‘We’re going back to Victorian times - I only eat tinned sardines and cold beans’
On the Breadline: ‘Covid was nothing compared to this,’ 63-year-old on benefits tells Thomas Kingsley
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Your support makes all the difference.For 63-year-old Brian Preston, the cost of living crisis is unlike anything he’s ever experienced. He lives alone in the valleys in Wales where, because of soaring food and energy bills, he fears turning on his cooker. At home he eats only tinned food, cold sardines and beans, unable to afford to cook regular hot meals.
Brian no longer has a washing machine, again, because of the price of energy and washes his clothes in his bathtub and drip-dries them on a clothes horse. “We’re going back to Victorian times,” he said. “I can’t afford to eat hot food. I can’t afford to put the gas or electric on. I’m eating cold beans, sardines. It’s very rare I put my cooker on. It’s got that bad.”
Brian, who lives on benefits and is unable to work due to health issues, believes that the cost of living crisis will be worse than the pandemic. “This is definitely worse than lockdown. Covid was nothing compared to this. Some people are going to freeze to death and are not going to have food or heat,” he said.
When asked what kept him going through the worst of times, he pointed to the local community group, Arts Factory, without which he added, “I would probably be heading to my grave”.
Arts Factory has been serving the local communities for over 30 years and is based in Ferndale, one of the most disadvantaged areas of the South Wales Valleys.
The charity is one of the organisations we will be seeking to fund in our On the Breadline Christmas Appeal in partnership with Comic Relief.
Lisa Wills, Arts Factory CEO, said her group and team members were also feeling the bite with soaring energy bills rising from £200 to £1,200 for the group. “Our biggest challenge is energy bills and our staff are not paid very well so there’s an impact on them surviving the cost of living crisis as well,” Ms Wills said.
Ms Wills explained that some volunteers at Arts Factory, like Brian, live in fear of the next energy invoice. The group’s food parcel delivery service, which was crucial during lockdown, is now more important than ever as food inflation soars more than 14 per cent. Arts Factory delivers more than 25 food parcels a week and also acts as a referral agency to food banks. “It’s pretty dire out in the valleys,” she said.
Despite the challenges, with the potential support of our appeal, Ms Wills is resolute that the resilience and culture of unity in Arts Factory – and in their volunteers - will prevail.
Jamie Pothecary, 33, a volunteer with Arts Factory for 10 years, says the charity is like a family. “We all live in the community and we’re helping our neighbours, which feels good,” he said.
Lisa Wills said our appeal funding could be “massive” for Arts Factory. “People ask what we do at Arts Factory and we say that we change people’s lives,” she said. Funding will allow the group to extend its metal health and wellbeing support, in addition to increasing their capacity to take in more food and provide a warm space for the community.
“Half our team have learning disabilities, the other half have mental issues and are different or don’t fit in - those are the type of people we work with,” she said. “They don’t have friends or family. We become their friends and family and create that social network for them. It’s a much bigger thing than someone just coming to volunteer.”
Our Christmas appeal in a nutshell
What is happening?
We have partnered with Comic Relief to launch On the Breadline, our cost of living Christmas appeal.
Where will the money go?
To organisations in London and across the UK working to help people on the breadline cope with the cost of living crisis.
How can you help?
To help children and communities most impacted by the cost of living crisis, donate here.