The Hastings Young People’s Service does what the name suggests, providing accommodation and support for homeless young people in Hastings and St. Leonards. Frankie came to the service in October 2016. She had held a tenancy elsewhere but due to relationship breakdown, found it difficult to cope and was ultimately evicted. This left her homeless and socially isolated.

Frankie responded positively to having stability and a constant source of support from the staff team. She engaged well with her key worker using a PIE (Psychologically Informed Environment) approach and she was able to explore reasons for her isolation, history of self-harming, depression, aspirations and visualising what her future would look like. This helped Frankie understand her needs and make a plan to move on.

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

Paul is a 49 year-old man who was street homeless in Brighton for four years, suffering from heroin, crack cocaine and alcohol addiction.

He also has multiple physical health difficulties. For a long period of his life, Paul’s closest companion was his dog Lil. As Paul explains in this account below, he was someone who other support services found difficult to reach, but he eventually managed to turn his life around with the support of BHT Sussex’s Addiction Services.

BHT Sussex is a member of Pathfinder West Sussex – an alliance of organisations working together to enable people with mental health support needs, as well as their carers, to improve their mental health and wellbeing. As part of this offering, Pathfinder has many volunteer peer mentors. Peer Mentors use their lived experiences of mental health challenges to create a supportive environment where their clients can discuss their needs, as well as work towards achieving their goals and aspirations. This is the how one of our peer mentors, Lindsay, became a volunteer at Pathfinder. “I ended up in hospital due … Read more

Going through the process of being granted asylum in the UK can be long, arduous and draining for people who have already been through traumatic events in their country of origin. Abdi went years without representation, having registered his asylum claim in 2021. This is when our Immigration Legal Service stepped in. This is Abdi’s story.

BHT Sussex is part of an alliance of organisations in West Sussex who work together to empower people to improve their mental health and wellbeing called Pathfinder. Pathfinder prides itself on its volunteer Peer Mentors – people who use their lived experiences of mental health challenges to create a supportive environment where their clients can discuss their needs, as well as work towards achieving their goals and aspirations. Clarrissa used to attend Peer Mentor groups as a client, soon becoming a Peer Mentor herself. This is her story: “When I first came to Crawley, I was in a really bad … Read more

Our Homes for Ukraine Sustainment Service not only supports Ukrainian refugees and their hosts throughout their placements, but we also support Ukrainians who want to move into the private rented sector. The housing system works completely differently in Ukraine, so many people feel lost and confused. One such person is Nadiya, who we helped find her own home after she felt ready to leave her host. Nadiya is a 40-year-old woman who was living with a host in Sussex after fleeing Ukraine due to the war. Nadiya wanted her children to come and live with her in the UK, as … Read more

BHT Sussex is one of the only Legal Aid providers in the South East, making the work of our Immigration Legal Service incredibly important. This service provides advice and representation for many people trying to claim asylum in the UK. As part of this service, we help and represent many minors who have arrived in the UK unaccompanied. This was the case with Iva. This is her story. Iva was kidnapped as a 15-year-old and brought to the UK by traffickers who intended to exploit her. She managed to escape from her trafficker when she arrived in the UK and … Read more

BHT Sussex’s Immigration Legal Service has helped hundreds of refugees and asylum seekers with legal support. Many of those we work with are ‘unaccompanied minors’; young people and children who have often endured unimaginable suffering, and who have no adults to look after their welfare when they arrive in the UK. We provide a crucial service for some of the most vulnerable people in our community, including victims of trafficking and domestic violence. This Is YL’s story. YL was living in Vietnam with her parents when tragically, when she was just 14, they both died within a short time of … Read more

Struggling to find employment despite incredible effort can have a big impact on someone’s health and wellbeing. This was the case with Scotty, who found it difficult to identify a clear path into work after being failed by multiple services. This, coupled with the difficulty of managing a chronic illness, made Scotty feel hopeless. However, after working with BHT Sussex’s Intern Programme, who supported Scotty and his specific needs, Scotty found a way through. This is his story. Feeling hopeless “My life was pretty bleak for many years, and I did not see much of a future ahead of me. … Read more

Around half those sleeping rough in Brighton and Hove have a local connection. Others come to Brighton for many reasons: the image of the city that has attracted many of us, perhaps a happy childhood memory of visiting the seaside, or because of its reputation for tolerance and acceptance (for example drugs and the acceptance of LGBT people).

Very, very rarely does someone say that they came to Brighton because of the services for homeless people. Unfortunately, when people arrive in the city without a plan, without social networks, or without considerable financial resources, they can find themselves on the streets.

Michael is a 63 year old man who came to First Base in November 2017. He was new to Brighton and had become homeless after the break-up of his marriage and losing his job. He had moved to Brighton as he thought it would be a more tolerant place.

Sometimes people who we have supported contact us years after their time with us just to say thank you. It is always wonderful to hear from people who have turned their lives around, and a powerful testament to the long-term impacts of our services. Steve got in touch nearly ten years after he stayed at Phase One, our high-support hostel for people who are homeless in Brighton, where we work with people to address the root causes of their homelessness. This was Steve’s message to us.   Hi all at BHT Sussex, I just wanted to email you all as … Read more