Riverside recently launched a national tailored support service to help troubled young people avoid losing their homes.
As part of its ongoing commitment to help customers lead resilient lives, Riverside piloted Intensive Intervention in Cumbria last year. Eight months on, all households at risk of losing their home at the start of the pilot are secure in their homes. In addition, the service has reduced rent arrears in the area by over £6,000 to date. Following the success of the pilot, Riverside – which manages 55,000 homes from Irvine to Ipswich – is now rolling out the service across the country including communities across the South East.
Case study
Lisa in London* (customer name changed to protect identity)
When Lisa*, 21, was referred to Intensive Intervention, she was burying her head in the sand about mounting unpaid bills.
A young, single woman about to start a family, pregnancy had caused Lisa terrible morning sickness, resulting in time off work and the eventual loss of her job. Confusion over what benefits she was eligible for and rising debts had left her feeling out of control: “Everything I tried seemed to fail.”
With no IT access to sort out her housing benefit with her local authority, Lisa had already racked up thousands in debts, meanwhile she lacked basic home furnishings including a cooker, carpets, furniture or equipment and clothing for the forthcoming baby.
“The rent due was over a thousand pounds and I had received a court date and feared eviction, I was so depressed and not sure what to do.”
“I felt so low I basically buried my head in the sand.”
Riverside officer Tracy Townsend made contact with Lisa to help her regain control of a dire financial situation.
“I gathered as much information from Lisa as possible to understand the situation, including where her housing benefit claim was up to. Once Lisa’s housing benefit was approved and backdated, we still had problems because of two overpayments being taken weekly (totalling £16), leaving her with little to live on.”
Before losing her job, Lisa had been on a zero-hour contract. Tracy discovered Lisa was entitled to some unclaimed sick leave, and also negotiated her overpayment to be reduced to a more manageable £5 a week.
Lisa is relieved and feeling more positive about the future for her and her baby: “Court adjourned my case with terms to repay my arrears and overpayment. I had a midwifery appointment where I was given foodbank vouchers. Tracy worked with local charity Open Doors to get me clothes for the baby, a cot and a bottle steriliser; and now she’s working with my Single Homeless Project keyworker to look at more funding for more home furnishings and baby essentials”.