The Tribune

By LEANDRA ROLLE

Tribune Chief Reporter

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

DEMAND for back to school assistance has risen this year as donations fail to keep pace, according to one major charity group appealing for more business partnership to meet growing social needs.

Mitsy-Ann Irving, Executive Director for Lend a Hand Bahamas, said the group has seen a significant uptick in the number of parents seeking help this year, with more than 300 families reaching out to get their children ready for school.

However, she said the organisation has struggled to meet demand since it relies on donations.

“I’ve gotten calls and people coming to the center and so it's a wide demand each year and each year it gets bigger and bigger so yes, we are having that influx of calls and walk-ins.”

The organisation is currently only providing school and uniform vouchers to children enrolled in its after-school programmes.

“Based on our numbers of registrant, we have over 200. Yes, we could accommodate those kids for now but if we have more resources and donations coming in, we’ll extend to the wider community.”

Last year, the organisation distributed a little over 200 vouchers to families in need, but Ms Irving said demand has increased this year.

The surge in demand has also been reflected in government assistance programmes, with Social Services reporting a sharp increase in requests for uniform assistance.

More than 1,400 people in New Providence and Grand Bahama have sought government help to purchase school uniforms ahead of the new academic year.

Ms Irving attributed the uptick to financial pressures caused by the high cost of living, saying while expenses have risen, people’s incomes have not.

“It’s hard to really turn them away like that. Normally we have groups coming in with backpacks, so normally those we couldn't afford to give the uniform and the shoe vouchers to, we’ll give them a backpack with supplies but we haven't seen that resource yet to even go ahead to give.”

She said donations have declined both locally and internationally, and appealed to corporate partners to step up and help meet the growing demand.

“A lot of collaboration is needed,” she added. “We don't need to be working in silos at this point in time because it's not really about us. It's about the immediate need of the people that we serve, and so yes, it's about working together for one common cause.”