Couple who were unable to afford food finally have desperate situation resolved nine months on thanks to Citizens Advice South Gloucestershire
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- A South Gloucestershire couple endured nine months of stress and frustration but were helped by Citizens Advice South Gloucestershire
- The charity’s Food Bank Adviser Kate Eedy was able to help them get the benefits they needed as well as accommodation and help from carers
- The charity wants to highlight the case to show how it can help
Citizens Advice South Gloucestershire is highlighting how it helped a couple after they were left unable to afford food.
Hannah* and David* both had to stop work in early 2023 when Hannah was diagnosed with a serious, long-term health condition that required full-time care.
David gave up a full-time job to care for her while also living with a health issue of his own.
Hannah and David had never claimed benefits and were unaware they were eligible for state support.
They survived on savings until these had run out. In January 2024 they applied for help from a local food bank.
It was here that the couple were put in touch with Adviser Kate Eedy of Citizens Advice South Gloucestershire – through the charity’s Food Bank partnership project.
Kate was able to help navigate them through the process of applying for benefits they were entitled to, a change of home and help from carers.
Neither David nor Hannah were able to use a computer and only have access to the internet through a mobile phone – making it very difficult to access support such as benefits without help.
During this period, Citizens Advice South Gloucestershire organized for an emergency payment to be made of £80 worth of Tesco vouchers through the South Gloucestershire Council Welfare Grants scheme. Kate also secured a payment of £120 from a local charity.
Hannah and David lived in a housing association property with stairs. Hannah could not use the stairs anymore and there was no downstairs bathroom which caused a lot of difficulties and stress as they had to improvise by using a paddling pool in the living room.
The housing association informed the couple they would have to pay for the substantial adaptations needed themselves or apply for a grant. This meant that a new home needed to be found.
Kate helped them through the process of applying for a new property and managed to secure a move from Band C to Band A, this allowed them to find a suitable property more quickly and they now live in a bungalow.
Hannah and David did not know that they were entitled to help from carers. Citizens Advice South Gloucestershire helped secure both a Carer’s and Needs Assessment.
It took from January to September for the situation to be fully resolved, causing the couple immense stress and frustration during this time.
David said: “It’s been a pretty tough few years.
“I was so embarrassed to go to the food bank the first time. I didn’t know what Universal Credit was. Kate sorted all that out – and PIP.”
“The most frustrating part of all of this is seeing Hannah as she is.”
Hannah said: “We were worrying all the time – so it was stressful.”
“Kate really has been brilliant. I don’t think we could have got as far as we did without Kate. We couldn’t have done it without her at all.”
Kate said “it has been a long and frustrating journey for these clients and it highlights what can happen when people are ambushed by unexpected events.
“I hope that both David and Hannah will be able to live in some peace now that they have a new property and the help they have needed for so long.”
Citizens Advice South Gloucestershire runs face-to-face open-door sessions in Yate, Cadbury Heath, Stoke Gifford, Thornbury, Bradley Stoke, Emersons Green, Lyde Green and Staple Hill & Mangotsfield as well as operating a free Adviceline telephone service.
Anyone in South Gloucestershire seeking free, independent, impartial and confidential advice from Citizens Advice South Gloucestershire can call 0808 278 7947.
The charity’s opening times and contact details are available at: www.southgloscab.org.uk/get-advice/visit-us/
Citizens Advice South Gloucestershire is an independent local charity and as such is reliant on donations and grants to continue providing its vital services. You can help support Citizens Advice South Gloucestershire by donating via: https://bit.ly/3pmufXK
*names have been changed to protect identities
