NEWS
Issue 11 Winter/Spring 2019
Personal counselling a life-line
Milestones Since the last Newsletter... • 8 people moved into their own flats • 2 people resolved major debt problems • 2 people achieved sustained periods of sobriety after many years of drinking • Stephen started local conservation voluntary work • Ryan sustained full time volunteer management duties • Fiona started a creative writing course [Names have been changed.]
Also in this issue... • Client stories...pg 2 • Activities spotlight: learning together...pg 3
issue 11 Winter/spring 2019
• 3 people found work
• Pickle news & new (and old) staff members...pg 4 • Tenant Support Spotlight - how we support people when they move on...pg 5 • Universal Credit roll out, data protection & how you can help..pg 6
There is currently a significant public focus on the importance of good mental health and the difficulties involved in addressing the issue.
focus on feelings, experience and behaviour with a view to achieving positive change and setting fresh goals in life, is essential.
Mental health is a continuing support need for many people who experience homelessness. The connection between homelessness and mental health is often complex especially where one can be both the cause and result of the other.
Thanks to an enthusiastic Dorking business who understand this need and a very special professional counsellor, we are now able to fund a service offering immediate access to talking therapy. This may be for just a few sessions if that’s all that is needed or for a sustained programme of meetings if necessary. Angela Carter, Manager
Around 50% of our clients are engaged with the mental health services and an additional percentage may be suffering from undiagnosed or untreated mental health issues ranging from anxiety and depression through personality disorder to major psychiatric illness. Even where mental health is not a primary issue, the need to see things more clearly and
Christmas at LHS! Seems a while ago now but we had a lovely Christmas here at LeatherHead Start and were just inundated with many thoughtful gifts, including a beautiful eight foot tall tree! Thank you so much to those who thought of us - it made the season, which can be a difficult one for our clients, much brighter.
‘The sessions are helping me to learn about myself and the triggers for my negative behaviour.’ ‘My counsellor really helped me to move forward and to learn important life skills.’
Caterham battler soldiers on
After “a few weeks” to adjust, “once I got to know [the staff and clients] it was fine.” After he helped with LeatherHead Start’s Pickle Project (see page 4), he was asked if he’d help with the evening meals: “They didn’t know I was a qualified chef,” he laughs, and since then he’s been treating residents with chili dishes and chicken, ham and leek pies prepared with homemade pastry.
“I had no friends to call on so I stuck it out,” Nick says. Nick didn’t qualify as priority need with Tandridge Council but they did put him in touch with the East Surrey Outreach Service (eSOS) and, in September 2018 eSOS referred him to LeatherHead Start.
LIFE STORIES
been on the streets for three months before he moved into LeatherHead Start. Last July, when his girlfriend’s dad kicked him out of the house, he made a new home on a bench in Caterham High Street. He thought it would be safer: “I wanted people to be able to see me.”
Nick became a bit of a celebrity, not least because he uses a cane. He lost a leg in a motorbike accident as an 18 year old. His social worker was desperate to find somewhere for him to stop the ‘thousands’ of phone calls about “the one-legged man sleeping on a bench” in the high street.
At the least excuse, David, 55, will leave the LeatherHead Start front door to stride over Box Hill. Over the years his 100km long sponsored hikes, plus four London marathon finishes, have raised over £5,000 for cancer and other charities. He’s now preparing for 100km hikes on the South Downs and the Isle of Wight. For much of his 30-year marriage David was a full-time carer for his wife, who was in poor mental health. Their relationship broke down and in June 2018 he had to leave the home. He stayed with his sister in Croydon until, in September, East Surrey Outreach Service (eSOS) referred him to LeatherHead Start.
Nick, 53 and pictured above with his artwork, had
And the police did keep an eye on him. “They were stopping by every night.” he says. But they couldn’t protect him: “I’ve been beaten up twice, spat on, pissed on.”
A Long Walk Home
David enjoyed his work at pubs and restaurants round Redhill, but found the long, split hours— ”I’d do 9am to 3, then 5pm to 10 or 11pm”— hard to combine with his wife’s care. Eight years ago he volunteered to work in the Salvation Army shop in Leatherhead (see picture below), and now volunteers there full time while training as an assistant manager. If it wasn’t for LeatherHead Start, he says, “I don’t know where I’d be. They give you all the support you need.” He found the on-line divorce paperwork hard going: “Some of the forms are 20 pages long.” But the support goes deeper. “It means you can talk to someone when you are at a bit of a low ebb. I struggled over Christmas. It was my first Christmas on my own without friends or family.”
The oldest of eight, and brought up by his nan and grandad, there’s not an ounce of self-pity in Nick’s makeup. He shrugs about losing the leg and points out that it hadn’t stopped him taking up competitive power lifting at college.
David hopes to move back into his home when the time is right.
When his dad died suddenly at only 48, Nick, then 25, began to drink heavily and use drugs. He has two children he doesn’t see and hasn’t worked since 1995, though he has held down responsible jobs: “I used to be a supervisor for Iceland in Croydon and open up the shop.” “I can’t fault them,” he says of LeatherHead Start’s staff and volunteers. “They’ve helped me with everything, getting benefits, registering with a doctor.” Whilst at LeatherHead Start, Nick completed a home detox and has been dry for two months. He’s determined to stay dry: “I want to get my own place and keep it.” Above: Nick the artist with two of his fantastic paintings! 2
Learning and Opportunities s Art session r u o y b led volunteer ell Lesley as w d as client-le s n io s s se
The Allotm still going ent is s - and pro trong ducing award win nin squashes g !
Lookin’ Good! A huge thank you to Guiseppe who has started coming in to give free, high quality haircuts!
Learning, laughter and sometimes tears, in our Tuesday morning Life Skills sessions!
Words that Illuminate Poetry by John, one of our clients My timeless days, quiet and cold Is this my path to growing old? Darkened days, meaningless nights The tunnels end, shows no lights from ‘Spirit Broken’ 3
My life has been a mix of misery and happiness, Misfortune and fear, feeling of distress! Placing these behind me, life is good once more! Confidence has shown me, to open another door! from ‘Happiness Returned’
Picklers rule the world! Out of a Pickle has had a stunning fourth year. LeatherHead Start launched its ‘Out of a Pickle’ range to publicise and fund its work, and to give our clients cooking and business skills to help them stand on their own two feet.
Thanks to a new volunteer manager, the allotment is thriving. The onion crop was the best ever. The addition of several new volunteers really gets 2019 off to a great start. The jars and lids are ordered and the shopping list for dry ingredients made up. We plan to sell from May onwards and at some new venues. We look forward to seeing you.
Every year is very different, but our volunteers really made a difference in 2018. The 800 jars they produced was nearly three times the rate in the first year. And the new Chilli Jam we introduced sold out at once! For 2019 we are going to produce the jam in differing Oh yes, we are always happy to receive grades of heat with a red dot code. your empty jars back for us to recycle. Sorry, not the lids.
If you want to connect with the Out Of A Pickle Team you can email info@outofapickle.com Or find us on Instagram: @outofapickle
Two new recruits & a welcome return Sian Jones’s arrival at LeatherHead Start in the summer of 2018 followed a 10-year career as an education welfare officer for West Sussex local authority. Prior to working for WSCC , Sian (pictured right on page 6) was a Nursery Nurse in a variety of roles as well as volunteering at the Salvation Army foodbank in Horsham. Sian also has 2 grown up sons in their 20s.
Our second newcomer is another dynamo. When Molly Cowley (pictured left on page 6) left Coventry University with a sports science degree two years ago she wasn’t going to lie on the sofa till her dream job turned up, so she took temporary work in an Epsom card shop. Last year she decided the ‘temporary’ job had lasted too long and did something about it.
LeatherHead Start is the opposite of the target-led culture she had begun to resent in the education service: “Here we do anything and everything. We’re on the front line when the clients come in to talk about their day, and listen to the banter over dinner in the evenings.” Sitting down and eating with everyone is important: “It’s more welcoming.”
She looked for a social or community job that involved teamwork and helping people, like the youth work she’d enjoyed as a teenager. With others, she’d set up a sexual health clinic, using games to help young people learn.
Sian’s biggest reward is the moment when, after weeks of trying, you’ve won a client’s trust: “You think, ‘we’ve got there’ and that’s great.” The full-time shift pattern is less welcome, and she confesses to feeling “shattered” as she drives home to Horsham late each night: “I’m used to working Monday to Friday, term-time only,” she says, but her grin adds that it’s worth it.
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Even so, she didn’t think she had a hope of getting the job she saw advertised at LeatherHead Start but went for interview and was delighted to be accepted. Molly’s biggest challenge is the ebb and flow of hostel life: “It’s really up and down. Sometimes it’s really busy and even hectic and sometimes much calmer and quieter: “I quite enjoy thriving under pressure: one minute you’re making a phone call to the local council about something really important, and then you’re having a laugh with the clients in the kitchen.” Continued on page 6...
Synonyms for home – hearth, fireside, asylum Synonyms for support – hold up, bear, carry, prop up, bolster up, underpin, help, aid, assist Synonyms for tenant - inhabitant, occupant, living somewhere on a long-term basis All the above are words for situations which many of us take for granted but for someone who has never held a tenancy or embraced the concept of a home of their own, they represent a challenge. However, usually whilst at the Hostel they are champing at the bit to attain just this. As the time draws nearer for the desire to become a reality, we see a change. Nervousness, agitation and sometimes a temptation to jepardise chances of a tenancy can emerge. We can totally understand their fear because a home comes with a myriad of responsibilities: Council tax, utility bills, reading meters, housekeeping, neighbours, travel expenses along with possible loneliness and isolation. Suddenly it doesn’t all seem quite so rosy. This is where our Tenant Support Service comes into play. My colleague, Lance, and I will do any or all of the following: visit, advise, attend signing of contracts, accompany and advocate at assessments, interviews, court hearings, tribunals and hospital appointments. We will read and explain correspondence and help with replies and forms – along with so much more. Many of our clients will be independent after about six months’ assistance. Others will need support for longer. In whichever case, we will always be at the end of a phone to respond to their ongoing needs. It is, I believe, a unique service, and both Lance
and I feel privileged to walk beside our clients as they become confident and comfortable in their tenancies and are able to view their properties as Asylum, Hearth and Home. Christine Thorpe, Tenant Support Worker
Life after LHS...the support goes on Gaining independence after a period of instability is daunting especially if you have special medical needs, mental ill health, a history of drug or alcohol misuse and few stable family or social connections. At the Hostel, residents have access to a Support Worker round the clock. “My job,” says LeatherHead Start Tenant Support Worker Lance Gray, “is to continue this help when clients move out of the hostel and into independent accommodation.” For one recent client, “We make sure he can maintain his tenancy—that his rent and utility bills are all paid—and that he keeps up with medical appointments. And we’ll help him get work. This particular client is qualified but suffers from ill health so we would support his applications for work. We would also steer him towards other charities to help him equip his property, whether it’s with furniture or in some other way.” Angela Carter, Manager, says “Lance has been with us since the new service began in 2011 but is retiring in early April. He has given us the most extraordinary service in his role as both hostel support worker and tenant support worker, regularly going beyond the bounds of his job description because he cares about achieving the best for our clients. We value him immensely and will miss him as much.” 5
Tenant Support
Helping people build a home
Continued from page 4... She may move on eventually— when young she wanted to join the police, and thinks that’s even more possible after her LeatherHead Start experience: “I think I’ve gained a lot of confidence, and people skills, that I didn’t have.” Heaven help whoever stands in her way. Finally, as reported in Issue 10 of the Newsletter, Kat Moore (see right, middle) left LeatherHead Start in 2017 to care for her mother in Florida.
Universal Credit Roll Out Most of our clients are in receipt of benefit which we help them claim and manage when necessary. Universal Credit is finally here and impacting our clients. This means that all new benefit claims will be for Universal Credit, replacing six previous types of benefit Two representatives from the
Epsom Job Centre recently visited LeatherHead Start to help us understand this new benefit and how it affects our clients. New claims are not always straightforward or easy but hopefully we can work in partnership with the Job Centre to make the transition as painless as possible for our vulnerable clients.
The Harvest was Plentiful this year! Every year, we are very blessed with donations from many churches and schools from the Harvest Festival and this year was no different. These items keep us going all year round and we are so grateful! Pictured right: two LeatherHead Start clients holding up a Harvest loaf from one of the local churches.
Now, in the eighth year of her association with LeatherHead Start, she’s back full time as Client Services Coordinator. She will take a lead on coordinating all client support needs and paperwork - dealing with day to day operations, not to mention applying her unique skill set to produce this newsletter once again. “I’m happy to be back in the team” says Kat. “...and we are thrilled to have her back!” says Manager Angela Carter.
Data protection To read how we collect and store personal data, please see the Privacy Notices on our website or email the Manager (see below). If you have received this newsletter by post or email it is because you have given us your details for this purpose. We will keep them until you tell us otherwise. If you would like us erase them, please let us know.
LeatherHead Start Phone: 01372 377790 Address: 3 Church Road Leatherhead Surrey KT22 8AT
Want to help? We always need the following items: Non perishable food items such as tuna, tea, coffee. Cleaning products, paper towels and loo roll. Clothing – clean and in small volume (please ring office for details). Sainsbury’s vouchers in values of £5 are also very useful.
For general enquires: office@leatherheadstart.org For Manager: manager@leatherheadstart.org For the Chair of the Board: chair@leatherheadstart.org
Items we don’t need: blankets or bed linen. Thank you to all our supporters! Thank you for reading and for supporting our work. 6
W: www.leatherheadstart.org