Here at HOS, our brokerage team work extremely hard to offer the best advice and support they can to our clients. That support comes in all sorts of forms, and the advice we give is different for every household. The following is a round up of just some of the many ways our clients have presented to us over the past few weeks, and what we’ve been doing to help them.
Tessa supported a vulnerable young person who was discharged from the armed forces unexpectedly. Due to the way he was discharged, the help he was entitled to was limited. Through her contacts and knowledge, Tessa was able to support the young person into military specific transitional supported accommodation at Erskine. For transitioning Veterans living in their who need help to begin the next chapter of their lives, Erskine offers social, recreation and training facilities. Residents are also offered a bespoke personal support package tailored to suit their needs to help them move onto full-time employment and long-term suitable accommodation.
Susan was allocated the case of a single mother with two neurodiverse children, who had been plagued with noise complaints from her downstairs neighbour, despite many attempts to sound proof the property. This client was the sole carer for her children and thought she wouldn’t be able to afford her own property, one where they could make as much noise as they needed to. Susan made the client aware of Access Ownership, a shared ownership scheme which is aimed at households with disabilities who would be unable to cover the whole cost of purchasing a property. Thanks to this advice the family have now moved into a new property which suits them perfectly.
“When I first contacted you, I thought I was in a position that I would never get out of, I was at my lowest. Your help and advice gave me the confidence that my housing situation would change, and it gave me hope.”
Eve worked with an older client who had been served a notice to quit by her landlord – a situation many of our clients are facing. This client was willing to move anywhere in the country, and thanks to this, they had more options for rehousing. Eve was able to link her in with a sheltered property on the East coast – she has now moved in and says “I am absolutely elated! I cannot thank you enough for helping me.”
It’s important that our clients know that a solution doesn’t always happen overnight. Ryan Macdonald was able to help a client who contacted us following a period of homelessness and was living with PTSD. She was sofa surfing with a friend as she had negative experiences of temporary accommodation, and didn’t want the impact on her mental health. She liked being close to her friend in her current local authority but she was exploring moving out of the area to get a fresh start and be closer to her family. Ryan was able to explain to her that she could present as homeless to any Local Authority area thanks to the removal of local connection rules, and that she didn’t need to accept the offer of temporary accommodation to be accepted as homeless. She could remain sofa surfing at her friend’s home where she feels safe and secure, whilst awaiting a suitable offer from her chosen Local Authority. While this client doesn’t have a permanent home yet, she is aware of her rights, and can make informed decisions about her situation.
Housing isn’t always an easy path, and we can’t always find the right solution straightaway, but we will make sure that everyone who comes to us for help is listened to, respected, and we will do our absolute best to help them down the road to secure housing.