Sheffield: At-risk charity petition seeks council funding

A charity in need of an urgent cash injection to avoid closure has submitted a petition signed by more than 27,400 people asking the council for help.

Vida has spent almost 30 years supporting victims of domestic abuse in Sheffield and helping them recover from trauma.

On Wednesday, Vida CEO Karen Hague told Sheffield City Council that without financial support, it would have to cease operations at the end of November.

Responding to the petition, Angela Argenzio, chair of the council’s adult health and social care policy committee, said the authority could not fund the charity directly but would do “everything we can” to support it to find other options to financing.

The charity supports up to 200 people annually and needs £240,000 each year to fund its work, Ms Hague said, adding that without an urgent £54,000 cash injection, it is likely to close in a few months.

She said the charity had been overlooked for several recent funding offers.

“It’s hard to find funding to support our services because everything is short-term,” she told councillors.

“We have applied for major national tender processes through the Home Office and the Suicide Prevention Fund but have simply failed because they are oversubscribed and all the other funders are extremely competitive now.

“We’re just one of many trying to tap into the same pot of funds and it’s just hard for us to keep up with what we’re doing.

“We believe we are extremely good value, saving the NHS around £50,000 a month with our comprehensive mental health service for women suffering from post-traumatic stress following domestic or sexual abuse.”

Ms Argenzio said if Vida were to close, she believed it would lead to an increased burden on other mental health and therapy services in the city.

She added: “If we are unable to provide funding directly in circumstances like this, we can still do what we can to support Vida in developing a clear business plan and continue to talk to our NHS colleagues and to advocate for statutory funding of the NHS. for the work that Vida does”.