Spring appears to be here with brighter weather on the horizon, but Age Concern Birmingham are keen to highlight that older people who cannot afford to heat their homes are still vulnerable.
The Surviving Winter campaign invites people who receive a winter fuel allowance, but feel they don’t need it, to donate it to elderly people who may die in their homes due to lack of heating. While the winter appears to be over March is still a critical month. Donations during this month are needed more than ever to help save older people’s lives across Birmingham and the Black Country.
“The Surviving Winter campaign continues until the end of March because March is a critical month during which older people become complacent about the temperature of their homes. They continue not to heat their homes, but also don’t wrap up warm,” explains Iain Mackintosh, Director at Age Concern Birmingham. Health experts have shown that older people are at risk in cold conditions as it leads to a higher tendency to produce blood clots that cause strokes and heart attacks.
Studies have shown that a house needs to be at 21 oC with the bedroom slightly cooler at 18 oC to be safe for an older person. A drop in temperature by just one degree below 18 oC causes the number of deaths to increase by 1.4%. “We don’t want people to forget that they can continue to help older people during March where average temperatures are 9.3 oC. If they haven’t donated their Winter Fuel allowance and feel they would like to help then there is still time,” said Iain Mackintosh.
Zoë Keens, Director – Development at BBCCF is also encouraging people to continue to support the Surviving Winter campaign. “The campaign has been a wonderful help to many people across the region, with individuals commenting on how grateful they are and how they would struggle to survive without the additional support. We would like to thank all those people who have recycled their winter fuel allowance and to those who have made a donation so far making an amazing difference, but our work reaching older and vulnerable people across Birmingham and the Black Country is not complete. Charities like Age Concern Birmingham still have hundreds of people who need your support, so please help by making a donation, to help people stay warm” she said.
To make a donation to the Surviving Winter Appeal go online here or download a form from www.bbccf.org.uk and send a cheque made payable to Birmingham and Black country Community Foundation, clearly marking it for the Surviving Winter Appeal and addressing it to Birmingham & Black Country Community Foundation Nechells Baths, Nechells Park Road, Nechells, Birmingham B7 5PD.
