Alesa phoned the Home Visiting team on the recommendation of another support agency whose remit was too limited to give the holistic help she needed. She and her husband were looking for both welfare benefit and debt advice. The adviser completed a full benefits check followed by a successful Attendance Allowance claim at the higher rate. This increased their income by over £4,500 a year. She eased their finances further by arranging for the payment of a grant from a Veterans’ charity. The help didn’t stop there. Alesa said they had been ignoring letters from creditors, through fear and not knowing what to do. They now were worried their debts were out of control. as payment recently made had been declined by the bank. The adviser fully explored the debt situation, wrote holding letters to each creditor to freeze interest charges on outstanding balances and prepared an income and expenditure sheet. She went through various debt remedies with them, explaining the merits or otherwise of each. Alesa commented on the professionalism of the adviser who worked with them for as long as was necessary (several months) to see them through the process.
