Cara
“It was like a family vibe when I first came here, and I could talk to them about anything. I found it hard to communicate at the time and I would get angry, so CTS helped me and talked to the council for me which helped me to get housing and get my benefits sorted out.”
At 15 years old Cara was very unhappily living in care. She started squatting in an unused and unheated commercial building in Brighton to get away from her situation. It was at that point that she found out about our day centre and started to come here for food, to shower and use the washing machine.
As well as helping with these immediate needs, Cara's Support Coordinator helped her with her mental health and reliance on alcohol, organised benefits and sorted out somewhere for her to live. Cara says:
“It was like a family vibe when I first came here, and I could talk to them about anything. I found it hard to communicate at the time and I would get angry, so CTS helped me and talked to the council for me which helped me to get housing and get my benefits sorted out.
The talking is the most important thing for me. It helps to have people to talk to. I have real bonds with people here. I would say my mental health is at a 4 out of 10, and it was a key worker here who helped me to understand my mental health and pointed out the issues to me, and from that I was able to go on to get a diagnosis of BPD and get treatment and support.
I’ve been through loads of hostels, but I have a training flat now. There’s no tenancy and I have to wait to see if I get approval to live on my own. CTS has helped me to improve my CV too.
I’ve seen the impact that CTS has on people, the way it helps people, and the way it improves lives. I’ve seen people go from having nothing to being housed and normal.“