This is bigger than the pandemic
We heard from funders, charities, and community groups during our Cost of Living Week back in October that the crisis affecting London feels like a humanitarian one– and it is bigger in scale than the pandemic.
Charlotte, who has been CEO of the Felix Project since the beginning of this year, describes the situation as “incredibly tough out there for so many people”. Felix’s survey of Londoners with an annual salary under £20k found that almost 1 in 10 have less than £3 a day to spend on breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
It’s not just that more people can’t afford food, but the knock-on effects it has on other areas of people’s lives – from mental health issues to their children’s education attainment – community organisations are seeing an increase in demand for more holistic, wrap-around support.
This idea that families have a single issue, that went some time ago. We don’t deal in single issues anymore
Bel Crewe, Impact Manager, BBC Children in Need
The road out of this crisis
In addition to providing food during the crisis, the response also has to be as targeted and strategic as possible. As Charlotte says, "[we need to think] where our food can be the greatest enabler to drive community resilience”. Jan and Bel echo the need for a more strategic, cross-sector, pan-London response to the crisis.
Given the complex level of support that Londoners need, “it feels desperately important” to have a better understanding of who is delivering support, where the gaps are, where there is room to join forces, and where we can avoid duplication.
We have to find a way of not just giving someone a meal and a warm place to be for six hours and then they’re going to come back again. We have to work together to get people out of that situation
Charlotte Hill, CEO, The Felix Project
BBC Children in Need have awarded the Felix Project with a three-year grant, “recognising that we very much need a sustainable approach to getting out of this crisis”. To provide immediate support, Children in Need are also offering booster grants and funding for emergency essentials like low-energy appliances. But as Bel stresses, while we need to act now, we need to be much more strategic and think about our role as funders beyond money.
From Children in Need’s perspective, this is about asking how we as funders work together, not just more efficiently but “ultimately more strategically”. It’s not a good use of organisations’ time if funders are disconnected, or if they have to go to lots separate funders for support – instead we need to think about the collective impact we can have together.
The role of London Funders
Our role at London Funders is to ensure funders stay connected, share intelligence and enable strategic conversations about our long-term vision for a London that is more equal, safer and greener. At our AGM on 6 December, we’re hosting a panel discussion on how we can lift our ambitions to imagine a better London, beyond crisis. Please join us – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
If you’re thinking about how you can respond to the cost of living crisis, where your impact might sit in the wider funding picture or what we at London Funders can do to support your response, please get in touch with us here.
