You can make a difference

THE British Benevolent Fund was founded over a century ago to provide help for those Britons in Spain in extreme financial distress.

Over its many years of existence, the BBF has acted as a ‘charity of last resort’ for those who have nowhere else to turn. It has seen more than in its fair share of the worst that life can throw and the resilience of people once they have a lifeline.

Sometimes a small amount makes a big difference.

Barry was a 62, had been living as a resident in Spain for years, lived alone doing seasonal and temporary work.

When the pandemic began, he was an early casualty ­ but there was no work ­ the bars closed, and the streets empty.

He applied for state aidwhich was declined ­ had no savings and with no income was forced to go to food banks and charities to survive. He did not have the rent to pay and would soon be on the streets.

And there was no sign of work. One of the charities who were helping Barry was one of the BBF’s many partner charities found at https://www.sup portinspain.info/ who got in touch with us to see if there was a way to helping him through.

The BBF always looks for a solution and any funds are used in order to find one ­ in this case ­ there was no work and the BBF does not have the resources for ongoing payments.

But a plan was put togetherin the hope that work would come ­ and he would move out of the apartment and move to a room in a shared property.

The lifeline was just enoughwithin a few weeks he had found some part time work and then a few weeks later some more work.

Within a year he was managing a bar on the coast.

It was a long year coming ­ and Barry had many dark days but the lifeline kept him goingfinancially and more importantly that people wanted to help spurred him to every effort to get back on his feet. gional food, wines and restaurants were second to none. For 10 years we had a property in Provence. Spain was less developed, unregulated and poorly organised, but it always felt like home for me. It had a wonderful healthy outdoor life. The monarchy was highly respected and prices of petrol, transport, fine wines and eating out were far lower than in the other countries. The cities were glorious and coastal construction was under control. In 1975 I spent a summer working on the Costa Blanca and now live in Axarquia.

Where he remains.

The BBF can only help people like Barry with your help ­ if you would like to support our work with a donation please visit our website to see how www.britishbenevolentfund.or g. Thank you. Olaf Clayton, BBF Chair.

But immigrants from troubled, less fortunate countries want to move to the UK, because many of them speak some English and consequently already have relatives there. Ireland is far less accessible, especially for those desperate enough to risk boat crossings.

In their different ways they were all probably at their best 40 to 60 years ago, but are still among the most desirable countries to live in.