Essex & Herts Air Ambulance brace for 'cost of giving' crisis
They're expecting donations to dip
The Essex and Herts Air Ambulance says it's bracing for a 'cost of giving' crisis.
As people deal with rising energy and food costs, the charity says they're planning for a dip in their funding as people make cuts to save money.
Emma Barker is from the charity: "In the sector we're talking about a cost of giving crisis.
"As people start to feel the impact of fuel bills, inflation and the rising cost of food, inevitably, some people will cancel their direct debits.
"We're trying to do as much as we can now to prepare for the future."
She tells us the charity has to be "prudent" and well-prepared with money, saying helicopter contracts are organised in "long-term agreements" and that they've got reserves of money: "If you add up all of our operating and charitable costs, we're talking about £9 million a year, which equates to £750,000 every month that we have to find to keep flying...
"A lot of people don't realise this, but we're not funded by the government, we're funded by the public and we couldn't do without their support...
"We're not living a hand to mouth existence but it is really important that we maintain fundraising levels so we can continue to provide this life-saving service."
It's also Air Ambulance Awareness Week and to celebrate, contestants on the BBC's Celebrity MasterChef tonight will be cooking at the charity's new North Weald base.
Emma says it was an honour to welcome the chefs to their base: "It's a mass catering challenge that was filmed a few months ago. It couldn't be better timing for our charity as it's being aired right in the middle of Air Ambulance Week.
"It's all about raising the profile of air ambulances and the life saving work we do all across the UK, so for them to give us that exposure is really lovely."