L-R: Snorre Tysland, Barclays; Michel Simonis, Luxembourg Red Cross; Jean-Guibert Mahy, Barclays; Isabelle Treillard, Luxembourg Red Cross; Samson Beyene, Red Cross Buttek Mersch; Nadine Conrardy, Luxembourg Red Cross;
Credit: Luxembourg Red Cross
Barclays bank has announced that it is partnering with the Luxembourg Red Cross to support programmes providing food and shelter to those hit hardest by the social consequences of the coronavirus outbreak.
The announcement forms part of Barclays’ COVID-19 Community Aid Package helping charities working with vulnerable people impacted by the crisis and alleviating the associated social and economic hardship caused. Thanks to this support, the Luxembourg Red Cross will be able to help 250 additional families through its social grocery stores and facilitate access to housing for twelve young refugees.
The partnership will help the Luxembourg Red Cross face the socio-economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. Two social programmes will benefit from it: the social grocery stores managed by the Red Cross; and its unit helping refugees.
Michel Simonis, Director General of the Luxembourg Red Cross, commented: "We thank Barclays for its generous donation. It will allow us to give access to 250 additional families to our social grocery stores during six months". In 2019, the eight grocery stores operated by the Luxembourg Red Cross provided food and essential everyday products at greatly reduced prices to more than 5,300 families people with financial difficulties.
Snorre Tysland from Barclays added: “This crisis puts more members of the community at risk of being sidelined. Barclays is proud to help the Red Cross scale its efforts in support of the increasing number of vulnerable people in Luxembourg”.
This support will enable LISKO (Lëtzebuerger Integratiouns- a Sozialkohäsiounszenter), the Red Cross’ unit which helps refugees with their integration, to provide a dozen refugees aged 18-25 with housing in shared flats for one year. The flats or houses are typically shared by four to five people, with tenants contributing to the rent with 30% of their income and receiving support from social workers to become fully financially independent.
The Luxembourg Red Cross has been responding to the COVID-19 pandemic from the outset, in line with its mission “Mënschen hëllefen” (Helping People). In addition to its support to the Luxembourg health response, its teams are helping those most affected by the economic and social crisis in Luxembourg.
