Farah, her husband Amir, and their two sons Zain (aged 6) and Jamal (aged 5) were referred to Welcare by local Children’s Disability Service to help Farah who was feeling overwhelmed and struggling to manage the family’s debt. Zain, the eldest child, had an ASD diagnosis, and their younger child, Jamal, had been assessed to be a child in need due to concerns around the parents being overwhelmed by Zain’s needs and their financial situation.
The family were in the process of challenging an eviction notice due to significant rent arears. Amir was an asylum seeker with no recourse to public funds and no right to work in the UK. As Farah was the primary carer and did not work herself, the family were reliant on benefits.
For a few years, Farah had been struggling with IBS and this had been contributing to her difficulties in managing bills and paying invoices. As a result, the bills and invoices were stacking up and the family were receiving threatening communications from debt collectors. These communications were causing a lot of distress for the whole family and triggering Farah’s IBS even more. Farah felt that whenever she made progress, she was thrown off track. After the first few sessions with Welcare, Farah also revealed that she was pregnant and that she had suffered several miscarriages in the past, so she was being very cautious and trying to limit her stress levels.
Welcare was able to offer the family support with organising their finances, social and emotional support for both parents, and support around feeling overwhelmed by Zain’s complex needs.
Due to the family’s financial difficulties and tight budget, they had been unable to afford some essential items that they really needed. These included a bunk bed for Zain and Jamal who had been sharing a single bed and having very disruptive and restless sleep, basic toiletries, and a toaster and kettle. Welcare was able to apply for emergency grant funding to buy the children a bunk bed and mattresses and provided the family with supermarket vouchers to buy toiletries and a new toaster and kettle. Welcare also helped Farah to understand and organise the family’s finances and prioritise spending, so that she was able to budget and manage the family’s finances for the long term, as well as providing her with support around understanding her benefits.
The family was also struggling with social isolation and the impact of Amir’s asylum-seeking status. This was having a detrimental effect on both parents’ social and emotional wellbeing. Welcare supported the family by signposting them to local community organisations to help to build both parents’ social networks; these included faith groups, and specific asylum-seeking support for Amir, as well as organisations that could help fund days out for the family. Welcare also helped Farah self-refer to the local NHS talking therapy service so that she was able to get ongoing support around her feelings of being overwhelmed and to provide longer term emotional support. Welcare was therefore able to offer Farah and her family a range of support to improve their financial situation and the emotional and social wellbeing of the whole family.
In acknowledging our support, Farah said, “the help and support I have received from all of you and continue to receive has been paramount to my mental health and the general well-being of my family… I am hopeful, more organised and have a greater sense of direction than I did this time last year when I was going through my first miscarriage. And I have you to thank for that”.
Since working with Welcare the family has cleared their debts and has a better understanding of their monthly income and expenditure. They are also looking to move to another part of the UK, where they have an extended family support network, and the cost of living is lower. Farah is enrolled in weekly counselling sessions. She feels less stressed, and her pregnancy is progressing well. She is confident in accessing the support she needs. Zain is accessing SEN transport to and from school, which gives parents more time with Jamal before and after school, and both children’s sleep has significantly improved as they now have their own beds.
