WE are today launching our annual Christmas appeal, and calling on YOU, our generous readers, to help keep kids warm this winter.
We are asking you to donate money or new and good-quality pre-loved warm clothing — such as coats, jumpers and nightwear — to your local baby bank for our Cosy At Christmas campaign.
Baby banks provide essentials such as nappies, clothes, toys and prams for struggling families with kids up to the age of five.
Yesterday, the Princess of Wales visited Sebby’s Corner baby bank in Barnet, North London, to raise awareness of the vital work they and others like them up and down the country do.
Sebby’s will be one of the many essential baby banks to benefit from our Christmas drive, which comes as a Sun poll reveals almost half of parents will struggle to buy their children warm clothing this winter.
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Our survey of 2,000 mums with young children found that 46 per cent say they will find it hard to purchase adequate clothing for their kids as the weather gets colder.
More than ten per cent have missed meals so their kids can eat, nine per cent will not be able to afford a Christmas dinner and 35 per cent struggle to sleep due to money worries.
‘Incredible lifeline'
Three per cent say they cannot afford to buy their children any presents this Christmas.
A quarter of mums have a disposable income of less than £100 a month. Some 27 per cent have used a food bank, with eight per cent visiting a baby bank.
Fourteen per cent say worrying about the cost of Christmas has put a strain on their relationship with their children.
Demand for baby banks has doubled since the start of the pandemic, but they do not receive any government funding.
They are run by volunteers and supported by donations — and they are in dire need of both.
We have teamed up with charity Save The Children, baby bank group Little Village and more than 200 other baby banks across the country to bring some joy to struggling families this Christmas.
And this is where we need YOU, our kind-hearted readers, to get involved. See how you can help in the box below.
Becca Lyon, of Save The Children UK, which is supporting our campaign, says our poll findings are heartbreaking.
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She adds: “Christmas should be a magical time for children, but the punishing cost-of-living crisis continues to rob families of joy.
“Baby banks have become an incredible lifeline for families and The Sun’s support for them has made such a difference.
“But with another tough winter ahead, it is not enough. This is why this Christmas appeal is so important.”
Dame Rachel de Souza, the Children’s Commissioner for England, visited the Space 214 Baby Bank in Grenfell, West London.
She says: “I have been going around the country talking to children ahead of the next election. And one of the issues that is coming up regularly is the cost of living.
“It’s clear that children really recognise their parents are concerned about money. That’s why services such as baby banks are so important.”
It costs an average £675 a year to feed a child under three.
Mum Karla, 45, who used to work in telecommunications, and her four-year-old daughter Charlotte, have been helped by Little Village, which has five centres across London.
In May 2022, the baby bank stepped in when Karla had to flee a violent relationship.
She says: “I worried enormously about keeping Charlotte warm over the winter. Neither of us had a coat and I was dreading winter arriving.
“You can go to the charity shop to get clothes but, if you buy a coat for £5, you have cut your food budget in half. It’s impossible.”
Karla had £10 a day to live off and lost 4st as a result of giving up meals to provide for her daughter.
She adds: “I had to find the money for nappies and baby wipes and, once I had paid for those, I was left with next to nothing for myself. I wasn’t hungry, I was starving.”
She says the support she has received from Little Village in Brent, North West London, has “changed everything”, adding: “With the cost of living being so high, Christmas wouldn’t have been an option for us.
“But with the help of Little Village I can give Charlotte new clothes, toys — the stuff that children deserve on Christmas Day.
“There’s a saying, ‘Beggars can’t be choosers’, but here you do get that choice — it humanises it.
“You don’t feel like a failure or a nuisance, you don’t feel like you have to make do.
“That’s what Little Village gives to these families . . . dignity.”
Little Village has helped more than 26,000 children under five since it launched in 2016.
CEO Sophie Livingstone, 46, herself a mum of two, says: “Each day at Little Village we hear about the impossible choices families are having to make.
“Winter is an especially busy time for baby banks, when these choices get even tougher.
“Cosy clothes such as coats and boots are expensive, and then there’s heating costs, too.
“Whether it’s by donating cosy pre-loved clothes, donating cash or giving your time, all support will be so welcome.”
In May we launched our Baby, Bank On Us campaign to help baby banks — and were stunned by the response, with Sun readers volunteering their time and raising more than £85,000.
Our campaign was backed by the Princess of Wales, who described baby banks as a “lifeline” to families in dire need.
