BABIES sleeping on mattresses on the floor, children with no shoes or coats and families unable to afford a basic pram.
It’s a bleak picture, and one Sue Bain never imagined she’d see in the UK until she set up the Little Treasures baby bank in 2019.
“Things are getting worse and demands are higher for things we shouldn’t have to beg, borrow and steal,” Sue told Fabulous for our Baby, Bank On Us campaign, in partnership with Save The Children and Little Village in support of UK baby banks.
“We had a request from a social worker asking for a cot because there was a family with a baby sleeping on a mattress on the floor. It shouldn’t be like that when some people are so lucky.”
The retired 62-year-old says the cost-of-living crisis, fuelled by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, has left many British families in a dire situation.
Things are so bad that Sue often puts an extra packet of nappies in each request the bank, which is based in Horncastle, Lincolnshire, receives “just in case”.
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How YOU can support Fabulous’ Baby, Bank On Us campaign
– Give money by donating here or by scanning the QR code.
– Give clothing, toys and essentials to a baby bank, wherever you are in the UK.
– Give your time volunteering. To find your nearest baby bank, visit Littlevillagehq.org/uk-baby-banks.
An exclusive survey of 2,000 British mums, conducted by Fabulous, found that 27% of families have had to ration nappies and wipes in recent months.
Thankfully, the generosity of others has meant that Little Treasures has helped thousands of families in the four years it has been open.
When Sue first set it up, she was still working a full time job as a the Federation Secretary for the Lincolnshire North Federation of the Women's Institute
Since retiring two months ago, she wants to pump more energy into “redressing the balance” between those living in poverty and those living with more than they need.
And, when she first started Little Treasures from her house, many of the donations came from her now five-year-old grandson’s wardrobe.
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Things are getting worse and demands are higher for things we shouldn’t have to beg, borrow and steal
Sue’s motivation for her selfless work comes from gratitude for her life with her daughters 37-year-old Laura, a teacher in Birmingham, and 33-year-old Hannah, a yoga instructor in the south of France.
She said: “I’ve been very lucky, I haven’t had to rely on this sort of thing.”
Sue worked at the Lincolnshire North Federation of the Women’s Institutes – also known as WI – for 11 years.
It was at this job she met Mandi Porter, 53, who she set Little Treasures up with after the pair were moved by a news report about one in Yorkshire.
A baby bank operates like a food bank but for children’s essentials, with struggling families able to pick up clothes, toys and safety equipment needed for their little ones for free.
What are baby banks?
– Baby banks provide essential items for babies and young children whose parents are living in poverty – including nappies, wipes, clothing, bedding, Moses baskets, cots, blankets, toys and books.
– There are over 200 baby banks in the UK, and they run out of shops, community centres, warehouse units and even people’s living rooms and garages.
– Last year 4.2 million children in the UK were living in poverty and 800,000 children lived in a household that used a food or baby bank.Little Treasures’ baby bank was run out of Sue’s home for the first six months before moving to its current warehouse in Horncastle, where it has been for almost four years now.
It operates on a referral basis, meaning social workers and healthcare professionals contact Sue on behalf of families.
The nan retired earlier this year and wants to devote more time to Little Treasures because the amount of families in need “is not quietening down”.
Her husband Doug, 64, is also retired and mucks in where he can.
Sue has heard of children sleeping in drawers and “very young” mums planning to start motherhood with no cot, pram or clothes for their baby.
Little Treasures helps on average five families a week but Sue warned “things are picking up again”.
Each request is so varied that she can’t put an average price on them.
They can range from an order for twins worth hundreds of pounds in cots, prams, clothes, and toys, to something as simple as a potty.
Sue said: “It doesn’t stop. Stair gates are really popular – we can’t get enough stair gates at the moment.”
But the reason behind the need for stair gates is another example of families feeling the strain amid the rising cost of living.
Fire services in Lincolnshire used to be able to visit homes and install a stair gate for families.
However, budget cuts mean that service is now unavailable and parents are turning to baby banks to keep their tots safe.
In the interest of safety, Little Treasures only provides brand new stair gates.
Our survey found that new clothes and shoes are the main things parents can’t currently afford for their children.
We had a request from a social worker asking for a cot because there was a family with a baby sleeping on a mattress on the floor
This has had an impact on their mental health, with 68% of survey respondents saying their mental wellbeing has been negatively affected by the cost of living crisis.
This is something Little Treasures has experienced all too well.
Sue recalled how one mum couldn’t afford to buy her daughter shoes, meaning she was unable to leave the house for weeks.
The mum was “so embarrassed” that she couldn’t send her child to school but now is “so proud” of her collection of shoes thanks to Little Treasures.
She also recalled a woman who reacted to a call-out on Facebook for a ten-year-old’s coat and went to Tesco to buy a brand new one.
Sue says she couldn’t “let it go” that a young child was going to school without a coat on in winter.
Her act of kindness not only reduced the mum to tears, but the social worker on the case who had been in the job for 17 years and never seen such a willingness to help.
No donation is too small for your local baby bank – even an old potty can transform a child's life
Sue assured that “people really do want to help” and the response her baby bank gets from the community is often moving.
Little Treasures baby bank costs just over £5000 to run, including warehouse costs and bills.
It received National Lottery funding when first set up, with Sue and Mandi since applying for a grant.
Local businesses like Co-op, Masons and the Lincolnshire Development fund also donate in response to bids put in by Little Treasures, with Sue saying they “don’t get anything if they don’t ask nicely for it”.
Sue supports our Our Baby, Bank On Us campaign because she knows first hand how even the smallest donation can change a child’s life.
Our Baby, Bank On Us campaign is calling on the public to volunteer their time and donate second-hand children's items to their nearest baby bank. Plus, we are raising vital funds to support the work of the banks.
"No donation is too small for your local baby bank – even an old potty can transform a child's life," says Sue.
"By coming together in our communities, we can work towards a better future for the struggling families and children of Britain.
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"The scale of the cost of living crisis is undeniable and it has never been more important to see how you can help struggling families."
To find out more about Little Treasures, visit https://www.facebook.com/littletreasuresbabybank/.
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