We used to receive 10-15 cases each week that we worked our way through. In the past couple of months, we have received as many cases (if not more sometimes) in a day as we used to in a week. This is putting an unprecedented strain on our available funding and we are hoping that we will be able to keep being so positive. The following are just a few of the cases we have dealt with since the end of last week.
We sent £150 to a lady who was forced into a refuge following an attempt on her life when her home was subjected to an arson attack by her partner. She lost all her belongings and is having to start over again. He is now in prison.
£100 was sent to a man who is in receipt of Universal Credit and a small private pension. Unfortunately due to deductions from his UC, his rental costs are higher than he receives, leaving him without money for food or bills. Our agents are trying to negotiate with the DWP to get those deductions lowered, and have applied on his behalf for a discretionary housing payment.
A man who is feeling suicidal as his mental health problems are escalating. He is struggling to cope financially and has borrowed money from friends and family and it is now hitting him that at the moment he is unable to pay them back. We sent him a small amount so he can afford to buy some food.
A mother of a now 1-year old who has only been in the UK for a short time. She was living and working here on a retained workers permit but had to give up her job in the late stages of her pregnancy. She was supported financially in the early stages, however, after existing on only tax credits for a while she was advised to apply for Universal Credit. She was unable to claim this and is currently not in receipt of any benefits. We sent her an amount of money to allow her to buy food for her and her child, as well as essential items such as nappies. She is desperately trying to find suitable work that allows her to also take care of such a small child.
We sent £60 to someone who was unable to top up their energy meters or buy food as their ESA payments were stopped following an assessment. They are in the process of requesting a mandatory reconsideration. They sent us this as a response to our help. “I need those kind people to know that we have literally been able to top up gas and electric for a week and buy some food shopping thanks to their generosity. This is really huge for myself and my family and we are incredibly grateful ❤️ “
A man who was in receipt of ESA was doing permitted work. He has mental health problems and was working part-time up until December last year. The DWP requested copies of his wage slips which he supplied them with, but they got lost somewhere in the DWP’s systems and his ESA payments ceased being made as a result. Through no fault of his own, he found himself without money and the stress caused him to attempt to take his own life. Fortunately, he wasn’t successful and with our agents help the DWP have now admitted their mistake and will be putting a rectifying payment through towards the end of October. In the meantime, we sent him some money to tide him over until that money is received.
Our agents contacted us urgently about a young mum who had been crying on the phone to them as she’d had bailiffs knocking on her door. She has under £5 left each month to pay her creditors so is not in a position to pay them back. She was also very upset as she didn’t have money for food or for milk for her baby. We agreed to send her over some money so she could do this. Our agents are helping her to get her debts resolved and more manageable payments put in place.
We paid the £90 debt relief order fee for a young mum of a five-year-old who is struggling to manage financially following the imprisonment of her partner.
We sent a small amount to a man who was visited by his support worker. When she got to his home she found him sat in the dark with his coat on as he cannot afford to put money in his energy meters as he doesn’t have enough to do that. He also said that he only had 3 ready meals left to last him until he received his benefits again towards the end of next week. We later heard that he was thrilled that we’d chosen to help him, saying ” it’s the best news he has had in a long time. “