10 November 2011
Community Foundation Network, working in partnership with Saga, today launches its Surviving Winter Appeal at the House of Commons. Surviving Winter is a UK-wide campaign to encourage people to make donations to help older and vulnerable people who cannot afford to pay their fuel bills.
The campaign is inspired by individuals who say they want to donate their Winter Fuel Payment to support older and vulnerable people who are less fortunate than themselves.
According to official figures, 5.4 million households are in fuel poverty, of which almost half are aged over 60. (1) It has been estimated that around 25,400 older people in the U.K. died last winter because of the extreme cold weather. (2)
With rising fuel bills and the prospect of another cold winter, older and vulnerable people are at risk.
High profile supporters of the campaign include Sir Terry Wogan who says:
“This is an excellent way for local people to help some of the most vulnerable older people in their area. I’ll certainly pass my payment on, and encourage everybody who can, to contribute towards it.”
Other supporters of the campaign include Sir Michael Parkinson, Sir David Jason, Jonathan Dimbleby, Ann Widdecombe, Martyn Lewis, Rosemary Conley and Denise Robertson.
Dr Ros Altmann, Director-General of Saga, says:
“I am delighted to be supporting this brilliant initiative to help 'recycle' winter fuel payments from those who don't need them, to help pensioners who do. We feel it is important, as part of a caring society, to enable people who want to support those who are at risk of fuel poverty to keep warm and well this winter.”
Stephen Hammersley, CFN’s chief executive commented:
“We are proud to have the support of Saga for this exciting campaign. Their backing will ensure that this initiative utilises what community foundations do best – developing highly effective solutions to meet the individual needs of people in local communities. We hope others will see the work that’s being done and also lend their support.”
Community foundations all over the UK are the co-ordinators of the campaign. They connect donors with local charities and voluntary organisations responding to each community’s needs. Community Foundation Network has a very strong track record in delivering large national collections: Comic Relief's £6m community grants, the Big Lottery's £50m Fair Share Trust programme and the Evening Standard’s £7m Dispossessed Fund among many others.
The money raised by the Surviving Winter Appeal will be used to support local charities and community organisations who can reach the people most in need of help and make sure they can afford to stay warm, eat well and remain mobile, as well as help them in practical ways such as ensuring they can make doctor's appointments, get to the shops, and maintain an active social life.
Sources
1) Department for Energy and Climate Change Fuel Poverty Statistics 2009
2) Statistics from Office of National Statistics
Further statistics
The number of households in fuel poverty doubled since 2003 to just over 4m households. The majority are ‘vulnerable’ i.e. “one that contains the elderly, children or somebody who is disabled or long term sick”. (Department of Energy and Climate Change, 2010 Annual report on Fuel Poverty Statistics)
Between 2003 and 2009, average household gas bills doubled and average electricity bills rose by 60 per cent. (UK Fuel Poverty Strategy Annual Report 2009, Department of Energy and Climate Change 2009)
Since 2000, excess winter deaths in England and Wales remained generally at around 25,000. For the period of 2007-2008 the number of excess winter deaths was 27,480. The winter of 2008-2009 was the coldest in 10 years, and the Office of National Statistics estimated there were a total of 36,700, an increase of 49% over the previous year, which represents a 23.8% rise in deaths during the winter. (Office of National Statistics, Excess winter mortality in England and Wales: 2008/09)
The phenomenon of excess winter deaths is not unique to the United Kingdom but the incidence is markedly higher than for countries with similar climates and living standards. England has an 18% rise in deaths during the winter, on average, whereas Finland has a 10% increase, Germany and the Netherlands has 11%. (Department of Health, 2009 Annual Report of the Chief Medical Officer)
According to parliamentary written answers, 2009/10 winter fuel payments went to 12.68 million people, or 9.17 million households. Around 42 per cent of recipients got the lower rate of £125, while 2.54 million people received the higher rate because they were over 80. The payment is a universal benefit and under EU rules it was also paid to more than 65,000 ex-pats living across Europe in 2008/09 – including 31,145 people living in Spain, 1,111 in Greece, 1,114 in Italy and 4,675 in Cyprus. The total is up from 26,936 payments made to ex-pats in 2004/05, a parliamentary question revealed. Also among the “older and vulnerable” people who benefit from the payments, according to parliamentary written answers, are around 450,000 higher rate taxpayers (including those paying the 50 per cent tax rate) who are over 60 and so eligible to receive the Winter Fuel Payment.