Poverty is a very real phenomenon in England. Around 13 million people, including 3.5 million children, are estimated to be living in poverty.
Yet poverty is not just about income. It is a complex experience that impacts every aspect of people’s lives. At Church Urban Fund, we group the different aspects of poverty into three categories:
Poverty of resources – when people lack sufficient resources, such as income, skills, qualifications or health, to achieve a good standard of living. Where resources are limited, so are people’s choices and opportunities.
Poverty of relationships – when people lack the strong and supportive relationships on which individual, family and community life are built, resulting in loneliness and isolation. Where relationships are under pressure or where communities are fragmented and hostile, it is difficult to thrive in human terms.
Poverty of identity – when people lack a strong sense of self-worth and a belief in their own ability to respond to challenges. Where these are missing, it can lead to low self-esteem, a lack of well-being and aspiration, poor mental health and even drug and alcohol misuse.
These issues are complex and closely interlinked, trapping individuals and whole communities in what we call the ‘Web of Poverty’.
When people refer to poverty in England, they are not generally referring to the complete lack of material resources experienced by millions of people around the world. Nevertheless, there are many people living in urgent and desperate need.
Many thousands of households in this country face desperate circumstances as they struggle to put food on the table, heat their homes or clothe their children. This lack of resources causes a great dealof stress and anxiety as people feel unable to take control of their own lives or provide for their families.
At Church Urban Fund, we find it helpful to think about poverty as a web of interlinked factors that together, have a significant impact on an individual’s ability to flourish.
YOU CAN HELP
Give. We welcome any financial support that you may be able to give us, be it large or small. We encourage donors to give by standing order, but also welcome one off donations and other means of giving such as legacies. If you wish to support us in this way you can donate on our website cuf.org.uk *
Pray. Prayer is vital for us as we act to end poverty and injustice, we value any time you can give to pray for our work.
Act. Action is another means by which you can get involved. There are many projects running up and down the country were you can volunteer.
This article taken from cuf.og.uk
* You can also help relieve a local need by bringing non-perishable food and basic toiletries for our regular deliveries to the Foodbanks at Chalk Farm and CARIS Haringey.
Church Urban Fund – Tackling Poverty together