South Wales Echo

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THE Coronaviru­s crisis has created a perfect storm of acute need for the families, young people and children Barnardo’s Cymru helps across Wales.

We are working flat out to ensure that our services continue to provide essential support during the current lockdown because this is the time when the vulnerable need our help most.

Sadly, a growing number of children are likely to face bereavemen­t.

Children who already suffer from anxiety or depression now face new worries as their usual routines of school, friends and social activities disappear. It is having a profound effect on their mental health.

Parents and carers are also struggling with anxieties and many we support feel unable to cope themselves or support their children.

Those families rely on the Barnardo’s Cymru workers they have grown to know and trust.

Now we have to start working in new ways.

That includes moving services online and using technology so our amazing team of workers can continue to provide effective counsellin­g and interactiv­e sessions from the safety of their own homes.

Families with disabled children who now have caring duties 24/7 need resources to help them cope.

Many of the families we work with are struggling financiall­y and Barnardo’s is committed to helping them through these desperate times by providing food vouchers and parcels.

This need for rapid change comes at a cost and at a time when Barnardo’s faces an unpreceden­ted loss of income – we lost a third of our monthly income overnight as our retail shops had to close, face to face fundraisin­g was stopped and fundraisin­g events cancelled.

Please help us by donating what you can so we can provide the workers and the technology to support the most vulnerable through these most challengin­g of times.

You can donate via https://www. barnardos.org.uk/coronaviru­s-crisis-appeal or by sending a cheque payable to Barnardo’s to: Income processing - Crisis Appeal, Barnardo’s, Tanners Lane, Barkingsid­e, Essex IG6 1QG

Sarah Crawley

Director Barnardo’s Cymru

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