SOUP Announces 2018 Agenda to Help 1000s More Individuals
- SOUP Journalist
- May 1, 2018
- 2 min read
RECORD numbers of pensioners are starving to death every year, struggling to survive the worst financial crisis in generations.
SOUP has announced it's 2018 mission statement that outlines the charity's objectives to support even more individuals across the UK this year.
These include:
1) Charitable Transport: Current volunteers walk or use bus services to attend beneficiaries' homes. This limits the area that SOUP can cover and reduces time spent on visits. To expand outreach and increase time spent with each beneficiary, the charity aims to obtain a vehicle which can be shared between volunteers and used for carpools.
2) Medical Care: Often when a new individual is located, their state of health is poor and sometimes life-threatening due to the conditions they are living in. Volunteers respond by calling for ambulance services and emergency medical care. However, there is a pressing need for continued medication after the individual has returned home. More financial resources are required to meet the needs of the ever-increasing list of frail and medically infirm individuals supported by the charity.
3) Food: SOUP delivers food supplies to individuals identified as in most urgent need of support by local authorities and associated charities. Volunteers shop at key supermarkets with a budget for approximately ten individuals at a time. They deliver a bag of shopping to each beneficiary, spending quality time unpacking and taking interest in each visit. This essential exchange is the charity's chance to check general well-being and identify ways to continue support. More funds are needed to cover food bills and expand this service.
4) Clothing: Often volunteers find individuals wearing torn, moth-eaten and worn out clothing. SOUP invests a proportion of funds on secondhand clothing to add to the clothing donations received, but unfortunately the need is greater than the supply. Volunteers regularly donate their own clothing after seeing the shocking conditions some beneficiaries reside in. A key agenda for 2018 is therefore to buy more secondhand clothing and increase awareness for clothing donations.
5) Further Reach: The greatest aim for 2018 is to reach even more elderly individuals who are in desperate need of help. SOUP knows these people exist in each community, but locating them and successfully making contact takes time, research and resources. The overall objective therefore is to increase awareness and support by expanding the charity's network of volunteers, donors and fundraisers to reach more individuals across the UK.
To find out more about SOUP Charity's activities or to offer your support to any number of these agendas, visit the charity's Support Us page.
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