Challenge Poverty Week
What is Challenge Poverty Week?
Challenge Poverty Week is an opportunity for you to raise your voice against poverty and unite with others in calling for a more just and equal Scotland. Challenge Poverty Week is about bringing together everyone’s experiences, knowledge and passion to help push for change. Please get involved – you might not think it, but you can make a positive impact!
Challenge Poverty Week is an opportunity for us all to:
Raise a unified voice against poverty
Build awareness and support for solutions to poverty
Help stop the stigma of living on a low income
What’s On During Challenge Poverty Week?
We have partnered with Station House Media Unit (SHMU), CFINE, AberNecessities, and Aberdeen City Health and Social Care Partnership to help raise awareness of poverty in the community. The week is divided into daily themes, have a look at them below:
Monday 2nd October: Communities and Volunteers
Listen to SHMU 99.8FM at 11am for a special Poverty Alliance podcast featuring ACVO looking at fair and sustainable funding for our community and voluntary organisations.
SHMU will be featuring a video from a person with lived experience and a member of staff.
Tuesday 3rd October: Housing
Aberdeen Cyrenians will be featuring two videos, recorded and produced by SHMU for Challenge Poverty Week.
The videos were filmed as part of Challenge Poverty Week to raise awareness of poverty and how it is affecting our community.
The first video features Paul, Programme Lead for our Peer Support Programme, talking about his experiences with poverty.
The second video features Kev, Support Practitioner for Settled Housing Support, talking about how the service supports people to secure and maintain a tenancy.
Listen to SHMU 99.8FM at 11am for a special Poverty Alliance podcast featuring Aberdeen Foyer looking at safe, secure, and sustainable housing.
Wednesday 4th October: Adequate Income
AberNecessities will be focusing on how they support families and feature two videos with a person with lived experience and a staff member.
Listen to SHMU 99.8FM at 11am for a special Poverty Alliance podcast discussing adequate income.
On social media we will be showcasing how we have supported people in need last year and the challenges people experiencing poverty are facing.
Thursday 5th October: Transport & Radio Interview
Karen and Connie from Aberdeen Cyrenians will be interviewed for a special SHMU Challenge Poverty Radio Take Over from 10am - 11am, Thursday 5th October. Listen live here
CFINE will be focusing on access to food and rural transport issues and SHMU will talk about transport issues and young people.
Special videos will be featured focusing on poverty and transport. Listen to SHMU 99.8FM at 11am for a special Poverty Alliance podcast discussing transport.
Friday 6th October: Special Film Screening & Food
We will host a screening of films at the Music Hall, showcasing how low income and access to fair pay, high cost of living, and lack of access to help and services that people need, are affecting thousands of households across the region.
Open to everyone register here https://loom.ly/m4ll4lY
After the screening, there will be inputs from CFINE on Food Poverty Action Aberdeen, and ACVO around some key policy issues.
Councillor Christian Allard will also speak about the City Council's Anti-Poverty and Inequalities Committee.
The event will finish with a Q&A with presenters, as well as some teas and coffees, and the chance to reflect and make new connections.
CFINE will show how they support people and feature two videos with a person with lived experience and a staff member.
Listen to SHMU 99.8FM at 11am for a special Poverty Alliance podcast discussing food and poverty.
Saturday 7th October: Tillydrone Community Campus Open Day
We will be at the Tillydrone Community Campus Open Day on Saturday 7th October 12noon - 3pm.
It is open to everyone and we encourage people to come and have a chat with us and find out about our services and the support we offer.
Sunday 8th October: Reflection
As we Challenge Poverty Week ends we all should continue to challenge poverty every day. Have a look at some of the ways you can do this below.
Feed the hungry
Donating everyday essentials like food, clothing or toiletries is a simple and easy way to a make a real difference to those experiencing need, hardship and homelessness in your community.
We are currently seeking donations for our annual Harvest collection.
Harvest has traditionally been a celebration of food grown on the land, but now plays an important role in helping organisations, like ourselves, who provide meals for those who are facing homelessness or extreme hardship.
With your support, we will be able to continue providing food parcels to individuals and families who need our help. This is particularly important as we come into the colder months when many families are forced to make the very real choice between heating their homes and feeding their children.
Volunteer
Give the gift of time, and make a difference.
Aberdeen Cyrenians started life as a soup kitchen run by student volunteers. That ethos of volunteering and direct community support remains at the heart of what we do and it is essential in allowing us to provide the range of support that our service users rely on.
We’re fully flexible and can take regular, ad hoc, seasonal and team volunteers across a range of services and opportunities.
If you want to help, we can get you started.
Make a change
Donate if and what you can.
You can donate to help those in our local community who are affected by homelessness, domestic abuse and other forms of social exclusion to get the support they need to live more positive lives.
£3 ensures a warm welcome for everyone in need with tea, biscuits and a smile
£25 provides support, food parcels and comfort to someone in crisis
£40 creates dignity and changes lives through social and well-being activities
£475 pays for a day to run one of our vital services offering life-saving support.
Other ways to get involved
You can also support Challenge Poverty Week at home. Here are some ways you can get involved:
Public Health Scotland e-learning on Challenging Poverty Stigma and Discrimination:
Study this free Challenging poverty stigma and discrimination course: https://learning.publichealthscotland.scot/course/view.php?id=577#section-0
Homeless Network Scotland:
Learn: https://homelessnetwork.scot/learn/
Act: https://homelessnetwork.scot/act/
Connect: https://homelessnetwork.scot/connect/
Pioneering: https://homelessnetwork.scot/housing-first/
Find out more about Challenge Poverty Week:
Get Support
We provide a range of services to support people in the Aberdeen area who are affected by homelessness and related issues.