Cost of living crisis hits donations to charity

Charles Storer says his charity is "feeling the strain" of declining donations

A humanitarian charity warned supplies were "badly needed" as the cost of living crisis continued to affect donation levels.

Hope & Aid Direct founder Charles Storer said it was "feeling the strain" of dwindling support from households and businesses.

He feared the Essex-based organisation's mission to support people in Ukraine could falter without renewed support.

Warehouse manager Jo Hare suggested people were "overloaded" by tragedies and they "just don't have enough money".

Since 2022, the charity has spent about £256,000 on 80 journeys taking supplies from its warehouse in Basildon to hospitals and shelters in Kyiv.

It has supported places affected by war, natural disasters and humanitarian crises since being founded in 1999.

Jo Hare says people have been distracted by other ongoing tragedies

Ms Hare, who has volunteered there for four years, said: "What we really need more of is food and toiletries, more than anything else. We always need food, always."

She blamed the cost of living crisis for an alarming decline in donations.

"There's lots of tragedies going on in the world, I think people are overloaded and they just don't have enough money," Ms Hare explained.

"Ukraine is still a problem, it's still going on, but there's other problems as well that people are looking at."

Mr Storer said the issue was compounded by businesses not donating as many surplus supplies as they once did.

"We are feeling the strain of the cost of living crisis, with many households cutting back," he added.

Knitted clothing is one of the top donations made to the charity

The charity founder said there was a desperate need to feed people in Ukraine and provide them with shelter.

He continued: "We've seen reports on the TV, in just the last few days, of drone attacks, missile attacks on buildings.

"People are being killed and a lot of people are losing their homes, they're losing everything."