Grace House looks to support families with disabled children through the cost of living crisis

The building society has provided the Sunderland based charity with a grant of £4,997 to set up weekly support sessions with the help of Citizens Advice Sunderland.

The sessions allow parents with disabled children to get financial advice on managing tight budgets as well as being signposted on how to access eligible benefits and debt relief and management.

Sessions also help families to cope with food poverty, including providing “food hampers and lunch box top-ups”.

Grace House chief executive officer, Victoria Brown, said: “It can be hard for anyone to talk about money problems at the best of times, but what we’ve found is that by welcoming our families into a familiar, comfortable environment, they’re more willing to discuss these issues and can therefore more easily get the help they require.

“We’ve had some really positive feedback from the families that have used the service so far and it’s clearly helping to break down barriers that might otherwise have stopped them getting the help they need.

“Newcastle Building Society’s support has meant we’ve been able to cover the costs of this project without having to take money from our other services, and we’re really grateful to have had their backing to help meet this urgent local need.”

The challenges of caring for a disabled child can often leave such families more vulnerable to financial pressures.

Victoria added: “Families with disabled children often find themselves facing financial challenges due to the extra lengths they need to go to to provide the care required, with one parent often having to give up work to make sure everything that has to be done can be.

“The cost-of-living crisis that we’re all experiencing has hit many of these families especially hard and we’ve responded by looking to provide practical advice and support on money matters wherever it’s required.”

The grant was provided through the Newcastle Building Society Community Fund at the Community Foundation Tyne & Wear and Northumberland, which offers grants to charities and community groups located in or around the communities served by the Society's branch network. 

Robert Boak, manager at Newcastle Building Society’s Sunderland branch and who recently visited Grace house, said: “Grace House has been helping North East families meet a whole host of challenges for the last two decades and has made an incalculable difference to the lives of thousands of disabled children and young people.

“We’re very pleased to be helping this excellent community charity to provide even more practical support when and where it’s needed the most.”

Since its launch in 2016, Newcastle Building Society’s Community Fund at the Community Foundation has contributed over £2.3m in grants and partnerships to a wide variety of charities and projects across the region, including the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation and the Prince’s Trust.