Support Services for Women
Hafan Cymru works with women of all ages and their children (if any), who require support, to assist them in meeting their needs and to enable them to develop the necessary independence to take control over their own lives. Hafan Cymru offers a whole-person approach to the provision of support that covers a wide range of issues: for women recovering their mental health, ex-offenders, substance mis-users, and in particular for women who have experienced domestic abuse, resulting in complex or multiple needs.
Hafan Cymru has 5 young women’s projects based in Colwyn Bay, Rhyl, Haverfordwest, Carmarthen and Pontypridd and a Young Person’s Project in Wrexham where we support both young men and women. We offer a holistic approach to the provision of support to young people aged between 16 and 25 with a wide range of needs – including those who are homeless, have experienced physical, sexual or psychological abuse; are recovering their mental health; ex-offenders; substance abusers. Our projects specialise in assisting those who have been ‘looked after’ by the local authority, those 16 and 17 year olds who are particularly young and vulnerable and those who are pregnant or have a small baby. We aim to ensure our young people can maintain themselves in an independent home within the community.
Our schemes vary in nature. Some consist of a shared house leading onto self-contained flats or floating support and some are blocks of flats. In all cases the young people are encouraged to help themselves and give each other mutual support. Each person receiving support is allocated a key worker who provides an individually tailored package of support to each service user. Our structured support package enables young people to develop the skills and confidence needed to move on into independence. Our Moving On project also provides access to training, education and employment.
Young people can normally stay with the project for up to 18 months. The level of support given to service users will normally be individually negotiated between them and their support worker, depending on their needs.
- Temporary Supported Housing
Hafan Cymru offers temporary supported housing and owns the majority of the temporary supported housing projects we manage, though we have a small number of projects in partnership with general needs Associations. We provide direct housing management, and support services for all those projects which we own, with Wales and West Housing Association doing undertaking the maintenance function and where we work in partnership the landlord Association provides the repairs service.
Our projects consist of between 3 and 8 self contained houses or flats where women are encouraged to help themselves and to give each other mutual support. Each person receiving support is allocated a Project Coordinator as key worker and she provides an individually tailored package of support to each service user and her children, if any. Our structured support package enables women to develop the skills and confidence needed to move on into independence, and our lifelong learning project, New Dawn, also provides access to training, education and employment.
- Although we do not provide 24 hour support, in these projects, tenants are provided with a safe and secure home and are supported by a Project Co-ordinator who is allocated to each scheme, and will identify individual support needs and how they can be met. All Project Co-ordinators are trained to listen and talk to our service users to help our service users to become more confident, allowing them to deal with everyday problems so that when they move on to a permanent home, they will be able to live independently.
- Floating Support Services
Hafan Cymru offers outreach and floating support services. Our floating support offers support services to women living in their own home and is targeted at vulnerable women of all ages, both those with children and single women, and we can support older women and those living in rural areas. In some areas we also support men.
Each person receiving support will be allocated a Project Co-ordinator as key worker; who provides an individually tailored package of support to each service user and to her children, if she has any. Our structured support package enables women and their children to develop the skills and confidence needed to maintain themselves in an independent home within the community. Our lifelong learning project, New Dawn, also provides access to training, education and employment.
Our floating support can provide for women with low, medium or high support. The level of support given to service users will normally be individually negotiated between them and the Project Co-ordinator, depending on their needs. An out-of-hours service is available for emergencies in most areas, excluding those areas where we are not funded to provide this. The length of time someone can be supported varies with the individual. Normally the support starts fairly intensively –2 visits or more visits a week – and will then become less frequent as the individual service user becomes more self-confident. In some areas e.g. Blaenau Gwent and Wrexham, we have floating support projects which are aimed specifically at those women (and, in Blaenau Gwent, men) experiencing domestic abuse.
- Application for Housing / Support Services