In their words
An ex-resident talks about their experience at Barnardo's Rachel House project:
Before moving to Rachel House, I was in ‘care’ moving from one home to another all the time. When I moved into Rachel House I felt free. Any mess would be my own fault and wherever I put something I’d know it would still be there later on. It was nice having my own private space and being able to watch the television in peace.
When I moved to Rachel House I already knew how to cook, clean and do housekeeping. I knew how to budget money, but I never did! From the 10 months I was here I felt that I’d achieved a lot emotionally, due to all the support from the staff. I’m a lot more confident in dealing with people now and I socialise a lot more too. I went through a period of not working and from that experience I’ll always work in some job, otherwise you get really bored.
Even though I knew how to cook, I learnt how to cook well-balanced meals for one or more people. My keyworker showed me how to deal with people like Norweb and British Gas on the phone - the major thing from that was patience! I also learnt what not to do in emergencies and what to do.
Now I’m in my own flat with my partner. I still have support from Rachel House and Social Services. It was very stressful moving out, as we had no furniture at all except for a cooker. Luckily I had all the basics like cutlery, a kettle etc and the resettlement worker helped me too. It was hard trying to sort out the flat and working at the same time. It’s now my second week there and the electric, gas, water and house insurance are sorted. We’ve almost sorted out the furniture and then all we have to do is decorate. I’m only around the corner from Rachel House which is really good as if I have a problem, they are only a five minute walk away, or they can call round for a visit and coffee.
Overall, Rachel House did a good thing for me. I know that I can cope living on my own but I prefer living with someone else. I always have some kind of support at Rachel House as I have good relationships with the staff.
