Our support worker Jenna recently met Jim* at his emergency accommodation in a hotel in Manchester. Despite working hard to turn his life around, he had sadly become homeless.

Fortunately, we were able to help him quickly get his new life away from his past back on track and in a positive direction. This is Jim’s story…

 

A break away from a challenging lifestyle

Jim has a history of homelessness and has been involved in gangs his whole life. However, he has been trying hard since October 2020 to break away from that lifestyle and make a fresh start. 

After finishing probation a few months ago, Jim has been staying out of trouble ever since. He doesn’t want to go back to prison and find himself in the continuous cycle he has been stuck in since he was 14, so he has been proactive in helping himself being eager to study at college and work towards getting a job.

Sadly, while Jim was making these positive changes to his life, he found himself homeless again. He was referred to a hotel through the Manchester City Council’s Emergency Cold Weather Provision, where our two stories converge.

Some members of our team are based in the hotel five days a week. They speak with individuals there to see how we can build a support plan with them, as well as find appropriate groups or organisations and more permanent accommodation. When Jenna met him, Jim’s anxiety was through the roof, as he struggled to come to terms with the fact that he was homeless again after starting to move his life into a new direction. We sat down with him and got to work…

 

A positive change in direction

After speaking to Jim and assessing his needs, Jenna was able to get his GP transferred to somewhere more local. We hoped that this would encourage him to speak to someone about his mental health.

Importantly, Jenna was also able to secure Jim a referral for a shared house which provides daily support. He attended an interview that same week and he was accepted. He couldn’t believe how quickly his circumstances had changed, and we were able to get him a taxi from the hotel to his new home that very same day. 

Jim has since contacted us to say that, while he’s still struggling to get his head around things, he couldn’t be more thankful to us for taking the time to help him. Incredibly, in the space of just five days, Jim had been rough sleeping, placed into Emergency Cold Weather Provision accommodation, and is now in a supported shared house with no minimum length of stay.

We’re blessed to be able to help Jim into a supported home so that he can begin to realise his desire for a positive and fulfilled future

 

A brighter future on the horizon

The stigma, uncertainty and emotional trauma that come with becoming homeless can have a massive impact on someone’s mental and physical health. This is why it is so important that we were able to act quickly to get Jim into a permanent home.

Now, Jim can keep going on his inspiring journey towards turning his life around – and we can’t wait to see where it takes him next. To find out more about how you can help us support more friends like Jim, get in touch today.

*Name has been changed to protect our friend’s identity