Shamir Dawood, chief investment officer at Helium Capital and an ambassador for The Hygiene Bank, shares his thoughts on tackling hygiene poverty in Ealing.
“During the most recent local elections, a prospective candidate asked me what my concerns are about the local area. Before I answered, I asked them what they were most concerned about.
“Drug dealing in a local park. They couldn’t tell me if it was regular or what kind of drugs were allegedly being dealt.
“They were also concerned about the dimness of street lighting in the evenings.
“I am concerned about data from the Trust for London which shows that 33.9% of children in Ealing are living in poverty after housing costs. This is statistically in the ‘average’ band for London, but nonetheless it is a difficult reality to sit with: more than a third of young people in our borough live in poverty.
“Despite this, on a recent visit to Featherstone High School in Southall, the morale is surprisingly high. Despite being in a tucked-away corner of a courtyard, I could hear the distant roar of a tsunami of young people growing: the deputy head told me it’s Fish & Chips Day – plenty of reason to be excited. And understandably so: sometimes it’s the simple things in life that can provide us with respite from what often seems like a dark and hopeless world. A favourite meal. An unexpected compliment. A bar of soap. That last one might seem a bit odd, but as the cost of living continues to increase, some of the simplest of comforts can become a luxury that needs to be sacrificed to make ends meet.
“I was at Featherstone to help unload the first delivery of hygiene products as part of a three-year initiative to combat hygiene poverty in Ealing: a bespoke order made by the school, to be distributed within the school, to whoever is needs them. This is a project which will hopefully provide the impact and data needed to address the issue nationwide. It’s real change, and it’s starting here at home. It’s a donation, but this isn’t charity – it isn’t even philanthropy – it’s an investment in building a community that I want to be part of; that we can all be proud of; a community where access to simple necessities is not an issue.
“I live and work in Ealing, and the core mission of my business is to translate global profits into local impact. This is how I’m working towards building a better Ealing. But I can’t do it alone: impact can be small, it can be diverse, and it can be anything that works towards a better and brighter future. To use Featherstone’s motto, ‘together we achieve’. Not separately. Not individually. Together.
“The next time Fish & Chips Day – or your equivalent (mine is Pizza Friday) – rolls around, ask yourself: how can you help make our home a better place for everyone; how can we make Ealing better, together?”
