Action for Children has published new UK-wide data that shows one in five families in the UK are in serious financial difficulty, with the charity believing the data found nationwide is a reflection of what the charity is seeing in Fermanagh.

Paul Kellagher, Children’s Services Manager with Action for Children, said: “It shows there is a similarity across everywhere. We are a national charity, and when I talk to colleagues in Cornwall, North Wales, the Hebrides, we are seeing broadly very similar things.”

The data published by the charity found:

Families with children are six times as likely to have had a pre-payment meter installed in the last six months.

Families with children are around three times more likely to be behind on repayments and bills.

The data also shows that families with children are more likely to be struggling to afford food, with families taking measures such as missing meals, not eating for a whole day, or receiving food from a food bank.

Action for Children has said that this nationwide data reflects the current situation across Fermanagh and mirrors the pattern across other parts of the UK.

Lisa McGarvey, Practice Team Leader for Action for Children, described how the situation is impacting local families who are struggling to pay bills.

Speaking about what she is seeing on the ground, Ms. McGarvey said: “In an initial assessment with families, and when you’re exploring what the issues are, you see a lot of the stress is relating to bills.

“A family has enough to do them for the next month – there is no security. Families particularly in Fermanagh and Omagh need a car to work or get their kids maybe to school, or to get them out to school.

“If a car breaks down, we have seen families where they are getting bills at four and five hundred pounds and they just can’t afford that.”

Another issue hitting families hard is the lack of childcare provision. Ms. McGarvey said: “In England, parents get 30 hours of free childcare – in Northern Ireland, that doesn’t exist.

“If [parents/guardians] only have the choice, of one provider for childcare, they have to pay that price. If they want to be able to work, they have to pay the childcare.”

The types of families supported by Action for Children have changed in recent years as the cost of living crisis takes hold of the local area.

“Previously we would have seen families where they were struggling to manage on benefits. Now we are seeing families where both parents are working.”

Highlighting some of the difficulties faced by service users, she said: “If you have a bill that comes in in October, November, and you’re trying to plan for Christmas, or get oil, or you need to get your car to get to hospital appointments, [it is very difficult].

“We had one family where the child was going to the hospital for investigations and the mum as well.

“Her physical health was impacted, worrying about the child, and they were travelling back and forth from a very rural area of Fermanagh, and they needed a car to do that,” she added.

Detailing how pressures are hitting Fermanagh families, Ms. McGarvey said: “We’ve seen families, where parents are both working, but we have had a situation where a parent was admitted to hospital that had a serious illness.

“Obviously, the other parent needed to get to the hospital, so that put the pressure on them in the evenings to get childcare.

“Also, the extra fuel – it was around 20 miles each way to get to the hospital. Things like that tip families over the edge.

“They might have enough to do them for a month or two, but when something like that happens, they’re not able to plan for the next couple of weeks.”

The ongoing challenges present in the community have evolved the charity’s role, Ms. McGarvey said.

“That’s crisis support, not early intervention. It’s a real challenge for us as staff, you could not have a conversation around with a parent around monitoring their child’s behaviour or trying to support them around managing their mental health if they’re not able to meet the basic needs of their child.

“I have a social work background and we would have trained that basic needs need to be met before you can go to the next level, like supporting families to address things such as trauma.

“It’s very difficult when you are dealing with a crisis situation, and that parents aren’t able to pay electricity bills, and aren’t able to buy oil for the winter ahead.

“It is a real challenge as an early intervention service,” she added.