How cost of living crisis is affecting disability charities in Dorset

Diverse Abilities, Dorset’s disability charity, has seen their energy costs rise by 300 per cent over the past three months, leading to fears about what the future could hold for their services – and the people who use them.

After annual energy costs for their Langside School rose by £25,000 a year when their energy supplier went bust earlier this year, the charity has also seen energy increases affect their respite home, Lily’s Place and adults activity centre, The Beehive, by as much as 200 per cent between them.

Read more: Dorset's most vulnerable hit by rising costs

Matthew Hale

Mark Powell, Diverse Abilities CEO, said: “It’s going to be a really tough winter for those of us supporting vulnerable children and adults.

“We cannot simply turn the heating down or off to help manage this – many of the people we support are in wheelchairs and unable to regulate their body temperature so they cannot keep warm themselves.”

'It's a worry'

Matthew Hale, a 38-year-old using the Diverse Abilities Supporting Living Service, relies on a hoist and a pressure bed running 24 hours a day. He is supported by the government benefits system, but it is his mother, Stephanie Hale, who manages his finances.

Stephanie said: “We got a bill from the energy supplier that had gone up £100 for one month, and we know more is coming in October. We just don’t have that sort of money.

“I’m not sure what’s going to happen. It’s a worry because if it keeps going up like this, I don’t know what we’re going to do.

Mark Powell, CEO of Diverse Abilities

“We’ve done everything we can do. All the clothes are dried out on the line, there’s no tumble drier use. But once winter comes, what do we do with all the washing, and disabled people have a lot more washing than everybody else. So, it is quite a worry to be honest.

Read more: Bournemouth charity experiences ‘most challenging year yet’

“I think the biggest problem is that we continually have to ask for help. Every time it changes, you have to go and ask them, nobody comes along and says that things have changed. So, the worry is continually making the time to ask for help.”

Eight -year-old Elisa from Bournemouth has cerebral palsy and is supported by Julia's House children's hospice and Diverse Abilities.

She relies on medical equipment to maintain her quality of life and keep her healthy, including oxygen concentrators, a SATS machine to monitor her heart rate and oxygen levels, a BiPAP ventilator to combat sleep apnoea, ceiling hoists and a hospital bed.

'It will get worse for us'

Her father, Dan McEvoy, said: “Elisa requires a lot of medical equipment. It’s all electric powered. It’s used to keep her comfortable and keep her alive essentially. It’s on pretty much all throughout the day and all throughout the night so our energy bills have been progressively jumping up over the past six months.

Dan McEvoy with his 8-year-old daughter Elisa

“The chances are it probably will get worse for us.

Read more: How the cost of living crisis is affecting you

“Rising costs and how they will impact us is something that always worries us. Unfortunately, nothing is changing and we’re still banging the same drum.”

It’s a sentiment echoed by Mr Powell, who said he doesn’t believe enough attention is being paid to the severity of the situation.

“There is talk of surveys and acknowledgment from both central and local government, but no action”, he said.

“Much of the equipment we provide, or that our families also use at home, must be run 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year in order to help keep everyone alive. This includes pressure beds, hoists, heart rate monitors, oxygen levels, and even keeping fridges at the right temperature for storing medications. These costs are continuing to place further pressure on those already vulnerable, and often forgotten, in our societies.”

'It won't cover the costs'

Prior to the cost increases during and following the COVID-19 pandemic, the charity’s services required £19,000 per day to provide its care. It is believed these costs could rise to £22,000 a day by the end of the year.

He said: “As a charity, we rely heavily on fundraising to, literally, turn the lights on. We’re aware it’s hard to ask for support because everyone is under pressure right now, we’re doing everything we can to make sure we can to continue providing our vital services each and every day. The government payments of £150 will help families as individuals, but will not cover the costs of the business.”

When asked what the worst case scenario could be, he said: “The worst case is that facilities simply can’t offer services because the funding we receive won’t cover the costs. For individuals on benefits, they also may not be able to stay warm.”

'We're most worried about pressures on families'

Martin Edwards, Julia's House chief executive said: "At Julia's House we are most worried about the pressures on the families in the cost of living crisis, given the greater reliance of disabled children on electricity for things like powering wheelchairs, oxygen machines and generally the need to keep them warm over winter.

"It is noticeable that public fundraising has not yet returned to pre-pandemic levels, which is almost certainly because of the impact of cost of living on the amount that people can donate or sponsor supporter's fundraising challenges. 

"We're also worried about the sharply rising energy costs to keep our shops running which are a crucial source of funds for the charity."