Housing Heroes with financial resillance

Aim: Veteran Homelessness Prevention, Financial wellbeing support, Community resilience.

Recognising the need for homelessness prevention services for veterans and ex forces  in the North West of England in 2020 we founded a charity called The Block Armed Forces Foundation/ Armed Forces crisis support in Liverpool Merseyside England.

It provides support including emergency accommodation and housing support. It also offers civilian life crisis management to Ex forces men and women including those who are struggling with the transition after the military service. 

Many Ex Forces people can be hard to reach, including homeless Ex Forces men or women with pets / emotionally support dogs & therapy dogs which can place a barrier in-between housing support including accessing homeless shelters.

Local authority councils in the U.K have very limited housing options this means there is not much room for heroes especially for homeless Ex Forces men and women if they have a pet or support dog. 

One of the biggest costs for our charity is paying for emergency accommodation, support staff and training. It is vital that we provide financial wellbeing training to improve decision making in addition to emergency housing support. 

An important role of the charity is to prevent crisis, provide wrap around support and help to treat and educate the service user so they can move forward and live an independent healthy life.

The Blocks financial wellbeing program is a group workshops designed to improve individuals' understanding and management of their personal finances, helping them develop the skills and knowledge needed to make informed financial decisions. 

The goal is to enhance overall financial health and reduce financial stress, leading to a more secure and confident approach to managing money. These training programs run along side addiction and mental health treatment programs and often cover a wide range of topics, such as:

Budgeting: Teaching how to create and stick to a budget to manage income and expenses effectively.

Saving and Investing: Providing guidance on how to save money, build emergency funds, and make smart investment choices.

Debt Management: Offering strategies for managing and paying off debts, including credit cards, loans, and mortgages.

Financial Goal Setting: Guiding individuals in setting realistic financial goals and creating actionable plans to achieve them.

Financial Tools and Resources: Educating people on the use of various financial tools like apps, calculators, and online resources to improve financial literacy.

Financial wellbeing training will be offered by support staff workshop, seminars and one on-one coaching.

Using a drop in community office space our charity known by its service users as The Block, providing a unique face to face support to anyone that has served directly in the Armed Forces and their families. 

The charity also offers community engagement services, employment opportunities, training education, addiction support, advice and friendly face In a safe likeminded space. 

Thank you for your support.

theblockaff.org