Nadia’s story

Nadia* became homeless at 17, after being kicked out of her flat.  As a young girl she lacked the skills and experience to manage her tenancy and life in general, and eventually ended up on the streets.  Over the next few years, Nadia was repeatedly raped, robbed and attacked. She got involved with sex working, drugs and offending and was subsequently sent to prison.

Nadia was referred to Treasures by her probation officer, and arrived in a vulnerable state, angry, aggressive, scared and paranoid. Her Keyworker steadily built-up trust and rapport and was able to address her immediate health needs by helping her to register with a GP, sort out medication, and visit a dentist. Nadia felt able to disclose to her Keyworker that she’d had a baby which had been taken from her straight after she had given birth.

Over the next few weeks Nadia was supported to arrange ID documents, set up a bank account and apply for Universal Credits, as well as being accompanied to attend various meetings and visits with her parents.  Nadia found it hard to participate in the weekly group sessions offered at Treasures and commit to household rules and duties, but fully engaged in the recreational activities with her peer mentor and the nutritionist sessions.

“This was the first time I ever cooked!”

With an average of seven hours of support and engagement each day, the project team at Treasures were soon able to recognize that Nadia was struggling with her behaviour and her ability to adjust to life in shared accommodation. As there was little information known about Nadia from other services, her keyworker asked her permission to arrange a mental health assessment, to gain a clearer picture about her diagnosis and treatment.

“When you live on the street, you mix with street people and do street things”

Treasure’s Specialist Support Manager co-ordinated the process of moving Nadia into suitable independent accommodation, by working closely in partnership with Probation, social workers, the mental health team and housing department. As a result, Nadia is now settled in her new flat nearby, where she is connected to community support from the Home Treatment team and assigned a Housing Support worker. Our Specialist Support Manager has helped her apply for benefits and complete PIP assessment paperwork.

“During the 13 weeks in which Nadia was a resident, she received 10 hours of direct 1:1 support, was encouraged to attend 14 various recovery group sessions, and participated in an average of 5 well-being activities each week” Quality Manager

The tailored support provided by Treasures has prevented Nadia from retuning to a life of homelessness, addiction and offending. She continues to receive 1:1 keywork support, is looking into college courses and has access to therapy and our range of sessions designed to equip women with the tools and skills they need to live independently.  It was important to Nadia that she tried to find her child, and after a lengthy process of liaising with social services, and discovering the child had been adopted, her Keyworker has helped her to apply for letterbox contact.

“Somehow Nadia has slipped through the system – It’s sad how people are left in their mental health state.” CEO

*Name has been changed to protect identity