Financial support from YHN: Barbara’s story

At Your Homes Newcastle we know that this is a worrying time and we understand that your employment or earnings may have been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.



Barbara, a YHN customer of over 11 years, shares her story about the financial support she received from YHN:



“When me and my husband split up at the beginning of the year, the thought of going it alone after 29 years seemed very daunting. To make the situation even work, just as we started to look for separate properties, lockdown hit, and we had to isolate together in the same house.



“It felt like a total nightmare at the time. My husband had taken care of everything to do with the finances and bills. I had never paid bills or bid for a house before. Everything was completely new to me.



“The support that I received from Jess [from YHN’s Financial Inclusion team] was amazing. She was fantastic and I don’t think I could have done it without her.



“She helped to get me on the Housing Register which required sending in documents by email, something I didn’t know how to do before I spoke to her. She also helped with my application and bidding and even my income and outgoings, like my bills and council tax payments. I couldn’t have done it on my own.



“She helped me find and bid for a smaller flat that I could manage better by myself. She even helped after I was successful by sorting out a reference for my new landlord so I could get moved in quickly.



“I would definitely recommend contacting the team if you are going through a similar situation or have any worries about finding a house or needing help with your finances.”



If, like Barbara, you feel that you need some financial advice and support, including help making a claim for benefits, please get in touch with our Financial Inclusion team onFinancial.inclusion@yhn.org.uk, or call us on 0191 278 8600.