The charity held an event on Wednesday to launch their new Winter Warmer campaign, welcoming local businesses and supporters and thanking volunteers and existing donors for their contributions to date.
LifeCare recognise that older people have difficult choices to make during the winter months when it can be difficult to keep warm at home.
In addition getting out and about can be difficult, so worsening issues of isolation.
The difficulty is that the cost of living has gone up for older people and also for the charity itself, so the call is for donations to support LifeCare who then in turn support older people. The charity reports a 250% increase in enquiries from people living on low incomes, while aiming to keep their services either free or at a low cost for those most in need.
Through the ‘Winter Warmer’ campaign LifeCare aims to continue to deliver affordable care for those that need it most. This includes offering hot meals on wheels, unpaid carers support, dementia-friendly hairdressing and community engagement activities for those that need it. And with support, the charity will continue to run CafeLife, the charity’s community café on Cheyne Street, as a welcoming Eat & Meet warm space offering free hot food, companionship and activities across weekends. The charity will also launch a series of workshops and groups such as ‘cooking on a budget’ and ‘mend and repair’ classes to help maximise limited incomes.
The event was supported by local MSP Jeremy Balfour who spoke about the issues facing older people through the winter months. Local councillors Liberal Democrat Hal Osler and Conservative councillor Max Mitchell attended along with Deidre Brock MP for Edinburgh Northern and Leith.
Sarah van Putten, Chief Executive of LifeCare, said: “We are extremely worried about local older people this winter, with continued high prices for food and fuel, it will be devastating for many. On top of the ‘heat or eat’ dilemma they are also at risk of serious social isolation. It’s times like these which highlight the critical need for services such as ours.
“LifeCare has a long history of supporting and empowering older people to live life to the full, but as a charity we rely on donations to enable us to deliver our vital support and care. Thanks to our services, we ensure that each older person receives the support they need. We make sure they are warm in their homes, they eat well, have company to look forward to and are able to get out and about to activities safely. Our regular, reliable and non-rushed support is delivered by the same friendly faces, so friendships are formed and care is consistent. And we know it works; in our recent survey over 91% of day club clients felt more social connected and 85% felt their health and wellbeing had improved.
“It’s frustrating because we know we can deliver the care that people want and need, but we are facing increased costs too. We are asking local people and businesses to consider giving a one-off or regular gift through our Winter Warmer appeal. Donations can be made on our website or alternatively people can come along to our community café to pledge their support. Even choosing to have your coffee or lunch from our café will help us to deliver the care local older people need to ensure they continue to thrive at home.”
Jeremy Balfour MSP for Lothian said “I am delighted to be supporting LifeCare’s Winter Warmer campaign. Winter can be a difficult time of year for people of all ages, however it is an especially tough period for older people and the work that LifeCare does to support them over the winter months is life changing. I would commend anyone who is able to support their work in any way that they are able.”
All money raised through Winter Warmer will go directly towards supporting older people in the city.
https://www.lifecare-edinburgh.org.uk/
Call 0131 343 0940 to chat with the friendly team and find out more about the charity’s services.
Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
