Hundreds of kinship carers around Northern Ireland, including many vulnerable and elderly people, have been abandoned during the Covid-19 crisis, a charity said last night.
Derry-based Kinship Care said many of its kinship carers - where a grandparent, other relative or close friend is given guardianship of a child under sometimes quite traumatic circumstances - had been left without food and other essential aid as a result of the pandemic.
The charity said since the beginning of the lock-down it had provided emergency food parcels to 261 kinship carers looking after 311 children.
The carers include a lady with Stage 3 cancer, who looks after two grandchildren.
Jacqueline Williamson, Chief Executive of Kinship Care, said many of the carers are living in severe poverty.
"Government guidance is that grandparents shouldn’t have any contact with their grandchildren but that isn’t an option for the families we support as many are raising their grandchildren," she said.
"They have received no guidance or support from the authorities.
"Kinship Care closed its five shops at the beginning of March, with a loss of £2,600 in revenue per week but has since been swamped by families looking for help".
She added: "Many of our older carers have pre-existing health conditions and are particularly vulnerable to Covid-19.
"We realised they were going to be struggling with the lock-down and targeted those aged over 70 raising grandchildren and younger carers aged 18-25 bringing up younger siblings".
Faced with a collapse in income at a time when there is a huge demand for services, Kinship Care applied for and received £9,900 in funding from the Halifax Foundation to provide services for carers in the Derry and Strabane areas, including food parcels and emergency activity packs for children.
"We spent the money in eight days," said the chief executive.
"The charity sector is running out of money and organisations such as the Halifax Foundation for NI have jumped in and provided support to meet the immediate needs of very vulnerable families. The National Lottery has also helped, and we have received small amounts of money from other donors".
Ms Williamson said many of the elderly carers are looking after four or five grandchildren without a penny of support because they aren't aware of any entitlement to financial aid.
"We have at least another three weeks of lock-down and our older grandparents will still be advised to isolate," she said.
"They are going to be frightened to come out of their homes. In some cases, given the health conditions of some of our carers this time could prove fatal.
"The only outcome for the youngsters is going into the care system. Our ethos is keeping children with their families. It is a pity that the Government hasn’t recognised this, and it is only organisations like the Halifax Foundation and other generous charitable foundations that have taken an interest in their plight".
