How just the price of your morning coffee could be enough to help change lives

Any donation, however small, can make a real difference to the vital work of community wellbeing projects, reports Robert Dex

- Robert Dex

IF you ever needed proof that even your smallest donation can make a difference, ask the team at St Peters Community Wellbeing Project in Bethnal Green how the price of your morning coffee would be enough to mean the women they work with get vital help.

The centre helps elderly Bangladeshi women in east London, many having been referred there by their GPs, at their drop-in club where they exercise, work in the garden, cook and eat together. But the cost-of-living crisis has pushed charges up — resulting in the number of women coming through the door falling by half for the want of a few pounds.

Charity manager Khondoker Kamal-Uddin said he tried to keep the cost increase to a minimum — so the exercise class that was £1 is now £1.50, while the lunch that cost £1 now costs the women £2.