Advocacy/Advice for vulnerable adults and families

Aim: Funding for staff wages and volunteers expense to support vulnerable adults/ families to cope with energy prices and rising cost of living.

Family & Community Support Service (FCSS) - Reaching Communities

FCSS provide a first response service for vulnerable adults/ individuals and families wanting to access social care within the provision of Care Act 2014 in London Borough of Newham, including advocacy, advice, information and or support.  

At Families & Community Support Service, we provide independent and high-quality information, advice and advocacy on matters relating to health, social welfare, and social care to strengthen integration between health, social care and community-based services, ensuring residents are provided with the right help as quickly as possible. We help vulnerable adults and families who, because of disability, mental health illness, social exclusion and other challenges, find it difficult to express their views or get the support they need. Our aim is to empower people to have a voice and make a real difference to their lives. We do this by speaking for them when they cannot and support them to speak for themselves when they are able to do so. We promote Equality, Diversity and Inclusion through Advocacy and empowerment for and behalf of vulnerable individuals and families suffering or likely to be at risk of suffering discrimination in our community especially on the grounds of race, age, disability, gender or sexual orientation e.g. LGBTQ+. We aim to increase the confidence of individuals and families by empowering, supporting them to achieve and sustain equality and empowerment.

1. We contribute to the delivery of an effective, efficient and safe helpline for the residents 

2.    We provide information and advice to residents on wider support and services available in the borough, enabling them to remain as independent as possible for as long as possible.

3.    As a first response service we will carry out initiate assessment and develop close joint working with health related agencies for example Social Prescribers, GP’s and Intermediate Care, the third sector, local housing providers and other agencies, on behalf of vulnerable individuals and families in the community.

Sustainability of the project 

FCSS works in partnership with Universities and Colleges to provide Social Care and Social Work placement for students. This provide students with first-hand practical and work experience of their programme leading to full time employment. 

FCSS works in partnerships with other local charities such as In Kind Direct (inkinddirect.org) and Fareshare Go charity (https://fareshare.org.uk/fareshare-go-and-foodiverse/)  to support the community. We redistribute surplus food from from the local supermarkets, including Tesco, ASDA and Waitrose & Partners, KFC to the needy individuals and families the community that turn it into meals. We change lives. - We believe that no good food should go to waste

FCSS also works in partnerships with other local vocational training organisations to provide placement for apprenticeship to provide alternative Education for young people age 16-25 years old who are at risk of long-term unemployment etc.