburbs.
“When our new ER program began in Richmond this month, the first four clients we saw presented with issues related to job loss,” says Felicia.
“So many people are out of work and behind on their rents. I’m finding that almost every second person that comes in for assistance has something to do with unemployment.
“One man hadn’t eaten for two days. Centrelink had only paid him half his payment and it all went on rent. The rental market is so cut throat at the moment that people don’t want to lose their place because affordable rental in this area is so hard to find.”
Some ANGLICARE workers have noted that Emergency Relief interviews can be a levelling experience where clients are confronted with the possibility that, with no jobs on the horizon, things could get much worse.
In some of these cases they have advised the clients to make contingency plans for the high possibility they may not find work in the next few months.
For more information or to donate to ANGLICARE’s Winter Appeal contact 132622 or visit http://www.anglicare.org.au/how-can-i-help/donate/
