‘Kelly’, a 39-year-old single mum working as a construction site cleaner was struggling to make ends meet after a financially abusive relationship. Her outgoings outweighed her income, due to high levels of repayments being deducted from her wages by the Sheriff’s department for council tax arrears.
Living month to month and working full time, Kelly lay awake at night, worrying constantly about the downward spiral she was in and struggling to feed her young son. She told us,” I felt my heart break when my son asked me for a treat, like a bag of sweets, so he could be like his friends, a luxury I couldn’t afford.”
Her lifeline came in the form of a Lighthouse helpline poster she saw at work. She wasn’t sure if she would qualify as she was ‘just a cleaner’, but Kelly was desperate and thought she would try anything. As soon as she was connected to one of our helpline call handlers Kelly was able to let it all out. She was passed through to a caseworker who gave her the space to finally share everything she’d been bottling up, before going into problem-solving mode. Kelly needed help pressing the restart button.
We started with the most immediate problem, making sure her little boy was fed. We organised a food delivery and kept up deliveries every 10-12 days whilst we looked at what else could be done to help. A grant was approved to pay off the council tax arrears, and Kelly could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. With the weight off her shoulders, she felt able to open up about her past relationship. At this stage, we offered counselling sessions to help her process the abuse, and to teach her skills to move forward in a positive way.
Finally, Kelly mentioned her concerns about the new school term, and the pressure of supplying everything Ben would need for the year. He no longer fit into his uniform, and she could tell he felt embarrassed. Lighthouse supplied vouchers to make sure he was taken care of, and we received photos of a beaming Ben in his brand new outfit.
Kelly finally had her restart. With debts cleared, her income could now cover their outgoings, and she achieved her goal of financial stability. She was moving forwards with a better understanding of her trauma, financial pressure relieved and her happy son going proudly into year 2 with his new uniform. Kelly wants to encourage others to ask for support and not be embarrassed. “I needed help with several issues and I know how hard it is to reach out, but when you do, Lighthouse is there to reach back and support you. No problem is too large or too small. “
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