
We were contacted by the partner of a scaffolder, who had committed suicide, leaving her and their three children. She could not afford to pay for the funeral and contacted us for support which we were able to provide, working with the DWP and other charities to pay for the funeral costs.
Shortly after and while struggling with their recent bereavement, a fire destroyed the family home and they lost all of their possessions. The family, through their Local Authority, were placed in temporary accommodation. Unfortunately, this was nearly two hours away from family, friends and the children’s schools.
The impact of all this trauma was extremely difficult for the them. The children found it difficult to process these massive changes to their lives and the emotions brought about by them. As a result they began to demonstrate disruptive behaviour which naturally concerned their mum.
We arranged bereavement counselling for the family and also worked with the children’s school to provide additional support. We were also able to provide support for Post-Traumatic Stress.
Through work with Local Authorities, we were able to provide suitable accommodation conveniently located to the children’s school and closer to friends and family. We also worked to ensure that they were financially stable.
The family are now settled. The client was in a very dark place when the contacted us she shared with us that she doesn’t know what she would have done without us. She has kept the helpline’s telephone number so that she contact us at any time in the future.