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Cost of Christmas video transcript
Audio description (AD): A mum is shopping with her 7-year-old daughter, who is in a wheelchair. The mum is looking at the marked down items on the shelf – she finds a toy reduced to £9.95.
The mum reaches to take the toy but changes her mind at the last minute.
Voice over (VO): How would you choose between a Christmas present for your child or feeding your family this winter?
AD: An older man at home, wearing a CPAP mask. He looks out the window at the house opposite noticeably sad, which is lit up with Christmas lights. To the side, we see his wheelchair, which is unplugged from the wall.
VO: Between charging your wheelchair to visit friends or being able to breathe?
AD: A teenage boy wearing a thick scarf and several jumpers. He’s making his mum a sandwich in the kitchen.
In the living room, of the same house a middle-aged woman is wrapped in a coat and blanket on the sofa. The teenager gives her sandwich and rubs his hands together for warmth.
VO: Between heating your home to stay well, or eating a hot meal?
The cost-of-living crisis has hit disabled people hard, forcing many to make difficult choices. For them, Christmas is broken.
AD: We see a mobile phone showing Scope’s Helpline webpage.
The mum we saw at the supermarket is sitting with her daughter at home, calling Scope.
VO: Please support Scope’s Cost of Christmas Appeal.
AD: We now see the older man at home calling Scope and then the mum with her son calling Scope.
VO: £13 could help Scope’s Helpline answer a call, be someone to talk to when it’s needed most, someone to offer reassuring advice when the debts are piling up, or someone to give support to save money on bills.
AD: We cut to the mum from the supermarket on the phone to Scope – looking relieved. The little girl smiles at her mum hopefully.
Cut to the teenager. He’s sitting beside his mum, and they are both speaking to the helpline adviser on speakerphone. They both look relieved.
Then cut to the older man on the phone, looking reassured.
VO: Please, send your gift today.
We see a bauble with Cost of Christmas Appeal written on it, alongside Scope’s logo
VO: And help us fix Christmas for disabled people and their families.
AD: We see the little girl from the supermarket scene, tucked up in bed asleep with her toy unicorn next to her.
Text shown on screen.
Donate Now. And help us fix Christmas for disabled people and their families.
Christmas is broken - but you can help fix it
The cost-of-living crisis has hit disabled people hard and this Christmas, many disabled people and their families are forced to make difficult choices, like:
- choosing between buying Christmas presents or putting food on the table and buying essentials
- staying warm or charging vital disability equipment like, hoists and electric wheelchairs
How you can help
Everyday Scope’s helpline is inundated with calls from disabled people who feel like they have nowhere to turn. Our highly trained helpline advisers can support people with practical advice about benefits or refer people to other specialist services run by Scope – but we are only able to answer 1 in 2 calls.
It costs nearly £1 a minute to answer a call to the helpline and an average call costs £13.
Will you help Scope be there for everyone who needs us this winter, with a gift today?
What we're hearing
Research commissioned by Scope in September 2023 showed the harsh reality of the cost-of-living crisis and its impact on many disabled people and their families. We heard that:
- almost 1 in 3 disabled people say that they expect to be struggling financially
- 38% said they weren’t turning on the heating because of the cost of living
- 45% said they were concerned about affording food.
- almost 4 in 10 expect to spend less on Christmas presents for their children
Advice and support
If you have been affected by any of the issues highlighted in the campaign, or with anything else, and need support.
You can visit our advice and support pages.
Protecting individuals
To respect the privacy of individuals, disabled actors are featured in this campaign using real-life experiences of disabled people and those who have benefitted from Scope’s helpline.
To protect their identities, names and photos have been changed.