There can be many factors that build up to cause someone to be insecurely housed. For Jacqui, the loss of her job and the breakdown of her marriage led her to become a member of the ‘hidden homeless’ population, as she was sofa surfing. This is when she sought the help of the Accommodation for Work project at BHT Sussex. Jacqui first came to the project following her separation from her ex-husband. He retained the family home to look after their children as he was not working. After moving out, Jacqui stayed on her mother’s sofa and worked part time. … Read more

When a person has experienced many setbacks in life, it can be difficult to find a positive way forward. Prior to coming to Route One, our mental health supported accommodation, Alice was finding it hard to cope with mental and physical health needs, a breakdown of familial relationships and substance use issues. We helped Alice gain the support she needed to see a brighter future away from sofa surfing and into independent accommodation. This is her story. When Alice was referred to Route One, she had complex needs inclusive of emotionally unstable personality disorder, and challenges with depression and intrusive … Read more

At BHT Sussex, the approach we take to help our clients is a collaborative one, ensuring they have agency in their own lives. This empowers them to change their lives and gain independent skills for living. The story of one of our Shore House clients, Harry, highlights this approach, which allowed him to recover from an intentional overdose, reconnect with his family and carry out lasting change to his lifestyle. This is his story. Following an intentional overdose of over-the-counter medication that could have proved fatal, which resulted in a hospital admission, Harry was referred to Shore House – one … Read more

Support for those in their old age looks different for everyone. This is why our East Sussex Floating Support Service individually tailors support to each person we serve. Stan’s case exemplifies the importance of this way of working. This is his story. Stan is a 90-year-old retired barrister who was referred to our East Sussex Floating Support Service by the NHS Community Frailty Practitioner Service, following his discharge from hospital after a fall. Stan is widowed, has a history of falls, and had recently moved into a sheltered housing scheme. However, the scheme had no floor coverings, contributing to his … Read more

Living day to day Last year, I was living a hectic life in Brighton and Eastbourne – to escape that I turned up on my mum’s doorstep, and I wasn’t looking well because I’d been on drugs for a long time. After 6 months Khan’s relationship with his mum and his recovery broke down. He had to leave his mum’s house and he returned to Brighton, where he had nowhere to live. He ended up sleeping rough. Khan was initially placed in emergency temporary accommodation, through the local Street Outreach Service, but he needed more supportive and longer-term housing, and … Read more

After expanding our Immigration Legal Team in recent years, we have been able to assist in more specialist immigration cases that involve domestic violence. Although most immigration cases are complicated, it can be particularly difficult to work through the layers to help someone remain in the UK when someone has experienced domestic violence. A clear example of this is Kosi’s case, who was concerned she wouldn’t be able to remain in the UK if she left her spouse. This is her story. Kosi is originally from Ghana and had been living in the UK for several years with her husband … Read more

Perseverance is a trait that is present within many of our clients as well as our staff. This characteristic is particularly present in clients and staff of our Addiction Services. Clients sometimes require our support multiple times before they eventually achieve the sobriety they are aiming for. Staff equally never give up on clients and continue to champion and support them through difficult times. This conviction is best told through the story of one our clients, Will, who relapsed before returning to Addiction Services a second time.  This is Will’s story. In April 2024, Will returned to the Detox Support … Read more

Wendy and her adult son, who both live with autism, were facing severe housing challenges. Wendy is the sole carer of her son, who has mobility issues, and they were living in a property that was unfit for habitation. This is Wendy’s story. Wendy’s home was in a state of severe disrepair, with frequent flooding rendering the downstairs of the house uninhabitable. The constant environmental hazards worsened the challenges for Wendy and her son, making it increasingly difficult for both to maintain any sense of stability or comfort in their living conditions. Additionally, both Wendy and her son were agoraphobic … Read more

After going through the difficult journey of recovering from addiction and sleeping rough, being in secure employment can offer purpose to someone’s life. This is the story of Ross, who turned their life around with the help of our Intern Programme, and our Housing Services. “On 31st October 2014, I went into Mill View Hospital Promenade Ward for an alcohol and diazepam detox. Up until my hospital admission, I was street homeless, rough sleeping and begging for change on the streets of Brighton, Hove and Sussex. I was just over 8 stone in weight and had lost most of my … Read more

Mia, a 75-year-old Spanish woman, was living in sheltered accommodation and had been facing significant financial difficulties for approximately five years due to an ongoing issue with her National Insurance (NI) number. This issue caused her benefits to be repeatedly stopped and reinstated, leading to substantial gaps in income. Without consistent benefits, Mia fell behind on her rent, accruing significant arrears, and was at risk of homelessness. This is her story. The Initial Challenge The root cause of the problem was an error made when Mia first registered for benefits: she was assigned the NI number of another individual with … Read more

Maintaining employment whilst being insecurely housed is difficult and can have a negative impact on someone’s mental wellbeing. Our Accommodation for Work project was set up to help people like Zehra, who came to us whilst in emergency accommodation. Zehra was forced to leave her family home due to her mother’s health issues and difficult dynamics in their relationship. Facing homelessness, she was placed into emergency accommodation before coming to the Accommodation for Work’s temporary shared accommodation. Whilst this was happening, she was still working part-time as a support worker in a mental health hospital. Zehra found the job difficult … Read more

The Court Duty Scheme is a little known but incredible service which provides last-minute emergency advice for people who are facing eviction. When repossession cases are being heard in Brighton, Lewes or Hastings Courts, our specialist Housing Advisers can step in to protect people and ensure they know their rights. These clients have usually never sought advice or representation before meeting our advisers that morning. Often alternatives to eviction can be worked out, debt payments can be renegotiated, and people can stay in their homes. This was the case with Sarah, whose story is below.  Sarah is a housing association … Read more