On a cold night widower Bernard Bonnici wraps himself up as warm as he can be and watches the TV. He doesn't have the heating on. It's just too expensive for him.
"I don't have the heating on at all because I can't afford it. Because I live on the seafront it gets very cold. I find it hard but you just have to get on with things. In the night, when it does get cold, I wrap myself up in a quilt and watch the telly. I just try to relax and get on with it," he said.
He is one of the people finding some help and company through a warm hub in Swansea, as the cost-of-living crisis continues to hit households in Wales this winter. The 65-year-old volunteers with the charity Action for Elders, who run weekly warm hubs in the National Waterfront Museum in partnership with Swansea Council.
Bernard lives alone and after dealing with health problems and isolation in recent years he saw volunteering with the charity as a way of helping others like himself. "It's very hard living on my own because I lost the wife. I didn't have anybody. It took me a good couple of years to get better but I'm one of the lucky ones because I've got a good group of people around me who can't do enough for me. I'm hoping now to help other people in the same situation as I was." You can get more Swansea news and other story updates straight to your inbox by subscribing to our newsletters here.
Through the free weekly "winter warmer" sessions, older people in Swansea can access a full day of free activities including morning tai chi sessions, an afternoon film screening, and warm drinks and soup. For Pauline Anderson, 68, the decision to go to sessions like these was the best choice she had ever made, she said.
"You've got a warm place to come, you can meet nice people and you can have a free cup of tea and some soup. You make so many friends," said Pauline, who now volunteers at the events.
"If you're home all day and you've got to keep the heating on, trying to keep warm is really, really difficult. By coming down here, I don't have to be at home so my heating is off which is great. So I'm saving myself lots of money and it's somewhere warm to come. You're socialising at the same time which is even better, otherwise you're stuck at home feeling isolated and you can get depressed and lonely," Pauline explained.
Warm hubs have been set up across Swansea to lend a helping hand to people this winter. You can find one near you here:
Action for Elders operations manager, Myles Lewis said this winter has been "very challenging" for many people. Since prices began to rise, Myles said many had faced depression and some had confided in him that they were using foodbanks for the first time ever. "The sessions we run are very important for our community," he added. "Due to the cost-of-living crisis, we thought through our survey that people needed advice as well as a warm, safe environment."
That cost-of-living survey carried out by the charity, with 96% of respondents aged 50 and over, found that 94% of people were concerned about the cost-of-living with 92% having already taken action to keep living costs down. Many people had reduced heating and cut back on food and almost half said the situation had affected their mental or physical health.
One older person with chronic health conditions made worse by the cold said they only put the heating on when "struggling to breathe and my fingers turn white," despite wearing multiple jumpers, dressing gowns and gloves and a hat indoors. Another said they were experiencing increased anxiety from money worries, less social interaction and more pain from arthritis due to cutbacks on heating.
Swansea Council Ageing Well coordinator Rhys Thomas said events like the winter warmers were "vital" and a "lifeline for many people". He added: "The weekly sessions we're doing in partnership with Action for Elders and Museum Wales give an opportunity for people to get out of the house, make new friends and meet services. Because we provide everything for free, that really helps people."
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