We’re proud to work with many other Manchester-based support providers to help our homeless friends get back on their feet. Whether they’re street homeless or hidden homeless (living in hostels, on friends’ sofas, or in emergency or temporary accommodation), we aim to find them a new place to stay – as well as the food and household items to make it a home.

Our resettlement scheme has seen two successes recently, which we’d like to share with you here. Read on to discover how your support made a difference, and what you can do to help us help even more people in the future.

 

Getting a couple back on track

For the past two years, we’ve been supporting a couple in preparing for independent living. Not only has our resettlement scheme found them a home, but it works to ensure that they never become homeless again.

Part of this involves money management. The couple has recently been struggling financially and putting themselves under a huge amount of stress – two factors which could put them at risk of becoming homeless. So, one of our resettlement workers sat down with the couple to review their spending and build a monthly budget.

She found out they had taken out expensive contracts and monthly payments without fully understanding the financial implications. They had also been unnecessarily overpaying on their benefits. As a result, they were struggling to pay their bills and had sadly resorted to using pawnbrokers to get by each month.

In both cases, the couple simply weren’t aware of the alternatives. They had been working hard to keep to their budget but were fighting a losing battle. Luckily, our resettlement worker was on hand to walk them through it.

She managed to cancel some of the contracts they’d taken out, which shouldn’t have been sold to them in the first place. One of the couple was entitled to Personal Independence Payment too – a monthly payment from the government that supports people who suffer from a long-term physical or mental health condition or disability that impacts their day-to-day life. After we supported them with their application, they’re now receiving this much-needed boost.

Thanks to their reduced spending and increased income, the couple are now debt-free. They feel more able to plan for their future and a huge weight is off their shoulders. Personal finances are some of the biggest causes of individual stress and can lead to depression and relationship breakdown. By working with this couple, we’ve not only helped them to stay in their property but have also taught them valuable life skills.

Forging a relationship between two new mums

Our other resettlement worker has recently been working a lot with two new mums. She met with both women, and together they all visited a local baby group.

They hadn’t met each other before, but they got along well and gelled over the joint experience of motherhood. We’re hoping this could start both women on their way to forming a support network – one that helps with the isolation and overwhelming moments that often come with being a first-time mother. They would also have a friend to share the happy and exciting moments with too, like the first word or the first walk, as well as someone to get advice and tips from.

Being a mum herself, our resettlement worker understands the importance of knowing other mothers who are in the same boat as you during the early stages. She even said that this kind of relationship can be a lifeline.

Sometimes, our friends become too dependent on our support and end up delaying their move to independent living. By connecting these two women, we not only hope that their relationship will bloom but that they’ll reduce their reliance on our resettlement team.

 

Support future moves to independent living with Barnabus

Reducing reliance on our service is always the end goal. But we need your help to achieve it.

If you’d like to support the next couple, mum, dad or person that walks through our doors, hover over the ‘Support us’ tab at the top of our website and browse the various ways you can get involved or consider supporting us with a one off or monthly gift. Alternatively, you can contact a member of our team here.