Providing financial assistance

THE British Benevolent Fund was established over a century ago to act as a ‘charity of last resort’ to provide financial assistance to Britons in Spain facing extreme hardship.

Wherever possible the BBF looks to find a solution for beneficiaries so that the funds are used to get over a short term issue so that they can get on with their lives. We all have times in our lives when we need a helping hand. The pandemic was a major challenge for the BBF, and we saw a spike in applications from people who had lost their jobs or whose businesses had been forced to close. Some had no choice but to move back to the UK, but others were determined to stay ­ if they could make it work financially. The state support for businesses and furloughed workers was a lifeline for them ­ the issue was often those affected had to wait considerable periods before they received the funds.

The BBF worked with charity partners across Spain (www.supportinspain.info) to try and help find solutions for people who found themselves unable to pay basic items such as utility bills and household expenses for a situation that nobody had planned for and taken many unawares. One such case was a middle­aged man who had lived and worked in Benidorm for many years. He was legally resident and had been furloughed early in the pandemic but subsequently his employer went into collapse, and he had to find a new job. This he did and we were able to provide him some support until this started. The BBF does not have the resources to provide ongoing financial support but if in the case of so many during the pandemic people were awaiting to restart work or businesses then we will do everything we can to help. in freak accidents, young sportsmen dropping dead on the field. Psychologists have studied this and there is deep within our psyches a negativity bias. In practice, what this means is that our brains are wired to pay more attention to negative news than to positive news. Negative news impacts on us in a way that good news doesn’t. It’s probably an evolutionary thing, but never in the history of mankind have we been flooded with newsfeeds to the extent we are today. No wonder mental health problems are around every corner.

We were able to do so for countless other people with help to get them through until normality returned ­ which it has now finally done.

The BBF can only do this through your generosity. If you would like to support our work, please visit our website www.britishbenevolentfund.or g or contact me olaf.clay ton@britishbenevolentfund.or g ­ Thank you! Olaf Clayton, BBF Chair.

So what can we do to combat this?

First of all, cut down the amount of news we are exposed to. Do we really need to know what a member of the royal family had for breakfast? Do we need to follow the lives of celebrities, their divorces and antics? Do we need to spend 16 hours a day with our mobile devices in our hands in case we miss the latest disaster?

Secondly, don’t start your day reading bad news. Three minutes of bad news first thing in the morning can increase the probability of having a bad day by over 25 per cent.

Thirdly, be more selective about your news sources. Often the first dozen Facebook feeds you see will be negative news stories. Wean yourself off this.

Keep your phone on mute when you don’t need them constantly disturbing you with buzzing or pinging.

And perhaps the most important thing is to be discriminating about the content of the constant news feeds, especially if a politician is writing it.