DESPERATE people in Worcester are being handed money from a city charity to help keep their heads above water.

Worcester Municipal Charities (WMC) has revealed it is increasing the amount it gives away each year as the recession bites.

The organisation, which owns 46 properties in Worcester including many in the city centre, will give away a record £130,000 to individuals this year for basics such as carpets, washing machines and clothes.

The money is raised from the rent received from the property portfolio, which includes buildings occupied by NatWest on the Cross and M&M Meats in St Swithin’s Street as well as scores of private homes.

Trustees of the charity say they are getting about 30 applications a month from vulnerable people in need of help.

Charity bosses say many applications are from young people out of work.

One case highlighted the plight of a 26-year-old unemployed man, left with literally nothing after his £55-a-week jobseeker’s allowance paid his bills, while a girl aged 22, getting jobseeker’s allowance of £31 a week, could not afford to heat her flat.

The charity’s hardship relief fund was £95,000 in 2009 but has steadily risen in response to the state of the economy, and stands at £130,000 for 2013.

It is expecting to up the fund again next year when benefit cuts begin to bite.

Chairman Paul Griffiths said: “Many people in Worcester, particularly the young, are living on very little. It’s actually pretty desperate.

“Because of things like the bedroom tax, things are bound to get worse. We are getting about 30 applications a month and people are struggling with the basics.”

He said applicants are referred to them by bodies such as Worcester Citizens Advice Bureau, the Maggs Day Centre and social workers.

Each month, a grants committee sits down and goes through each applicant’s income and spending before making a decision.

Mr Griffiths said it could go on “anything we would regard as normal in today’s society” including TVs, clothes and carpets.

The Mayor of Worcester, Councillor Roger Berry, is one of the trustees.

He said: “It highlights the desperate need of young people who are particularly suffering – ‘sofa surfing’ is very prevalent in Worcester because so many youngsters have no chance of living on their own.”

Latest figures show 645 18-24 year-olds in Worcester claimed jobseeker’s allowance in March, down by 15.

The overall figure for 16 to 64-year-olds in Worcester is 2,265, down by 51.

Worcester MP Robin Walker said: “I’m very keen to support what WMC does, but the best way to reduce demand is by getting more people into work, we’ve got to fix the problem at its root.”

On Monday, we revealed how Worcester Municipal Charities had distributed £284,000 to good causes this year, including the CAB, Tudor House Museum and Worcester Action for Youth.