“I didn’t realise how much I had”
MHA tenant, Patrick, has lived in the same house for 55 years. Though capable in many ways, at 65 he was finding it difficult to manage the condition of the property and the garden. MHA Neighbourhood Officer, Holly, referred Patrick to the Tenancy Coaching Team, who provide support and advice to help tenants manage their home as independently as possible.
Tenancy coach, Nadine, began working with Patrick. She explained; “Patrick had trouble with knowing what went where and how he could throw away some of the items he had.”
“I had a lot of stuff, we threw away 60 bags!” Patrick said, “Nadine and Chanelle helped me take a lot of it to the tip, and to clean the areas I struggled to get to.”
In just a few weeks Patrick made amazing progress. In light of this hard work Nadine and Chanelle, a fellow tenancy coach, decided to improve his home as well. They assembled some volunteers to redecorate the kitchen, living room and tidy up the overgrown garden.
Getting in some expert help from the Dads Can team member, Shane and volunteers, Adam and Ben, they repainted the kitchen and living room and organised volunteers from the Probation Service to transform the garden. Creating a space that Patrick could relax in with a plan for one of his neighbours to help with the upkeep.
Patrick said: “It gave me an incentive, I tried to do as much as I could so they had less to do. I kept thinking of doing it but was never able to. It’s nice to get it done and I’ll be glad when it’s finished.”
“We are very grateful to Dads Can and all our volunteers for helping and this is the result of all the good work done by Patrick” said Nadine. “It is nice to give something back for Patrick’s hard work and shows that it does pay off.”
