CHRISTMAS may be a time of warmth for many, but with energy prices rising day after day, some might be struggling to heat their homes. However, help is at hand.
Multiple warm banks are taking in the Vale of Glamorgan for people who cannot afford to heat their homes.
Warm Welcome, a campaign group, has compiled a map of warm spaces across the UK – with spaces open in the Vale of Glamorgan.
These spaces include two each in Barry, Sully and Llantwit Major.
There was also a wonderful gesture from members of the churches in the Ministry Area of Barry who have been working together knitting and crocheting squares.
Members of All Saints' Mothers' Union took the lead in sewing them together to make 15 single bed size blankets and some lap blankets.
Age Connects, Barry, CF63 4HD, open Monday to Wednesday and Friday 9.30am to 12.30pm, and Thursday 11am to 12.30pm.
Barry Island Community Centre, CF62 5TR, open Thursday 1pm to 3pm.
Warm banks in the Vale:
Barry
- Ages Connects Cardiff and Vale
- Barry Island Community Centre and New Life Church
Sully
- Sully and Lavernock Community Library Trust
- The Old School
Llantwit Major
- Glamorgan Voluntary Services
- Bethal Baptist Church
Old School, Sully, CF64 5TG, open Thursday, 10.30am to midday.
Sully and Lavernock Community Library, CF64 5SP, open Tuesday and Thursday 11am to 5pm, and Saturday 9am to 3pm
A leading anti-poverty charity cautions that hundreds of thousands of people on low incomes are at risk.
The soaring cost of fuel and basic essentials has led to the rise of so-called 'warm banks' – locations such as churches and libraries which people can visit if they are struggling to afford heating.
The charity said nearly 2,700 warm banks were open across the country at this time, including 109 in Wales.
They come in various shapes and sizes, and may provide other support – such as food, hot drinks, and internet access.
David Barclay, manager of the Warm Welcome campaign, called it "unacceptable" that people are being forced to decide whether to heat their homes or eat.
But he said the response from civil society has provided "cause for hope" – with the number of warm spaces rising significantly from just 350 at the start of October.
Mr Barclay added that warm banks could also have a role in the fight against loneliness in the UK.
Bethal Baptist Church, CF61 1AD, open Wed 3.15pm to 5.30pm.
Voluntary Services, Llantwit, CF61 1ST 12.30-2.30pm fortnightly, 10.30-12.30 monthly
Rachelle Earwaker, a senior economist at the charity, said that vulnerable people were having to "wager their financial health against their wellbeing" during periods of dangerously cold weather.
She urged the Government to ‘help everyone who needs it this winter’.
A spokesperson for the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities said governments were putting in place support.
“We know the pressures people are facing with rising costs, which is why we have continually taken action to help households by phasing in £37 billion worth of support.”
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