At CHS we believe that the way we deliver a service is just as important as the service itself and so we are always pleased to receive reviews and feedback that acknowledges this. Here are just some of the comments we have had about our services. If you would like to leave a comment about any of our services, then please contact us
“This project has helped me get my life back on track. It’s been a challenging time, but with CHS’s help, I’m on my way!”
“Railway House helped me better myself beyond my wildest dreams. I was at risk of homelessness when I came here, but now I’ve secured a place at a London university to study event management.”
“When moving here I met with a keyworker to complete a support plan. I now have a job at the British Antarctic Survey and have the chance to go to Antarctica for six months.”
“I was homeless before I came here, it just felt like I didn’t have anywhere I could call home. CHS is brilliant and amazing really, especially for helping young people like myself”
“Russell street is the best place I have ever lived. I am happy as staff really engage with you here”
“In 2015 my community nurse introduced me to the Corona community. As soon as I walked in I felt welcome, safe, and in a space where I didn’t have to pretend I was ok. Staff helped me discover so much about myself.”
“Corona House was so welcoming, friendly and supportive. During my life I’ve had two children, fought for access and battled cancer. The support has been amazing from Corona. I’m one of the lucky ones.”
“When I became homeless I didn’t know who to contact for help. When I found Corona I received the loveliest welcome and support. I always say, never give Corona up, always keep it as a lifeline and always be thankful. I’m so thankful.”
“When my mother died of cancer, Money Matters provided advice and support. I’m now in my first job since university, which wouldn’t be possible without Money Matters, they changed my life.”
“It’s improved my mental health and sleeping pattern to have a comfortable bed. Having more floor space in a small room by having the right furniture has helped my stress levels go down and my creativity return. It’s helped me get in the right place to look for full time work again”
“They are free to do their own thing within their flat and spend their time as they choose.”
“I’m very, very happy. All the carers are lovely, I’ve got no complaints whatsoever.”
“There is a significant amount of residents who benefit from being around people of a similar age and similar experiences and it gives them the opportunity to have a chat and build new friendships.”
“I cannot sing the praises of Moorlands too highly. The accommodation is lovely. Each flat is spacious, bright, warm and clean. The staff are sensitive, skilled and compassionate and clearly care deeply about the best interests of the residents. My mother never failed to tell me how happy she was at Moorlands and how well cared for.”
“Moving to Moorlands is the best decision I’ve ever made. It has allowed me to remain independent, have peace of mind and make the most of my life.”
“People can be as independent as they like, we’re just here for extra support, extra security.”
“It feels like you’re part of a community.”
“Residents’ families put all their trust into us carers to look after their loved one as best as we can and how they would want them to be looked after themselves, so building up a relationship with our residents is really important.”
During 2022, with rising levels of inflation and energy costs, household budgets were facing unprecedented strain which disproportionately impacted those living in our Cambridgeshire homes who were already struggling to make ends meet. With the Autumn Energy Price Cap increase and winter months looming, our involved tenants suggested we be more proactive in contacting our most vulnerable tenants offering support and advice, and, as a result, our Cost-of-Living Project (COLP) was born.
Working with our Housing and Property Services teams, we identified the key cost of living issues faced by tenants which included paying rent, sustaining tenancies, fuel poverty, the effect of black mould and condensation on health and gaining access to boilers for maintenance.
To ensure we approached the right tenants, we used data from our Cambridgeshire Local Assistance Scheme (CLAS) alongside our internal rent accounts to identify the two groups most at risk of financial hardship – young single people (18-29 years) and single parents (18-29 years) .
We recruited two part time Money Guiders, with extensive knowledge of support and grant services available in-house, nationally, and within local communities. Their main responsibility was to proactively contact these two groups offering advice on accessing financial support to help with the cost-of-living crisis, with the sole purpose of increasing the chances for them to sustain their tenancies.
Historically these two groups have proved hard to reach and engage with, so we put a lot of thought into the best way to approach them by removing any barriers that may prevent them from engaging with us. Our approach included:
Our Housing team provided our Money Guiders with a list of tenants who fell into these target groups and every fortnight small groups of tenants were contacted via email initially, introducing COLP and offering help with money and grants. We explained that a Money Guider would call them on a specific day the following week and this was followed up with a message on WhatsApp.
It was important that we gained the most out of our conversations with our tenants so a lot of planning went into what questions would be asked which allowed our Money Guiders to:
After talking with the tenant, we liaised with their Housing Officer to keep them updated on any progress made and reported any repair issues to our repairs team.
Financial support was identified whilst the tenant talked to their Money Guider and was applied for afterwards. Some tenants required follow-up calls to discuss things in more detail for clarification and signposting them to additional support available. The financial support we accessed for tenants included:
Total awards – £37,788 for 93 individual clients (most had more than one type of award)
In addition to these grants, some tenants also received CLAS awards for white goods via our CHS Money Matters service. Our Money Guiders also identified one tenant who qualified for the LITE tariff with their water supplier resulting in a water rebate of £91.49 along with a reduction of £11 a month on their monthly charges.
Following a conversation with a Money Guider, one tenant, whose rent account was in arrears and could potentially lose their tenancy, agreed to make a rent payment of £300 to CHS whilst on the phone to avoid further action. This payment is unlikely to have been made otherwise.
During the individual conversations, our Money Guiders referred and signposted tenants to additional support:
Results
The uptake of COLP from all tenants contacted was around 65% which was significantly higher than the 40% we expected. Using data from our Charitylog portal, we can see that Money Guiders fully engaged with 106 clients with conversations ranging from 15 mins to over 2 hours with an average conversation lasting about 1 hour.
COLP succeeded in identifying and engaging with our most vulnerable tenants at a time where cost of living was at the forefront of everyone’s minds. The team effectively accessed much needed grants and funds on behalf of the tenants that greatly improved their financial situation allowing them to sustain their tenancy.
The project has been extended until March 2024 and we are now targeting lone parents aged 30-35 and looking into which groups to target next.
In 2016, we campaigned to maintain a Local Assistance Scheme because we know how vital it is to support people in financial hardship. We worked with Cambridgeshire County Council to shape the commissioning of the service and when the service was tendered, we brought four core partners including Cambridge and District Citizens Advice, Citizens Advice Rural Cambridgeshire, Cambridge Re-use and CCORRN together to develop a model of delivery based on providing the most impact with the resources available. This included connecting publicly funded support with the wider system provided by voluntary, community and faith-based organisations. Partnership was the cornerstone of the model as our understanding is that systems produce outcomes and that addressing complex issues around poverty requires the contribution of many different players, and no one service, organisation or person can do this on their own.
The Cambridgeshire Local Assistance Scheme (CLAS) provides a safety net for individuals and families experiencing financial hardship. CLAS’s initial objectives were to provide information and advice services, alongside practical support: new white goods; recycled white goods, furniture, and paint; new beds and mattresses; food, energy, and data vouchers; access to food parcels/social supermarkets.
We have delivered CLAS, since April 2017 and deliver the scheme through the four core partners to enable us to reach all parts of the county, using a network of 21 CLAS Champions hosted by associate partners, and our Charities Networks.
CLAS Champions help us reach people likely to be eligible for CLAS and support clients within their constituency e.g., housing association tenants, domestic abuse survivors. Our Citizens Advice Bureaux (CABx) partners deliver our CLAS Information and Advice services to the public and can grant CLAS awards. Our recycled goods partners, Cambridge Re-use and CCORRN, enable our limited budget for practical goods to stretch further.
We set up local Charities Networks across the county with the aim of working closely with local groups, such as Besom, and linking up to other services available to our clients so that the safety net is tighter and the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. This has meant, for example that clients have benefitted from an extra 25% of financial support than they would have if we had just delivered the publicly funded services. Our partnership approach recognises the importance of taking a coordinated response to emergency provision. Bringing together and working with local groups helps us to address gaps and avoids duplication. It improves the sustainability of local crisis support and community led initiatives.
Organisations in the Charities Networks include community, faith and voluntary sector groups, and public sector bodies. We facilitate regular place-based meetings in Cambridge, South Cambs and Fenland where attendees can learn from each other, work together, make best use of resources, provide the immediate support, and address longer term causes of financial hardship.
The networks have grown in the last six years, and, more recently, a similar group has been set up in East Cambridgeshire, which we are also linked to. Meetings are well attended with a steady stream of new people joining. Over 270 organisations meet regularly, and our learning shows that attendees build relationships and continue to work collaboratively outside of meetings.
“Thank you for organizing and hosting these meetings. Joint up work and useful resources is invaluable to the work we do to reach the people in our communities” (John Huntingdon’s Charity)
“As always, thank you so much for hosting. It is a privilege to be part of such a fantastic, enthusiastic, and effective network of wonderful people” (Cambridge Aid)
Examples of how we work together:
“I am overwhelmed with all the help that everyone has given. Wouldn’t have been able to start to get the kids back. It has been life changing”
“This sheet is very popular with both volunteers and visitors. They really like the fact that it’s a single sheet and full of useful and relevant links” (Cambridge Foodbank)
“Super helpful, I was just starting to think about winter planning. Thanks! (Care Network)
We appreciate the value that our all our partners bring to CLAS: our core partners are represented on the CLAS Project Board, so they are plugged into the governance of the project; quarterly CLAS Champions meetings enable us to reflect, learn and adapt policy; and quarterly meetings with Cambridgeshire County Council LA allow us to escalate issues.
Through the partnership CLAS delivered the following in FY 22/23:
Corona House is a supported housing service providing accommodation and support to women in Cambridge who have housing and support needs. The women at our service live in one-bedroom flats within the Corona House building and support is tailored to individual needs. This support is delivered in a range of ways including group activities, peer support and one-to-one sessions which provide a holistic, tailored support model.
At Corona House, we believe that being a valued part of the community is essential for living a positive and fulfilled life and, therefore, we focus our efforts on getting individuals integrated locally. This includes connecting people with a wider group of women living in Cambridge, through our Corona Community initiative.
Corona House is a real hub of creativity, and this is reflected in the different ways we deliver support. We offer at least three activities a week including creative workshops, leisure activities, and social events all held within the local community either in the Corona House communal rooms or in local parks and green spaces, museums and galleries, local coffee shops and areas of public interest. We also deliver a mix of online and in person activities, depending on the preferences of the women.
During 2022, Corona House took over managing a local allotment with the aim of contributing to the community, supplementing the women’s diets with fresh produce, developing confidence and horticultural skills, and building relationships. The allotment has become a thriving community project and, working with local organisations including Cambridge Young Offending Services, Cambridge Womens’ Resources Centre, and the Community Kitchen, we now have enough volunteers and collective energy to keep the space well-tended, growing lots of vegetables, fruit, and flowers. The space also provides a habitat for the local wildlife including newts, frogs, butterflies, and insects.
Sessions at the allotment include a women’s only meeting on Tuesday and a session open to all on Fridays. We now have tenants from our local general needs properties, as well as our other supported housing services volunteering.
‘I love the allotment space – I can do as much or as little as I like. I enjoy tasting the different herbs we grow, and I’ve started learning how to cook things into soup which is nice now it is getting colder’ – Corona resident
‘A little community has grown up around the allotment, linking me with people I might not have met otherwise. I love the way we share the simple goal of growing our own vegetables and creating a peaceful, natural place to enjoy. There’s a feeling that we all join in this task as equals, working out together what we’d like to do and sharing the food we grow. It’s such a refreshing contrast from so much of life!’ – Volunteer
Creativity lies at the heart of everything we do at Corona House, whether it is finding solutions to a problem or hosting popular workshops. Our women thrive through creative expression, and this was never more evident than when in April 2023 local Cambridge gallery Artworks held an exhibition of the work that had been created during our workshops. The pride and excitement our women felt when they saw their artwork on public display was only matched by the news that some of their work had been purchased during the exhibition. The women’s confidence has grown considerably not only in their artistic talent but also as individuals.
Whilst we encourage our women to engage with group and community-based activities, we also recognise that one-to-one sessions with support workers are key to supporting our women with a variety of needs including
One-to-one sessions are tailored to each woman’s specific needs which can be varied and complex. For example, we have supported one woman to resit her A Levels, discover a university course in Manchester through clearing, find somewhere to live and access student finance, as well as supporting her with the move itself.
We also offer a range of free excursions and activities for residents at Corona House and members of the Corona Community, funded by donations to our amenity fund. There have been some fun trips out to the cinema, cafes, Raptor Foundation, National Trust sites and other places of local interest. These trips enable our women to not only socialise but do things they may not otherwise do as they would not go alone. These trips have increased positive wellbeing, confidence and feelings of achievement at trying something new. Many of the trips or activities are beyond what our women can otherwise afford as most of them are on low incomes and cannot pay for travel fares outside of the city or lunch in a café.
The women are looking forward to a seaside caravan holiday in September. For some, this will be the first holiday they have experienced.
We have seen reductions in isolation for the women who take part in our activities. The women access activities that are of interest to them and this, in turn, enables them to be part of a safe community. It allows us to support women who are anxious about travel or coming to a group alone. We keep the women engaged by having an open and continuous dialogue about what they want to do, experience, and learn. We hold a steering group every couple of months specifically for consultation purposes and the feedback we receive feeds into future activities.
Using the Warwick Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (WEMWBS) survey, all respondents reported they have been feeling more optimistic about the future; are feeling more useful; are thinking more clearly and that they are able to make decisions more easily. Other positive outcomes achieved by the majority of respondents include feeling closer to other people, feeling more relaxed, and dealing with problems well. In 2022/23 the service generated £227,882 in social value using HACT’s framework.
‘I’d been living with my mother and stepfather but they found my behaviour too much to handle. I then went sofa-surfing for 6-7 months with friends. Social Services became involved as I was only 15 years old. I then went to live with my brother in London, where I got involved in gang-like activities which resulted in my brother and his girlfriend having their home ransacked and possessions stolen. My Dad was in prison and I found this really hard.
‘I moved back to Cambridge to be closer to my mother as I had missed the contact and the bond between us and wanted to rebuild our relationship. My Social Worker arranged an interview for me at Railway House. Before this I had no real life skills or any real coping strategies to live on my own. I had no real place to call home and nowhere to feel safe and secure.
‘I met with my keyworker who talked about loads of things that all centered around me. We talked about a risk assessment and we looked at my support needs. I was smoking cannabis on a regular basis, suffered depression, I hung around people that were trouble and their culture was violence and I ended up getting involved.
‘I found myself talking more and more to my keyworker and the more I spoke to her, the more comfortable I felt, which made me open up and tell her things that I wouldn’t have when we first started meeting. She would sit and listen to what I had to say and never judge me; she would offer me advice but never told me what to do. I would still go off and do the wrong things sometimes, but found myself going back to her and telling her what had happened. She would let me talk it through without getting angry and shouting at me.
‘An opportunity was given to me to move into the Railway House annexe, which meant I was more independent, but that I could still have support when I needed it. I stopped smoking cannabis and changed who I hung around with. I was doing something positive with my life. Since moving into the annexe, I have had time and space to rethink my choices. My journey has been a bit of a rollercoaster but I now have a firm plan for my future. I am now working full time as a Door Supervisor after obtaining my security license and I have also applied to university.
‘I am in a much better financial place than when I first came to Railway House and can now keep up with paying my rent. I am much better at managing my money and budgeting for my bills. I feel that without the support of Railway House staff I would not have achieved all that I have, I have turned my life around, I have aspirations and want to achieve positive things in my life.’
Mark was accepted to do an Event & Hospitality Management course at Greenwich University and hopes to graduate this year.
Our ‘204’ service in Wisbech, allow children who used to be in care to be supported near to their communities. Here is a letter received from one of them:
‘I would like to say a big thank you to 204. Before I came to you, I was a violent angry kid – I was kicked out of more than one school and out of 4 foster homes. I once spent a whole night in a police cell and was all round just a horrible kid. You guys helped me though it and gave me a hand out of the hole I was in. Look at me now – I’m so different – my temper is better and under control and I’m all round a happier kid. I’ve turned my life around with the help of 204, also known as my second family. Thanks for all the time you guys put into me and to help me be a better person to be around. I love you all 204, you’re my family, maybe not blood, but my heart family.’
Mrs B was referred to CHS’s CLAS champion for help with some furniture for her son’s bedroom. Mrs B had previously worked with our Money Matters team in relation to benefits. Her family background was very complex and one of her children had been taken into care.
Social Services would not allow the child to come home until they were happy with the state of the property, and the child’s bedroom. Mrs B explained that doors at the property had been damaged in the past when her son’s behaviour was bad. We referred her into the BESOM charity who visited and provided a chest of drawers, repaired a cupboard and bed, fitted curtains and some lampshades. BESOM reported that the client was doing a good job with decorating the boy’s room and downstairs, and that they would decorate the hall, stairs and landing. Mrs B was awarded a £100 CLAS Green Voucher for paint and bedside tables to be obtained from Cambridge Re-Use and CHS obtained a £200 grant from Cambridge Central Aid charity to help towards the cost of new doors and carpets, which BESOM would provide.
Social Services has agreed for the son to come home on supervised visits and it is hoped that he will soon be back home for good. If we can support her child to come home this will be good for the family and will help Social Services avoid needing to pay to keep the child in care. Mrs B said ‘I am overwhelmed with all the help that everyone has given. I wouldn’t have been able to start to get the kids back. It has been life changing’.
Mrs B lived with her husband and three children in a four bedroomed home in Cambridgeshire. Her two older children left home, leading to a reduction in housing benefit due to under-occupation, and she was getting further and further into rent arrears. Her Housing Officer was having to take eviction action because of the arrears, but wanted to get the family some help, so referred her to the local authority for tenancy support.
Unfortunately, Mrs B then suffered life-threatening injuries and spent some time in hospital. Her husband was unable to cope, and left, taking their youngest child, leaving the home in disrepair, with damage to doors, flooring, loose wiring and damaged smoke alarms. The property was now unsuitable to return to and Mrs B would fall further into arrears due to further under-occupation. Between them, CHS’s Housing Officer and the Tenancy Support Officer arranged for alternative accommodation; Mrs B gave up her CHS tenancy and we agreed to take no action over the arrears/damage to the property.
The Tenancy Support Officer at the local district council wrote to us:
‘Thank you for letting me know, I feel quite sad about this case. Thank you for not taking things further and being sensitive and making decisions on a case by case basis. I have noticed this more with CHS compared to other housing associations. It’s a real credit to the organisation’s ethical ethos.’
For rural areas to thrive, they need affordable homes for families to grow. Parish Councils recognise that affordable homes enable families to remain within the communities they have been brought up in and where they may have an existing family support network. Keeping new and growing families in the local area supports rural services and businesses which may be threatened with closure.
CHS has a proud history of delivering affordable housing for rent and shared ownership in rural settlements and during the year we worked closely with Parish Councils in Wicken and Newton to identify and bring forward land for Rural Exception Site developments for local people. In both cases Housing Need Surveys were carried out to identify the specific affordable housing requirements for local people with a village connection. This was followed by meetings with the Parish Councils and residents to discuss the survey results, agree scheme size, layout and tenure mix. With both schemes this involved several meetings to consider various scheme designs each amended to reflect concerns raised by interested parties relating to open space, landscaping, tree retention and other environmental issues. In the case of Wicken this resulted in the purchase of a site and the grant of planning consent for 16 homes with work due to start on site in October 2019. We have subsequently agreed terms with a landowner in Newton and are now working towards exchanging contracts and submitting a planning application for eight homes.
In addition, we discussed similar potential schemes with the Parish Councils of Doddington and Wimblington and although both Councils are fully supportive of more affordable housing for local people we have yet to successfully identify suitable sites.
Mr Fordham is a direct link to CHS’s first homes at Green End Road. His parents-in-law Mr and Mrs Hurst moved into 9 Green End Road in 1927 where the rent was 5/6d per week. Their daughter, Edna married Leonard Fordham. After having their first child, the young family had to share a bedroom in her parents’ home. They were expecting their second child and there was no room for another cot, as the third bedroom at Green End Road was occupied by Mrs Fordham’s three adult brothers.
CHS were able to move Mr and Mrs Hurst in to a council house, so Mr and Mrs Fordham and their children finally had a home of their own in November 1949. Mr Fordham worked for the Cambridge locksmiths, Robert Dent, then based in King Street, on a weekly wage of £6.10. He worked on the exterior clock at the original Langdon House and also took part in CHS’s 65th anniversary celebrations.
Mrs Fordham died in 1995 and in 2016, finding it difficult to manage on his own, Mr Fordham moved to CHS’s residential care home, Langdon House. Mrs Fordham was a CHS tenant for 68 years, and Mr Fordham celebrates his 68th anniversary with CHS this year. Mr Fordham has three children, six grandchildren and seven great grandchildren with two more on the way.
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