Local charity TASS (Tavistock Area Support Services) is a well-known and respected presence in Tavistock town, providing valuable services to elderly and vulnerable residents of Tavistock and surrounding areas. These services include voluntary car services to hospital and health appointments and outreach services for people who are vulnerable – which can also involve supporting people to access benefits and services to improve their quality of life.
The charity employs nine people on a part-time basis and is separate from the council and government. It is reliant principally on donations and income from its shop, though it has also received some grant funding in the past and continues to do so. However, the finances of local government are extremely precarious now (large councils have become insolvent and are constantly looking to cut expenditures) and this stream of funding is not as reliable as it once was. Accordingly, new sources of funding are always being sought and approaches are continually being made to funders both large and small, local and national.
To continue and extend its outreach and befriending services over the coming years - services where demand is expected to continue to rise - TASS must work on ensuring a sustainable financial footing based on a mix of donations, plus small and large grants, as well as improving income from its shop and other sources.
TASS chair Jan Gasper said: “The funding environment is more difficult than ever; our manager Holly and her team are spending more of their time on fundraising than ever before and it is a constant challenge. But we know that we enjoy a lot of support locally in offering our services and will continue to work on maintaining and improving the services we offer.”