Together with The Neighbourly Foundation we gave out cost of living grants to those in need, here’s how they used it

The rising cost of living is affecting us all in different ways. That’s why we teamed up with The Neighbourly Foundation to create a giffgaff emergency fund, so we could offer our support to charities that help those most in need.

Let’s take a look at some of the ways the fund is being put to good use.

What is the giffgaff emergency fund?

We know lots of people are struggling right now. So we wanted to find a meaningful way to give back to our community.

Together with The Neighbourly Foundation, we reached out to 17 good causes that support homeless people, the elderly, and several food banks across the UK.

Each charity received £1,000 from our emergency fund to support its ongoing activities, from training new volunteers to helping older people get connected online.

Overall, the charities we donated to supported 5,277 people, including children, older people, families and people with disabilities; giving them that little extra boost they need to get through a tough time.

The impact of our donations

Some of the charities we collaborated with got in touch to tell us how they’ve used our donations to help people in their communities. Here’s a few of our favourite stories:

Age UK: spreading the digital love

With giffgaff’s donation, Age UK added five android smartphones to their digital library, ready to be loaned out to older people taking their 1:1 digital training course.

61-year-old Melissa, who lives alone, was one of these people.

In 2021, Melissa fell ill and became clinically vulnerable. This left her feeling socially isolated, unable to work and only able to have essential visitors at her home. She also had a very basic mobile phone, so she could only call or text her loved ones to keep in touch with them.

With giffgaff’s emergency fund donation, Age UK was able to loan Melissa a phone so she could join their digital training course. Now, she can use social media to connect with her family members living abroad, shop online, and she’s even learning how to use essential healthcare and online banking services from her phone.

The Bethany Foodbank: feeding hungry mouths

Recently, The Bethany Foodbank has been struggling to cope with the rising cost of fuel. With so many people needing support, they now have to pick up food packages 7 days a week to meet demand. With their fuel costs nearly doubling in the last few months, the cost of providing their essential services has skyrocketed.

giffgaff’s donation has been used to cover transport costs for the foodbank, so their volunteers can keep stock levels high and feed people in need. The Bethany Foodbank’s incredible work is now feeding over 1,200 people per month.

Open Door Scotland: the gift of gas

When M, a young person in Scotland, moved into his first flat, he was worried about not being able to pay for his gas and electric bill by Direct Debit.

Open Door Scotland helped M talk to British Gas and fit a top-up meter, giving him more control over how much he spent. However, when the gas man came out, he wasn’t able to make the switch because the meter had run out of money. M didn’t have the funds to top up the meter and said he would have to ask a friend for help or he might not be able to buy food.

With giffgaff’s donation, Open Door Scotland was able to top up M’s electric and gas meters by £30, so he could get up and running in his new flat.

The Storehouse Foodbank: supporting families

Over the summer holidays, many families were struggling to feed their children, especially at lunchtime. To give these families a helping hand, the Storehouse Foodbank used giffgaff’s donation to buy extra lunch items that weren’t usually stocked.

A team of foodbank volunteers then worked hard to put together pre-packed hampers that contained family-friendly lunch items, such as yoghurts, ham, cheese, snacks and biscuits. Perfect for summer picnics and stay-at-home snacking.

Over August, The Storehouse Foodbank delivered to over 200 families and individuals in need of support.

What to help us give a little back?

If you’d like to help us give back to our community, keep your eyes peeled for our community post announcing our next giffgaff charitable fund. Even just a little could help someone in need.