AS BALLARAT shivers through one of the coldest winters in decades, struggling families are giving up basic necessities like toothpaste, toothbrushes and shampoo just to scrape enough money together to pay for power and gas bills.Others are going to bed early rather than leaving their heating on during the night, Ballarat welfare agencies have said.Hundreds of Ballarat families – many for the first time – are seeking assistance from major welfare organisations in the city, including Anglicare, The Salvation Army, UnitingCare and St Vincent de Paul.Anglicare, which is the smallest of the Ballarat welfare agencies and does not receive government assistance, helps up to 200 local families a month.“The cost of living is going up. This is beyond just feeling the pinch,” said Anglicare’s relief project co-ordinator Pauline Prebble.Ms Prebble said without the support of the 3BA Christmas in July Appeal, which this year hopes to raise $150,000 for the city’s needy, Anglicare would not be able to survive.Ballarat’s UnitingCare also benefits from the appeal, which has raised more than $1 million since it was relaunched in its present form in 2001.Major Diane Romari, from The Salvation Army, which assists up to 25 Ballarat families each week, agreed the demand from struggling families was placing a strain on local welfare groups.“We are seeing families seeking help from us that we have never seen before.”More than 150 people are seeking the assistance of St Vincent de Paul in Ballarat each week, said the charity’s regional council president Anne Dark.She urged residents to support the 3BA Christmas in July Appeal by leaving cash or food donations at the 3BA offices in Lydiard Street North.