Maternity came to our charity in desperate circumstances, where her support needs and mental health were incredibly challenging. Issues she faced included;

• Housing issues
• School places for her child
• Legal support for her asylum application
• Health, access to medical support

As a core part of support we matched her into support with one of our befriending volunteers. Initially, this volunteer was primarily to socialise and offer Maternity a different type of support to that which we were helping with each week through our support worker. The befriending was a chance to relax and be herself, and to go to parks with the volunteer and her son. Our volunteer was able to help Maternity register with her GP this was an important first step in Maternity being able to address underlying health conditions and concerns. She is now receiving the care she needs. 

The addition of  our befrienders support meant that Matenrity could overcome more the difficulties she experienced with greater success as it maximised what we were able to do. Our Support Worker was supporting Maternity with her accommodation and issues with the gas and electric by raising the concerns that were shared when these were not working. Our support worker was also helping with making referrals to the foodbank and clothing bank to help meet Maternity's most basic needs

Our volunteer also kept us up to date on how Maternity’s sons school placement was progressing which was vital in our pursuit to follow up with our local council and help to see her son placed in education more quickly. Her son was placed in a local school as a result. 

Maternity over time gained more confidence and began attending English classes and art classes with Refugee Roots. She also attended day trips and community events. 

Our volunteers are dedicated and committed individuals many of whom can utillise their professional, personal skills and expertise in their volunteer roles. They often have a network of resources and people too that they can tap into to enhance the volunteering they do with us. In Maternity’s case her befriender was one such volunteer. Our volunteer played a key role in Maternity's legal case. Maternity shared with the volunteer that she desperately needed help with her case, and she not only alerted the charity so that we could begin work straight away but she also gave us the contact details of a barrister she had connections with to support Maternity and her son. This barrister has now been spearheading Maternity's case for months and is playing a key role in her case.

Our befriending volunteers are so often significant parts in our participants’ journeys and experiences that lead to positive and transformational change. Our volunteer also enabled our team to be able to respond to needs that arose as she was regularly meeting the participant and able to inform us of changes to her circumstances and needs as they arose.