Service User K was referred to us by his Brighton & Hove Wellbeing service therapist.
He had previously received SIS Social Prescribing support which had ended 6 months ago.
Although he was now receiving Universal Credit (UC) after the Social Prescriber had helped him with a UC application, he was not feeling fully supported by the Job Centre. He wanted help to find a more suitable job as the current one was contributing to his anxiety and depression.
He was living in the same accommodation which was causing him a lot of stress, with a lot of conflict with the landlord. He needed someone to find out if there was any update on his last Direct Lets application with the Council.
K could not afford to continue paying the rent and was also looking for help to apply for Housing Benefit.
K hadn’t been able to pay Council Tax in recent months – he had previously been paying Council Tax for the whole property, where the landlord and others have also been living.
K had also been suffering with Tinnitus.
Having formulated an action plan with K, our Social Prescriber helped him with the following:
- To get in touch with the Job Centre and communicate his change of circumstances.
- To complete and submit the Work Capability Assessment form.
- To meet with the BHCC Homelessness Prevention Officer and help the HPO to complete a vulnerability assessment and write K’s Personal Housing Plan.
- Made referrals to Brighton Housing Trust’s Accommodation For Work project and to the Safe Haven Sussex Housing scheme.
- Subsequently made referrals to the CAB and Lawstop’s Housing Legal team because K was evicted and now homeless.
- To contact the BHCC Council Tax department. The Council Tax Officer decided to write off the amount due for last year and will also see if K could receive a credit.
- Made a referral to Tinnitus UK.
- Booked a language test for English classes with Functional skills UK.
- Gave K the Personal Independence Payment number to call and guided on how to start a new claim. Advised him to contact the SIS office once he receives the form so that we can refer him to benefits advice agency, St Luke’s Advice service, for help to fill in the form.
Service User K said “I feel very grateful that SIS agreed to support me further. I struggle with English and have been feeling more and more anxious and unsure what to do.”
Note: We collaborate with Social Prescribers to write these stories but remove the names of the Social Prescribers, the language used and other details to ensure confidentiality for Service Users.
P.S. Do you have a story to share? Please contact ben@sussexinterpreting.org.uk