ST VINCENT DE PAUL REGIONAL PRESIDENT URGES CONSCIOUS SPENDING OF HIGH STREET SCHEME

Now that adults across the province are applying for their Spend Local pre-paid card from the Northern Ireland Executive, Regional President of St Vincent de Paul, Mary Waide, is urging shoppers to think of others and shop consciously when redeeming their £100 from the High Street Scheme.

Mary said: “As we have been given this welcome boost in our purse from the Department for the Economy, it would do my heart good to know that people are really thinking about how redeeming the Spend Local pre-paid card could help those in need in our communities.

“Now that those entitled to Universal Credit are experiencing a drastic drop in income as their benefit is reduced by a staggering £20 per week, this will force some people to literally make a decision as to whether to heat the home or put food on the table. And, as we mark the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on 17 October, I believe it is incumbent on all of us to help those who need it most, even with the smallest of gestures, as advocated by our founder Frederic Ozanam almost 180 years ago.”

Twenty three Vincent’s charity shops in towns and villages across Northern Ireland are bursting with Vincent’s treasures and are ready to welcome shoppers keen to use their Spend Local pre-paid card, to avail of affordable fashion for the whole family or to choose gifts to help with starting their Christmas shopping.

Mary added: “Vincent’s charity shops work hand in hand with their local SVP Conferences, so every £1 spent in Vincent’s is helping the most vulnerable in the local community and therefore by redeeming a little or a lot of your Spend Local pre-paid card in your local Vincent’s you will be putting back into your local area.”

Vincent’s participating in the High Street Scheme are located in Belfast – Antrim Road, Ormeau Road and Rosemary Street; Ballymena; Cookstown; Cushendall; Dairy Farm, Dunmurry; Derry; Downpatrick – Ballymote and Irish Street; Dungannon; Dungiven; Enniskillen; Keady; Killyclogher; Kircubbin; Magherafelt; Mill Street, Newry; Newcastle; Omagh, Portadown and Strabane.

The Society of St Vincent de Paul (SVP) is an international charity and the largest voluntary charity in Ireland. SVP members in Northern Ireland work in all communities to support people whatever their background, who are experiencing poverty and social exclusion, promoting self-sufficiency and working for social justice. 

Every year SVP spends approximately £3 million to help those experiencing poverty in Northern Ireland. Last year, SVP responded to tens of thousands of calls for assistance from members of the public. 

If you would like more information about becoming a member of SVP, becoming a volunteer in your local Vincent’s shop or if you would like the Society’s help, please visit www.svpni.co.uk, email [email protected] or tel 028 9035 1561.

To find out more about the High Street Scheme and to apply for a Spend Local pre-paid card, please visit: https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/high-street-scheme-spend-local-pre-paid-card.

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