Charities across the board are having to provide more services with fewer resources as the cost of living continues to have an impact.
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00:00 Our costs have gone up. We know that in 2020 it would cost us an average of £130 to see a pet and that's gone up to £168 last year.
00:12 When we're seeing over 400,000 pets a year, that's a real significant cost to us.
00:17 So we recognise how much it's affecting our owners as well.
00:21 It's the cost of pet food, it's the cost of pet insurance.
00:25 So when it's specifically looking at pets, there's so many things that are going, the costs are rising and owners are struggling, we know that.
00:33 What support are you offering to those facing financial difficulties?
00:37 And as you've mentioned, you've seen an increased demand for those services. Just how big is that demand?
00:43 We are seeing more people turn to us who perhaps haven't even been to us before,
00:47 which tends to say to us that these are people who were managing and have got to the point now where the costs of everything have gone up so much,
00:56 they just can't anymore and they need charity help.
00:59 So we work out of 49 pet hospitals across the UK.
01:03 If people are within a catchment area of our hospital, they can come in and either get free or low cost veterinary care for their pets.
01:10 What sort of an impact has that cost of living going up had on organisations like yourself?
01:15 How has that affected your ability to provide the assistance that the demand has also surged for?
01:21 So across the charity sector, we've seen a fall in donations and we need funds more than ever.
01:28 We receive no government funding. Everything that we do relies on the amazing support we get from the public.
01:36 And yes, it is. It's a huge concern. We know everyone's struggling.
01:42 And we're just so grateful for anyone who feels they can donate.
01:46 There's lots of ways you can donate, as you can imagine. You can do a fundraiser yourself.
01:51 We've just had some amazing supporters running the London Marathon for us, actually.
01:55 As I say, we're incredibly grateful for all the support we get. We know how much it means.