Over 200 families receive help in response to cost-of-living crisis

More than 200 households across the area have received help from Fermanagh and Omagh District Council‘s Poverty Support Programme.

The community-driven initiative is focused on addressing relative poverty and the cost-of-living crisis.

It reached out to assist over 655 individuals, including more than 365 children.

The programme, referred to as the “WRAP Programme” (Western Response and Action on Poverty), is funded by the Department for Communities and the Public Health Agency.

It is implemented across Fermanagh and Omagh by six organisations, with Fermanagh Rural Community Network as the lead partner.

Other partners include ARC Healthy Living Centre, Erne East Community Partnership, Lakeland Community Care Limited, Omagh Forum for Rural Associations, and The Courthouse Kesh Limited.

The programme offered crucial support to individuals and families in need, as approximately 23 per cent of the local population live in relative poverty.

It distributed £64,000 in vouchers for food and essential items and provided over £24,000 in emergency energy support through the Bryson Care “Cost of Living” initiative.

The programme assisted people with debt support, benefit entitlement checks, budgeting, mental health and wellbeing, training and employment, energy advice, housing, transport, and digital inclusion.

The programme’s success lies in its delivery of one-on-one, home-based, personalised support, which helped build trust and empower participants.

Participants shared how the programme helped, with one saying: “We were going through a stressful time — the support really helped us all.”

Another added: “We got fresh strawberries and a turkey at Christmas — it just lifted every one of us.”

Councillor Barry McElduff, chair of Fermanagh and Omagh District Council, said: “One in four children in this region is living in poverty — meaning that they and their families lack the financial resources to maintain a decent standard of living.

“The ongoing cost-of-living crisis is having a significant impact, particularly in rural areas like ours.

“This poverty support programme is one of the ways the council is responding — by providing financial support for food and essential items, and by helping people access the tailored services they need to improve their circumstances.

“Our council remains firmly committed to supporting the health and wellbeing of our residents — physically, emotionally, and mentally.”

Speaking on behalf of the six organisations that delivered the WRAP Programme, Barry Boyle from Fermanagh Rural Community Network said: “It provided the opportunity to work as a partnership of six locally based community organisations who are well established, known and trusted within our respective local communities to implement the Western Response & Action on Poverty (WRAP) Programme, by providing direct tailored support and assistance that has delivered significant positive benefits in terms of reducing poverty and improving wellbeing, for people across the entire district.”