Cornwall Fuel Bank

Aim

Following the success of our Cornish Fuel Bank crowdfunder, we are now accepting ongoing donations of support.

During our original crowdfunding campaign, we successfully raised £32,990 thanks to 59 wonderful supporters. We are now continuing to accept donations to help us to make sure fewer Cornish families have to choose between heating their homes and feeding their families. Find out more about our original plans below.

Heat or Eat

Behind the idyllic Cornish seaside towns, beautiful beaches and famous restaurants is a hidden problem: thousands of people are struggling to get by, pay for essential bills, and put food on the table.  This is largely due to the seasonal work, low wages and zero- hour contracts that are typical of the popular holiday destination. Cornwall is also in the top 10 fuel insecure areas of England, with a massive 36,000 households living in fuel poverty. 

The stark reality of this is people having to make their household budget go further and being forced to make difficult decisions to go without. 10,000 meals are handed out every month by Transformation CPR which run foodbanks in Camborne, Poole, and Redruth. We know that many of these people are also struggling to pay their gas and electricity bills. The impact of this is people left without access to energy to do the things we all take for granted –cooked meals, hot showers, and being able to turn the lights on when we need to.

How the Cornwall Fuel Bank® will help

Feeding Britain are working in partnership with the npower Foundation- the Fuel Bank® charity - to raise funds for a Fuel Bank in Cornwall to tackle this issue. The Fuel Bank will provide a crucial lifeline to families in crisis, by providing emergency fuel top-up vouchers to over 1,000 people throughout winter.

Vouchers are provided alongside an emergency food parcel, to allow families to cook the food they’re given, and provide some vital breathing space to get through the immediate crisis, and find the longer term help that is needed. For many it has benefits for both their physical health and mental well being, as the voucher means they don’t have to worry so much about energy bills and money in general.

The Fuel Bank will be based in the independent foodbanks run by Transformation CPR which supports anywhere between 400 and 700 people per month. Everyone accessing the Fuel Bank will be offered longer term wraparound support, such as community involvement, employment and skills development, and advice services. This support goes beyond one-time emergency provision and empowers people to lift themselves out of a crisis and in to long term stability.

Making Your Donation Go Further

Every pound raised publicly will be match funded by npower, so your donation will be doubled. To make the campaign a success we need your support today!

• £10 will cover fuel costs in an average home for around 3 days, ensuring Foodbank clients can cook the food they receive from the Foodbank.
• £30 provides enough fuel for an average family to light their homes, cook nourishing meals, and have hot baths for around two weeks over summer.
• £49 is how much an average family will spend on fuel over two weeks in the winter.

*npower will match all donations made up to and including £5000. This means you may donate more than £5000, but only the first £5000 will be match funded.

This project successfully funded on 3rd December 2021