Across Milton Keynes, local charities and community organisations are providing practical support to people facing some of life’s most difficult circumstances. From helping families with essential items for a new baby to providing safe shelter and meals, their work makes a real difference to people in our local community.
At FMS, we are proud to support this work through a monthly donation to MK Community Foundation. The Foundation works alongside local businesses, individuals and community organisations to help address some of the challenges facing people across Milton Keynes. Through its Poverty and Disadvantage Fund, the Foundation provides funding to local charities working directly with people experiencing hardship, including those facing food insecurity, financial pressures and difficult circumstances.
We recently received the Foundation’s annual report, which gave us an insight into some of the ways local organisations are supporting people across our city.
Helping Families Through Difficult Beginnings
For some families, welcoming a new baby can come alongside financial hardship, unstable housing or other difficult circumstances.
Baby Basics MK provides practical support to vulnerable families, helping provide essential items for newborns when they are needed most.
The report shows how funding from MK Community Foundation is helping Baby Basics MK through its Essential Foundations for Vulnerable New Families project. The project is providing 124 newborn starter packs containing essentials including a safe sleeping space, feeding supplies, toiletries, nappies, clothing and hospital kits.
The support reaches families through referrals from professionals including midwives, health visitors, social workers, refugee services and domestic abuse professionals. For families facing financial pressure or difficult circumstances, having access to these essentials can help remove some of the immediate worry and provide a safer start for their newborn.
Supporting People Facing Homelessness
Homelessness can leave people facing uncertainty and a lack of basic security. UnityMK supports people experiencing homelessness, providing practical help and connecting people with wider support.
The report highlights funding for UnityMK’s Winter Night Shelters, which provide people experiencing homelessness with a safe and warm place to sleep during the coldest months. Alongside somewhere to stay, the shelters provide hot meals, pastoral support and connections to housing and wellbeing services.
This provides immediate support for people during a particularly difficult time, while also helping connect them with services that can support longer-term pathways out of homelessness.
Making Sure Families Have Food on the Table
Food insecurity is another challenge facing families across Milton Keynes.
St Mark’s Meals, a project of St Mark’s MK, distributes meal kit boxes through schools, family centres and community hubs across Milton Keynes. Each box provides a complete, healthy dinner for a family of four and is delivered at the point of need without forms or referrals.
The funding highlighted in the report helps St Mark’s Meals manage rising food and operational costs as demand continues to grow.
For families facing financial pressure, having access to a meal can remove one more worry and provide practical support when it is needed most.
Giving Back to Our Local Community
At FMS, supporting MK Community Foundation is one way we can contribute to the wider work taking place across Milton Keynes. Our monthly donation helps support the Foundation’s work with local organisations that are there for people when they need support most.
You can find out more about our commitment to giving back and our work within the local community on our Giving Back and FMS Community pages.