With further steep increases in energy bills deepening the cost of living crisis, East End Community Foundation’s latest Vital Signs Report shows that London’s East End boroughs will be hit the hardest.
Whilst the East End has strong economies not everyone benefits. And in Tower Hamlets, Newham and Hackney, we have the highest levels of deprivation amongst older people and youngsters in the country. It is these communities that are most at risk from the cost of living crisis now unfolding.
The COVID pandemic has exacerbated racial and social inequalities, meaning residents have been particularly affected by unemployment, with Newham facing the highest furlough rates in the country.
Whilst young people are improving in educational attainment, unemployment levels are still above the UK average. This is contributing to the increased mental health issues, which have been widely reported upon. According to the Resolution Foundation, ‘Almost one-in-three young people who were employed before the pandemic, but are currently unemployed, furloughed or on reduced pay, say their mental health is poor’. Unemployment is also a factor in young people being the victim or perpetrator of violent crime. One respondent to our local community survey said, “The prevalence of gangs is a problem for young men in particular and many parents are deeply worried about their sons’ safety.”
Our Vital Signs research shows that fuel poverty is already a big problem in all three boroughs, with Newham experiencing the highest levels in the country. The huge hikes in energy bills will only further exacerbate the record levels of poverty amongst older people across the East End.
The Report also shows clear links between income poverty and lack of digital access, impacting younger people’s ability to access online learning during Covid-19, as well as older people, who have likely faced higher levels of social exclusion and difficulties accessing health care and other essential services. East End Community Foundation Trustee, Alkhad Ali, works with elderly residents in South Poplar. ‘I visit residents who are so scared they have been left behind by technology. Everything has gone on line. Someone needed to upload a document for their rent change. They didn’t know how to do it and it made them really anxious that they would get evicted.’
The Vital Signs report has provided incredibly powerful research which backs up the charity’s experience managing and distributing funds. Using this research, and building on our experience responding to the COVID crisis, we have launched the Life Chances Campaign.
With the aim of raising £5 million over three years, the Campaign takes a coordinated and targeted approach to fundraising and grant-giving that is, we believe, the most effective way to support communities. Life Chances focuses on three key areas: supporting young people’s wellbeing and employment, tackling older people’s isolation and poverty, and narrowing the digital divide. And with cost of living crisis looking set to worsen, we believe the urgency of this campaign has never been greater.
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