'Heat or Eat' Campaign 2011

STOP PRESS! 

In order to aid our 2011 Heat or Eat Campaign we have set up a Just Text Giving facility:

Just text HEAT01 to 70070 to donate £5 to this year's appeal - the full £5 will be added to CAP-NI's Heat or Eat Appeal. It couldn't be easier!

FROM DANNY KINAHAN MLA:

Last year, Church Action on Poverty NI (CAP-NI) formed a partnership with Home-Start Antrim, Antrim Borough Council and myself (South Antrim MLA, Danny Kinahan), to help vulnerable young families ensure that they had a warm home over the Christmas period.  The shocking reality for many families living in the Antrim Borough Council area is that they faced a stark choice in the run-up to Christmas – heating or eating.  The increasing cost of home heating combined with rising living costs and record low temperatures placed some young families in a desperate predicament. 

It is against this backdrop that CAP-NI set up a central fund to help families identified by Home-Start Antrim as in need of practical assistance with heating bills. Individuals, churches, community groups and businesses contributed to this important fund and made a real difference to the lives of families struggling to heat their homes.  Indeed, Margaret Thompson, Scheme Manager at Home-Start Antrim said of the impact of the campaign: ‘we had phone calls from so many of the families, really, really thanking us/you for this most welcome gift; they were overwhelmed.  I had two mothers on the phone in tears, they did not know what they were going to do to have a warm Christmas, they just had no money for oil especially’. 

This year, the scheme will be extended to the Newtownabbey Borough Council area and will include new partners, such as Newtownabbey Borough Council, Abbey Sure-Start, the Citizen’s Advice Bureau (Antrim and Newtownabbey) and Newtownabbey Methodist Mission. 

Our aim is simple - to help as many vulnerable families and individuals over the Christmas period as we can.  With your help, we can achieve this ambitious goal; that is why we are contacting you to ask you to consider making a donation to the ‘Heat or Eat 2011 Campaign’.  No amount is too small, so please consider supporting the campaign; all of the money received will be used to purchase fuel for the needy – any administration costs will be borne by the constituent members of the campaign.

We also wish you to invite you to attend one of the scheme launch events to be held in Antrim (Thursday 29^th September from 2.00-4.00pm; refreshments provided), or Newtownabbey (Newtownabbey Civic Centre Linen Suite on Thursday 6^th October from 11.15am-1.00pm; lunch provided).  There will be an opportunity to donate to the campaign at each of these events, or you can simply send a cheque and the completed reply slip below (Made payable to ‘Church Action on Poverty-NI’) to our Hon. Treasurer.

Thank you in advance for your consideration.  

Yours sincerely, 

Danny Kinahan MLA 

NEWS RELEASE FROM ANTRIM BOROUGH COUNCIL:

Date of issue:  30 September 2011

HEAT OR EAT- A PARTNERSHIP APPROACH TO TACKLING FUEL POVERTY

The shocking reality for many households living in the Borough of Antrim is that they face a stark choice this winter – heating or eating. 

The increasing cost of home heating combined with rising living costs places some households in a desperate predicament. This has an effect on both physical and mental health right across all age groups. To try and help anyone who finds they are tackling fuel poverty, a local partnership will be working to try to help minimize the harm caused. The partnership, now in its second year, is comprised of the Northern Ireland branch of Church Action on Poverty (CAP-NI), Antrim Borough Council, Antrim Home Start and Antrim Citizen’s Advice.

Alison Briggs, Health and Well-being Manager with Antrim Borough Council explains, “The aim of the project is to help as many families as possible at the beginning of December and to ensure that participants in the programme have a warm home over the Christmas period. This will then be followed up by home energy efficiency assessments, benefits checks carried out by Citizen’s Advice Bureau and onward referrals made to energy efficiency grant schemes.”

Rev. Paul Holdsworth of CAP–NI comments, “As Christians we have a duty to help the vulnerable in any way that we can, therefore, CAP-NI’s campaigning is grounded on the biblical injunction to demonstrate Christian care in action.  With this in mind, and in conjunction with our partners, a scheme has been devised where CAP-NI will be writing to local churches shortly to ask them to consider organising a special one-off collection. 

Rev. Holdworth continues, “All of the proceeds will go to this practical initiative which we hope will really make a difference in the lives of those struggling to make ends meet. This is the second year of the project with the benefits from the pilot scheme evident.”

Margaret Thompson from Antrim Home Start agrees, “Last year, the project was able to help 14 vulnerable families in the Borough. Those that received the heating fuel were grateful, as they didn’t know how they would have coped without it.”

This year the project is expanding, as Ed Peterson, a CAP-NI committee member explains, “This year, we hope to be able to help even more households and are bringing the Citizen’s Advice Bureau onboard. This will allow us to expand the project and help other households such as those in rural areas or elderly persons affected by fuel poverty.”

Donations are received from local churches and businesses by CAP-NI and this is then used to purchase heating oil or other household fuel.  No cash gifts are given rather the fuel is delivered directly to the home. This ensures that help goes directly to where it is needed, when it is needed.

For further information on the initiative contact Alison Briggs, Health and Well Being Manager E. Alison.briggs@antrim.gov.uk or visit www.cap-ni.org.uk

ENDS

For media enquiries contact Public Relations, Antrim Borough Council, Tel: 9446 3113; M: 07904 412034; Email: public.relations@antrim.gov.uk

A GUIDE FOR GIVING:

Heat or Eat 2011

Antrim & Newtownabbey Borough Campaign

The Average Oil Prices in Northern Ireland

on Tuesday, 4^th October were as follows:

300 litres - £194.22

500 litres - £298.93

900 litres - £522.86

Based on the above price if purchasing 500 litres, the figures below are approximate: