Money Matters Back to Basics

Aim

To provide a targeted programme of financial counselling to people who have a learning disability or mental health illness.

Here at Next Steps we dedicate our support team to provide a tailored programme for every individual we support. In the current economic climate our independence service is needed more than ever, with the funding we receive through the aviva community fund will mean we can deliver,

one to one budgeting, sitting with an individual who is struggling with the increased cost in bills, rent and shopping, and produce a simplified budget that is understandable to that person. We also look at benefit entitlement and see if there’s a scheme that they are entitled too but haven’t applied for it.

counselling service, we offer a counsellor 2 days a week, who comes in and offers confidential counselling, this has been set up post Covid when mental health is at the forefront of most conversations.

keeping warm and safe, we look at heating costs and how to keep warm safely. Also, as windows will be closed, the importance of ventilation and why a house or bedroom needs ventilating, how to check for signs of damp and prevention.

food bank, we are currently looking a funding a small food bank for the use of the guys we support and their families, we are often told that some people have eaten for days, as we are such a close knit family at the Charity, this is hard to hear, so some of the staff have brought food in, we have been growing our own vegetables which we are giving away where necessary, this is one of the services we need to increase with extra funding.

This project successfully funded on 25th December 2022