Comic Relief grant key for family support charity

A Devon charity said it was "really grateful" to Comic Relief for helping it continue to provide its services.

Home-Start Exeter, East and Mid Devon offers a hand to parents feeling exhausted and overwhelmed by the stresses of family life.

The charity was awarded a £5,000 grant by Comic Relief in January.

Maggie Carter, the charity's chair, said the grant from Comic Relief was "really important" to allow families to access the service.

"That's why we're really grateful to Comic Relief for giving us some money to help support that work," she said.

Mother-of-two Lidia Cox, from Feniton, has myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) and other conditions, and said the charity's support had given her "hope for the future".

She said: "My health is never going to be 100%... I've accepted that, that's my journey, that's my life, but I'd gotten very low, I was suicidal, I wasn't happy, I was not OK at all, I wasn't coping."

Ms Cox was supported by one of the charity's volunteers Fi Stanley who said: "We're definitely friends, but I've been able to help her get out more and do tasks which were really difficult for her to do on her own.

"I've loved meeting the family and I want to stay in their lives.

"It is hard moving on from families, but practically, you know it's hard to keep in contact with everyone - and they don't need us to, we're just helping them through a tough period."

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