Helping people find a home

Sam was one of the first residents of the eight bed property we opened just before Christmas and he recently moved into his own home. This case study shows how our staff were able to support him to achieve this goal.

Sam became homeless after struggling to pay his rent and found himself staying in the Dawn Centre after rough sleeping. Action Homeless were able to offer him support and he moved in on Christmas eve. During an initial conversation about his needs when he first moved in, staff identified that the main support priority for Sam was helping him to submit his housing application so he could look for his own home. The main barrier to this was rent that Sam owed from his last home.

He told staff that he has learning difficulties as a result of an injury when he was a child which means he finds it difficult to read large amounts of information and can easily misunderstand things he is told. Staff thought that this was likely to be the reason as to why he had struggled to pay his rent in his last property.

Sam also said that he had a few jobs and between each he would apply for new benefits which after a while resulted in his arrears building.

Staff found that the council required proof that Sam was paying back the rent that he owed. Staff supported him to contact the debt agency who were dealing with his previous rent arrears and they agreed to send out a letter indicating the re-payment plan and the fact that he was paying towards his arrears. This was then submitted to housing options enabling his housing application to be accepted.

Sam was also referred to Moneywise Plus to see whether he could get any support with paying his arrears.

Sam was a brilliant resident while he was with Action Homeless. He ensured that every communal area was spotless and that the bins were put out every week. Encouragingly, he paid his rent every payday and he looked out for the more vulnerable residents. Staff put him forward to volunteer for Action Trust as he felt that it would be a really good way to spend his time whilst looking for paid work.

After staff worked closely with Leicester City Council to find a housing solution, he found a bungalow he wanted to move to and his application was successful. He was thrilled with this as he was expecting to get a flat. Our Moneywise Plus Advisor assisted Sam to apply for a Charity Link grant and he was awarded some household items through it. Staff also used COVID-19 emergency funding awarded to Action Homeless to buy him some basic items kitchen items.

Sam was really happy with the move and the location of his bungalow and has since been very positive each time staff have spoken to him. When staff went to drop off a few things for him, his mum, dad, step-dad and sister were all there helping him to decorate. Sam had told staff that his relationship with his family had always been difficult and so it was encouraging to see.

Follow up conversations show that Sam is really happy, he is very settled where he is, has regular conversations and contact with his family and is receiving help from his STAR worker and Moneywise Plus to ensure that does not struggle and become homeless again.

Action Homeless provides accommodation and support to people like Sam every day. The success we see in helping people overcome challenges, find new homes and achieve their goals isn’t possible without support of our local community. If you would like to be a part of our work, please consider making a donation.