Cost of Living: 'I tell my kids I'll buy it tomorrow - and hope they forget'

A foundation that specialises successful helping British Muslims with fiscal problems says it has been overwhelmed by request for help. Requests for situation grants are moving astatine unprecedented levels, the National Zakat Foundation says.

"It's stark," says Dr Sohail Hanif, main enforcement of the NZF. "Some of the stories we're proceeding dependable arsenic though they're retired of warfare zones, you can't judge they're from the UK."

The foundation says requests for assistance are moving astatine up to 2,000 applications per month, astir treble what it was past year. Due to the surge successful demand, it is presently taking them up to 4 months to process an exertion - antecedently it took 2 weeks.

Successful applicants tin get currency grants of astir £600 for a azygous idiosyncratic and astir £1,000 for a household with 2 children.

"People are moving retired of borrowing options," adds Dr Hanif. "They tin nary longer crook to household members. Ill wellness is precise common. One bout of sickness tin nonstop the household beneath the poorness line, struggling to wage their bills.

"We're helping a batch of women with children, asylum seekers, victims of trafficking. There is nary 1 demographic that's owning this."

Many of those struggles were connected show astatine a gathering the BBC attended astatine the offices of the Give a Gift charity, successful Leeds.

Nine mothers, each Muslim, gathered to get proposal and enactment connected however to woody with rising prices. One, a mum-of-seven, said her household each slept successful 2 bedrooms arsenic the different 2 rooms successful her location were excessively acold to use. Rising rents meant she couldn't spend to move.

Another said she was perpetually stressed, worrying astir money, and that her children preferred being astatine schoolhouse to being astatine location arsenic it was warmer.

Berlin Mirre, a mother-of-five, said she had built up ample debts arsenic a effect of being incapable to marque ends meet.

The household lives disconnected £236 a week. She pays £66 a week towards her rent, and astatine slightest £50 a week connected state and electric. She regularly runs retired of wealth earlier the week is out.

"Life is not casual now," she says, arsenic her youngest child, two-year-old Ali, plays successful different room. "My children don't recognize - erstwhile they consciousness acold they conscionable enactment the heating on. They inquire 'can you bargain this, tin you bargain that' and I often accidental I volition bargain it time and anticipation they forget."

She gets a play nutrient parcel from Give a Gift, but worries perpetually astir her debts. "I wage arsenic overmuch arsenic I can, but it's the minimum magnitude each month, and the involvement is gathering up. I consciousness truthful bad. I don't slumber good astatine all.

"I deliberation if I die, I volition person to reply to God for that money. And who volition wage after?"

Figures released successful January by the Office for National Statistics suggested 26% of Asian households and 46% of radical described arsenic "other taste groups" said they were somewhat disquieted oregon precise disquieted astir moving retired of food. The wide complaint for Britain arsenic a full was 15%.

The figures bash of people disguise immense variations wrong antithetic communities - charities accidental that radical of Bangladeshi, Pakistani and achromatic African practice are struggling the most.

"The level of request is truthful overmuch greater present than it was during the pandemic," says Sufia Alam, who runs a nutrient slope astatine the Maryam Centre, portion of the East London mosque.

The mosque started distributing nutrient owed to Covid 19 and planned to halt the work past twelvemonth but soaring ostentation has meant it is busier than ever.

"The rising outgo of surviving is simply a bigger situation successful this community," says Ms Alam. "This is simply a assemblage that has ever been successful poverty, lived successful overcrowded housing, that's truly struggled with employment. And it doesn't assistance that everything is present truthful expensive."

Despite the request they're seeing, respective charities accidental they judge the existent request is adjacent greater owed to a lingering consciousness of shame wrong Muslim communities successful asking for help.

NZF, which raises astir of its wealth during Ramadan, which starts connected 22 March, said British Muslims traditionally donate wealth to assistance radical suffering overseas.

More Muslims successful the UK are opening to realise determination is increasing request among their ain communities astatine home, adds Dr Hanif, and donations accrued past year.

But determination is inactive a stigma for many. "There is nary shame successful asking for help, that's our message," helium adds.