The St Vincent de Paul Society has again highlighted the growing impact of the “unrelenting” cost-of-living crisis on Tasmanian families as it launches its annual Christmas Appeal.
According to the Society, one in eight Australians are living below the poverty line and one in six children do not have enough food to eat.
In Tasmania alone, 16,204 people received urgent assistance through the Society’s emergency relief service last financial year.
State President Corey McGrath said that after three years of a spiralling cost-of-living crisis, many were now living beyond their breaking point.
“Our local emergency relief service statistics show that women aged between 25 to 49 characterised the largest grouping of people seeking our assistance, 60%, in Tasmania,” McGrath said.
“Overall, approximately 30% of people seeking our support were single parents with dependent children.”
“Those parents feel helpless and, as we near the Christmas season, their sense of desperation escalates further.”
McGrath said that 38% of people who turned to Vinnies for help in 2023-24, many just needing a hand with the basics like food, clothing and medication, reported mental health conditions.
Last year, the Christmas Appeal helped more than 4,700 people with critical assistance in the two months leading up to Christmas alone.
In 2023, more than 1,250 Christmas Hampers were given to vulnerable individuals and families across the state.
“We could not deliver this support and relief without the generosity of our local community,” McGrath said.
“We urge everyone to consider what gift they might make to the work of Vinnies. Every dollar helps.”
