wellbeing

May

2023

The Renters Reform Bill – Our hopes for improved mental health outcomes and tenant / landlord relationships

Like many other organisations in the sector, we are really pleased to see the Government has finally published its Renters Reform Bill – some four years and thousands of no-fault evictions after it was first promised in 2019. For both renters and landlords alike, the changes mark the start of reforms that can create greater security of tenure, safer houses and better-quality homes for all.

Despite the long delays and some watering-down of the original campaign asks, the Bill finally puts an end to Section 21 evictions which have put many thousands of renters into a form of perpetual housing insecurity, never knowing if they could suddenly receive a notice to leave a place they have made their home for no other reason than the landlord’s discretion.

No-fault evictions have been a particular source of anxiety for private renters, especially for renters in London where rents have risen 13 consecutive times since the Bill was first proposed in 2019 and where average rents are higher than they have ever been, at around £2500.

In addition to the scrapping of Section 21, the reforms include the introduction of rolling periodic tenancies (meaning the contracts will roll on month by month without needed to renew it); longer notice periods for rent increases; and greater rights around pets in homes.

The Bill says that “any attempts to evict tenants through unjustifiable rent increases are unacceptable”, providing some additional reassurance around rent hikes despite the Bill not including any provision around rent regulation and caps – another key objective of campaigners and housing organisations across the sector. The lack of legislation or devolved powers to address the runaway costs of renting is a major barrier to fostering a sector that works for renters and landlords alike.

Anxiety, health and Section 21

The vast majority – over 90% – of the renters referred to us via the Southwark Private Renters Project are experiencing stress, anxiety and sometimes depression due to their housing circumstances. Many are facing the real prospect of homelessness and do everything right to try to avoid that, but face an expensive, competitive market on little earnings and often a lot of additional needs – for example, they may be managing a chronic health condition, dealing with past experiences of abuse or addiction, have experienced a loss of someone close (maybe someone who they depended on for housing), or face language barriers or discrimination. All are low income, meaning budgets are extremely tight – usually calculated to the month with little give in the case of an emergency, like an eviction.

We know from studies that an eviction can impact a person in ways that are psychologically similar to bereavement, in the ways it acts through stress pathways. It can also trigger depressive symptoms and things like higher blood pressure. Renters living under the threat of eviction – as many renters are – report worse health outcomes, both physically and mentally.

Maria Morgan, Kineara’s Director, responded to the new Bill with these comments:

“A home should be a place where a person feels secure, safe, warm, and not at risk. However, for various reasons this basic human right is being challenged; through policies, economic structures, and wider societal challenges. We must not forget that in the midst of all these intersections are people who are having to navigate multiple complex housing systems.
The Renters Reform paper is a good start to addressing the challenges that currently exist between landlords and tenants. My hope is the reform will be a policy that is consistently reviewed, evaluated, and impact is measured for increased improvement.
It’s time for both tenants and landlords to be heard and regarded with empathy, openness, and with the ambition of ensuring good housing for all.“

Given how important a stable home is to everyone’s health, we look at the changes proposed in this Bill with some hope that steps are finally being taken to protect the health and wellbeing of renters. We also look forward to working with landlords, continuing to deliver secure housing to those who need it.

May

2023

Vicarious Trauma: Potential mental health impacts on those engaging with people in distress

The British Medical Association (BMA) defines Vicarious Trauma as ‘a process of change resulting from empathetic engagement with trauma survivors.’ Typically, people in roles such as therapists, health care workers, and other support workers may experience vicarious trauma.

By regularly hearing of or witnessing the impact of traumas on others through their jobs, these learnings can have an accruing effect on the person giving support, resulting in adverse mental health impacts.

At Kineara, our Housing Support Workers and Practitioners work with clients going through various degrees of distress. In our line of work this can range from anything from sleep loss to isolation, fear, and panic; not only do we witness the experiences of our clients, but we take the journey with them, doing what we can to be a listening ear and advocate for them. This can however take its own toll.

Below are some tips on recognising and remedying signs of vicarious trauma:

Recognising some of the signs of Vicarious Trauma

Feeling overly involved in the lives of those you are helping.
Experiencing anxiety about the cases you are working.
Significant negative feelings such as guilt, shame, pessimism, anger, and sadness about the situations faced by those you are helping.
Becoming preoccupied outside of work with the situations of those you’re helping.
Feeling detached and trying not ‘block out’ the stories you are hearing from those you are trying to help.
Going beyond the realistic requirements of your role and exceeding the limits of help you should be offering.

Remedying the signs of Vicarious Trauma

Check in with yourself regularly – ask yourself how you are feeling.
Look after yourself; your physical and mental wellbeing are just as important as that of those you are supporting.
Ensure you have a healthy work-life balance; give yourself time to switch off and take yourself away from sources of work like laptops and phones.
Think realistically about what you can accomplish for each case you are working on.
Check in with your colleagues and talk about your cases with them.

With Mental Health Awareness week in full flow, we thought it apt also to shine a light on some of the mental health risks that come with supporting others. It is also a great opportunity to give a big shout out to everyone who undertakes jobs that can put them at risk of empathy fatigue in order to help others in need. For some insights into Vicarious Trauma training some of our practitioners have undertaken, please check out a previous article that was previously published on the Homeless link website here.

Apr

2023

Housing Issues: some of the common barriers we see in our work in Southwark

At Kineara we talk about ‘breaking barriers’ to housing issues as we holistically support those on the verge of homelessness, but what do these barriers look like?

Below we summarise some of the key challenges our clients are faced with, as well as the obstacles our Housing Practitioners often encounter in the process of trying to obtain suitable, long-term housing solutions for our clients. Evidently, most of these barriers are interconnected and demonstrate the complexity of the housing crisis not only in Southwark, but across London and the UK.

1. Supply vs demand for social housing

With less and less social housing available for those who really need it, Councils are relying heavily on the private sector to take on households who should be entitled to social housing which has more affordable rates and increased security of tenure.

We meet many renters who are eligible for social housing, including those with complex health needs or mental health diagnoses, and always support them to register and bid, if possible, to protect the possibility of securing social housing for the long term. In some instances, moving further afield where rental costs are lower may be considered; this however can be highly disruptive, for example to families with children in school, and results in the renter losing their bid for social housing in the borough; understandably, this is a far from ideal scenario.

Considering the lack of social housing stock, as things stand, the private rental sector is the only option for the majority of our clients. This said, the lack of social housing is having a knock-on effect with the private rental market as we discuss below.

2. A flawed private rental market

Essentially there are far too few affordable, good-sized homes to privately rent in London and increasing competition in the market is further driving up costs, putting them out of reach for many of our low-income clients. (In Southwark, rental costs have risen 12% since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic).

For some, this pressure can be alleviated somewhat by the Landlord’s Incentive Scheme (LIS) offered by the council, which is paid direct to landlords and often covers the security deposit. We’ve seen however that the incentive scheme can in some instances have negative consequences for renters down the line.

A typical example may be where the council has overbid on a property for which there is a lot of competition in order to secure a place for a renter. In some instances, paying over the odds in this way means additional support that would normally go direct to the renter such as a rent deposit loan, is redirected to finance the overbid to the landlord. This means the renter does not get this money back as intended, leaving them with no deposit for their next move.

The LIS can also put the renter in an even more precarious situation as some landlords may be motivated to offer the shortest tenures allowed with the intention of securing further incentive payments for new tenancies. There are also other costs of moving for renters such as removal vans, packing materials, furnishing and storage facilities, which can run into hundreds of pounds, sometimes more.

3. Misconceptions about low income and vulnerable renters

The need for the incentive scheme for private landlords was fueled by the generalisation that those on low incomes or deemed vulnerable are not attractive prospects as renters, because they are assumed to be less secure and less likely to keep up with rent payments. The reality is that many people in these situations are indeed good, reliable tenants as their housing is much more valuable to them and the potential loss of accommodation could have a much more significant impact on their lives; in our experience, motivations to honour contracts, look after the properties in which they reside and maintain good relationships with landlords is high.

At Kineara we find ways of making private renting more secure and suitable for renters by advocating for their needs with landlords, negotiating longer tenancies, helping clients set up a new tenancy and settle into their new home.

To further help (and reassure landlords), we work with clients on their budgets to ensure their income will cover the rent and allow them to live sustainably. We also ensure they are well informed of their rights and responsibilities as a tenant and ensure they are fully benefitting from the support they are eligible for, such as Universal Credit, which can help towards rental costs.

4. Stigma associated with landlords

Landlords have had bad press in the media for many years now and we think it’s fair to say that this portrayal of private landlords as a whole is unfair. It cannot be denied that there are many genuine cases of landlords solely motivated by money and paying little regard to the condition of the properties they rent out or the welfare of their tenants; indeed we’ve already described an example of this above in relation to taking advantage of the Landlord’s Incentive Scheme.

This is not to say, however, that all landlords should be tarnished with the same brush. In fact, we believe that there are many ethical private landlords out there who care about doing social good, who can genuinely be an effective part of the solution to providing safe and secure homes whilst protecting their own investments. It is exactly these types of landlords that we are keen to connect with to find solutions to housing issues where all stakeholders have a good, long-term, sustainable relationship.

5. Pitfalls with Local Housing Allowance (LHA)

Despite rising rents and the cost of living crisis, LHA has been frozen by the government, making the gap between income and rent payments even greater for many of our clients.

In particular, renters under the age of 35 are especially struggling since this age group only qualifies for a shared accommodation allowance which can be substantially less. This presents problems for the many clients we see in this category who are experiencing physical or mental problems that make shared occupation unfeasible. Unless in receipt of Personal Independence Payments (PIP) which provide additional support with extra living costs for those with disabilities, clients are unable to afford the cost of a much needed, self-contained property.

6. Language

Non-English speakers are at an obvious disadvantage when it comes to understanding the UK housing process, their rights as tenants and rules around evictions. With a housing system that is difficult to navigate even for some native English speakers, language presents a significant barrier to many of our clients.

Whilst friends, family, and of course online tools like Google Translate play an important part in the communication process, some areas of our work such as arranging viewings and facilitating conversations with landlords, can be tricky.

Currently in Southwark we are seeing many South American immigrants, many of whom speak no English at all. To counter such barriers and make the housing process easier to understand, we have created some communications in other languages and also work with free translation services where they are available in the community.

Breaking barriers to make long-term sustainable tenancies the norm

In reflecting on these barriers, it is clear that ultimately, the UK government must prioritise providing tens of thousands more long term, secure, safe and genuinely affordable homes. Until then, front line services like ours strive to make a difference to everyday lives in the community, fostering a sense of wellbeing, advocating for the rights and needs of renters, building healthy relationships between landlords and renters, and supporting education around money matters to empower society’s most vulnerable. This, we hope will help break ongoing cycles of poor health, wealth, and education, to tackle such housing issues and make tenancy sustainment more achievable and these barriers less prevalent.

For more information on how we support residents in Southwark with tenancy sustainment, click here

May

2022

“Achieve your dreams”: Feedback Day at Stepney Park

Last week, as this year’s Motivate to Educate service came to a close at Stepney Park Primary, we held a feedback day with pupils who had attended counselling sessions and groups with our education lead, Gail.

10 children came to three different sessions where we asked them to create a poster, image or phrase responding to the question: How did Gail help you during your counselling sessions?

Here is a sample of the pupils’ creations on feedback day:

Stepney Park Primary is located just south of Whitechapel Road and is a big school in a predominantly Bangladeshi community that is largely bi-lingual. Many of the children that we meet for counselling, between the ages of 5 and 11, are experiencing challenges at home that are common to many in the borough, with parents struggling to make ends meet.

Usually, they are referred after outbursts of anger or tearfulness or being withdrawn. But after the first or second session, they begin to open up about feelings of low confidence, about difficult relationships at home, feeling not protected or nurtured. Where possible and if parents are open to it, Gail will visit at home, to provide support with either their own mental health or parenting routines or techniques.

The children that have worked with her, request her again and again and they know it is a safe space that they can go back to.

Much of the work with the pupils, though, focused on emotional awareness, building on strengths, hopes and aspirations, or relaxation and sense of safety. Each week, sessions included different activities like breathing exercises, gratitude notes, somatic and sound healing moments, and more.

Together the pupils created a Tree of Life, where each branch had a statement or question like what are you grateful for today or Say something positive about yourself today. By the end, they’d grown a whole tree of affirmations for themselves and each other.

We also spoke with the deputy head of the school, Nathalie, about the difference M2E and Kineara’s counselling had made to the school. She said, “Gail is fabulous with just being present. Even when a support intervention has come to an end, she is always there for them. It’s lovely having someone they can check in with, and she gets a real rounded, contextual feel of what is going on in families.”

Working with families is key for creating sustainable positive changes in pupils, and they can see real change when families have invested in the process.

She also spoke about the flexibility that the M2E service has given the school, offering both longer intensive interventions, shorter therapeutic counselling and drop in style support. “Some families need longer interventions, but other need short sharp interventions. What has been most important and useful for us has been having that flexibility to adapt it to what we needed.”

Counselling with a difference

When Amla (10) began working with Gail, the school said she was active in school and taking part in all school events, and very articulate.

But they knew she was a young carer to her mum, who was struggling with her mental health, and siblings, one of whom had been diagnosed with cancer. She told us on the day, “My mum didn’t know what to do when my dad left, so I would take care of my brothers and help them get ready. She wasn’t able to shop alone so sometimes I would go into the kitchen and look at the cupboards that were empty.” She also helps to translate for mum at hospital appointments. For Amla, the most important thing Gail helped her with was the support she gave her mum, as she shared with us.

Jay came to counselling struggling to recognise his strengths and qualities. In the first session, Gail suggested to create a vision board for his hopes and dreams for the future but he found it difficult and got stuck on the finer details. With some encouragement and praise, he completed it and over the next few weeks he began to open up. He discovered he loved digging in his rooftop garden at home, so Gail brought seeds for vegetables which began to grow over the course of the term. For each pupil the support looks very different and creates a space for them to nurture their strengths and sense of confidence.

Find out more about Motivate to Educate and recent research we undertook on school pupil wellbeing.

Dec

2021

Pupil counselling: Supporting the wellbeing of the youngest in our communities

Our latest research with over 6,000 schools has revealed that pupil mental health, wellbeing and pupil counselling are top support priorities this academic year. However, you know that effectively supporting pupil wellbeing can put additional strain on schools who are already facing many challenges in ensuring the ongoing education of pupils, especially during these uncertain and challenging times. This is where we come in.

We sat down with Gail, our lead education practitioner, to learn more about Tiana’s* story, the impact of pupil counselling in school, as well as some creative techniques and exercises. You can use these insights to build upon your own and/or get in touch to find out how we can support your school.

The negative impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on pupil mental health and wellbeing have far-reaching consequences on pupil learning, education, school-life, and even future life chances. Although the Department for Education has recommended that schools continually plan for and prioritise pupil wellbeing, we know that schools already have many things to focus on, as well as time and budget constraints.

Working closely with school staff and families alike, we’ve been delivering counselling to primary pupils in Tower Hamlets, many of whom come from families who are facing housing precariousness or financial exclusion. With the many ups and downs that schools have faced this year, with schooling disrupted for so many pupils, we are really proud that we can support the mental health and wellbeing of the youngest in our communities this year.

Pupil counselling: Why and how

Could you share more about the impact of pupil counselling? And what types of challenges have pupils been facing?

There is a similarity in a lot of cases that when we go to uncover the root cause, it’s often to do with self-confidence, self-esteem, not feeling safe, not feeling secure. So, kind of like the foundations of people. Alot of these referrals come with outbursts of aggression or tearfulness or being withdrawn and then when we go back, it always seems to be that the person isn’t confident; doesn’t have good self-esteem; doesn’t have good relationships at home; communication is poor; not being able to talk about emotions; not connecting how emotions feel within ourselves; responding to certain things in a negative way; and so on. It all has a big impact, and it all seems to go back to the same feeling of loneliness, fearfulness and not feeling sort of…there. Not feeling not protected, not nurtured, and often never ever enough praise and competence within the home.

“When we go to uncover the root cause, it’s often to do with self-confidence, self-esteem, not feeling safe, not feeling secure. So, kind of like the foundations of people.”

Describe any techniques, activities, and methods that have worked well with the children so far?

So, I use a range of different techniques. I’ve been using breathing exercises. I’ve been using sound therapy at the start of the sessions to get them calm and feeling safe so they’re able to talk. I’m using a lot of exercise with self-esteem and self-worth. So, looking at their qualities at their strengths, asking teachers and parents to praise them on this so that they encourage their positive traits to come out.

Also, in school we did the ‘Tree of Life’ and each branch had something different on it. And every time the children came to the sessions, they had to create leaves with an answer to each branch. So, one branch was ‘leave a kind word,’ one branch was ‘tell me something positive about yourself today,’ one was ‘tell me what your dream is or your goal for this week’. One was ‘what does a good friend mean to you?’ And the other one was, ‘what are you grateful for today?’ So that was lovely.

“Every time the children came to the sessions, they had to create leaves with an answer to each branch. So, one branch was ‘leave a kind word’, one branch was ‘tell me something positive about yourself today’, one was ‘tell me what your dream is or your goal for this week.”

And I’ve been giving homework to the counselling children for their parents and them to do together. This includes lots of work about what their worries are to help the parents and children talk about their worries, and how we can help our worries, so they don’t grow. Also, what do we like about each other and what do we like about ourselves – so self-esteem, self-empowering sheets to send home.

How does children’s counselling differ from counselling older children/young adults?

When I’m working with younger children, I use more visual more games and more artwork. With the older children, I can do like more activities like what I was just speaking to you and if the parents get involved, we noticed significant changes, especially with the activities that I sent home. I noticed that the parents that engaged with that the children we really do see change.

Tiana’s story: Holistic techniques and amazing outcomes

Tiana* was experiencing high levels of stress and difficulty concentrating in school, partly due to her parent’s separation and mum’s low mental health. The holistic support which included pupil counselling aimed to improve Tiana’s confidence, emotional awareness, and relationships with others.

“I am able to talk about what is bothering me, and I have learnt that it’s better to talk about how you feel instead of holding your feelings inside.”

After just a few sessions, Tiana started to open up about what was bothering her and what she needed help with. Reflecting on the talking sessions, Tiana said that “this was good because it helped me talk about how I felt, and it makes me feel better in my time with Gail. I am able to talk about what is bothering me, and I have learnt that it’s better to talk about how you feel instead of holding your feelings inside.”

Working closely with Tiana’s teachers and parents, Gail introduced a range of creative and holistic activities. This included developing a vision board with Tiana’s hopes and wishes, as well as photographs to illustrate each vision. This project was a great way for the whole family to be able to look at what Savannah wanted for her future, for herself and her family. “Tiana’s hopes and wishes were for Mum and Dad to get along with each other, for Tianna to be a film producer or artist when she gets older, for her whole family to get along, the importance of family, and to let go of worries,” explained Gail.

“Both Tiana’s parents and teachers have noticed that Tiana is happier and more confident… With 10 being the highest level, Tiana’s score for overall stress went from 10 to 2, emotional distress from 6 to 0, and hyperactivity and concentration in class from 6 to 1.”

Due to their consistency and hard work, the family played a key role in the success of the programme. Gail mentioned that the family implemented their new tools like the ‘emotion cards’ which helped them all express their feelings to one another, especially Tiana and mum. “I didn’t express my feelings at home but now with the emotions card I can pick one and we can just pick them up instead of just saying how I feel,” said Tianna. She adds, “Mum told me yesterday that she feels sad when I was leaving and this made me feel happy that she said this as she would never say anything like this to me before, so it made me feel that she really does miss me when I go.”

Overall, the support led to some amazing outcomes and both Tiana’s parents and teachers have noticed that Tiana is happier and more confident. With 10 being the highest level, Tiana’s score for overall stress went from 10 to 2, emotional distress from 6 to 0, and hyperactivity and concentration in class from 6 to 1.

*Name has been changed to protect client identity.

To find out more about our education support in schools or if you have any questions about the above, we’d love to hear from you. Contact us to arrange an informal chat at: info@kineara.co.uk or call 020 3976 1450.

Dec

2021

Anna’s story: Fuel poverty and impossible choices

This Fuel Poverty Awareness Day, we are joining NEA and others to raise awareness of this multi-faceted and preventable issue. Highlighting the experience of Anna and her family, you can support us and make a difference to those who are unfairly trapped in the vicious cycle of poverty.

“A national injustice”

According to the NEA, around four million UK households are in the grip of fuel poverty, unable to afford to heat their homes and live comfortably as they should. On top of that, rising energy bills and unforgiving weather conditions are hitting low-income households the hardest. We’ve seen this first-hand at Kineara with many of our families being left in impossible situations, like having to choose between heating their home, paying the bills, or feeding their children.

Anna’s story

Anna has lived for 13 years on the top floor of a 23-story building with poor insulation and broken central heating.

Trapped in a cycle of poverty, she pays £1400 a month for her flat so once that is paid there isn’t enough money to left cover the bills or get her heating fixed.

She has a two year old son who she tries to keep as comfortable as possible, but now that the winter has set in it is getting harder. He’s an active little boy and want to go out to the park, but how will she warm him up when she gets back home? With little money for activities or to take him to a café to keep warm for a while, Anna does what she can to keep the house warm enough while they stay inside.

I’ll go over to my friend’s house sometimes to warm up. If I could afford to, I would go to a café and sit inside to keep warm. But I don’t have any extra money to do that.

And sometimes that means being forced into making decisions that could risk her health and safety. At times, she has no other option than to put the oven on get some heat into the room while her son watches cartoons. Sometimes he’ll ask her to blow on his hands to keep them warm.

He’ll say “Mummy, please blow on my hands to keep them warm” like we are outside, except we’re sitting inside our living room… Sometimes I don’t have any other option than to turn on the oven, at least so my son can keep warm in the evening.

And when she can afford it, a hot bath can help. But even that can be unappealing. When she steps out into a cold room, her teeth start to chatter, and the only solution is to get into bed with a hot water bottle.

Donate to our appeal

With little money for phone credit, accessing services is really difficult and getting hold of the landlord to send engineer to repair the heating is near impossible. Each winter, the coldest months already have gone by before she has her concerns taken seriously.

Every winter I call and call to get someone to come and fix the heating, but the whole winter goes by before anything is done. I don’t have the money to pay for an engineer.

This winter, we want to help Anna to keep warm through the coldest months. No-one should the stark choices that she is having to make for herself and her son. We’re advocating for her to fix the disrepair in her home, but you could help her and others like her to cover some bills over the winter, keep the hot water on and their mobile phone topped up. Even a small amount can make a huge difference.

Donate what you can today!

To help us support more families over the winter, please donate to our winter appeal. All donations will go directly to families for essential items they need over the winter period.

Sep

2021

Back to school: Supporting pupil wellbeing online

Almost two years in, you’ve seen how the Covid-19 pandemic has impacted your school, pupils, and families. In addition to delivering education support such as pupil counselling, Kineara is undertaking a research project in collaboration with TeacherTapp to identify and explore the needs and challenges facing schools during these uncertain times. The first data set comes from 6,435 schools indicating what type of support they would benefit from in an online/digital format. Below is a snapshot of the results.

Key findings:

Pupil counselling was the most popular form of digital/online support. In particular, this was the top response for teachers working in secondary schools.
Results from both primary and secondary schools reinforced the importance of whole family support and early intervention. Additionally, drop-in support, family sessions, and family therapy were top responses from primary schools.
As expected, there was generally a higher level of support needs identified by schools working in deprived areas compared to their more affluent counterparts. Drop-in support for parents, family sessions, and family therapy were the most popular responses among Q4 (deprived) schools. Notably, however, private secondaries also indicated a high level of need for pupil counselling. This shows that despite the socioeconomic advantage afforded to pupils from more affluent areas, there remains a need to address mental health and wellbeing among all children and young people.
Family sessions and family therapy was the most requested from state primaries (61%), while parents drop-in support was the strongest need among private primaries. Additionally, pupil counselling was the most popular answer among both private secondaries (48%) and state secondaries (59%).

Free resource (limited time only!):

We are really happy to be sharing our free PDF resource containing proven activities to support mental health and wellbeing for primary and secondary school pupils alike. It comes with full instructions, key benefits, and our top tips on adapting our resource to different contexts. We hope you find it helpful!

Download your free resource here

To find out more about our education support in schools or if you have any questions about the above, book a friendly chat with us today. Contact us at: info@kineara.co.uk or call 020 3976 1450.

Jun

2021

Practitioner Insights: Five ways to ease loneliness and disconnection

What is the difference between feeling lonely and being alone? When you feel alone – even around other people – you may be feeling disconnected. Perhaps your needs are not being met, you are not connecting with people on a meaningful level, or you are going through hidden challenges or experiences nobody else knows about. This Loneliness Awareness Week, we share insights on the value of actively listening and connecting to ease loneliness. You can use these tips to ease loneliness and disconnection in yourself and others. As an organisation that provides valuable support, you may also find these insights helpful.

1. Actively listening:

When going through challenges you may feel like your voice isn’t being heard, which can fuel feelings of loneliness, resentment, stress, anger and tension. Making an effort to listen to others – not just listening to give a reply but really actively listening – can be a great starting point for easing these feelings and building a meaningful connection. Sometimes we want to fix everything and give solutions and advice, but for some people real active listening and feeding back what they have said can be even more powerful.

Action: Make an effort to listen –not just listening to give a reply but really actively listening.

2. Meaningfully connecting

When you feel alone even around other people, you may be feeling disconnected. Try connecting with yourself first and foremost to better understand: Why do you feel like this? Do you crave more meaningful relationships? What is your definition of friendship? Are you working through a challenge or trauma in your life? Recognising your feelings may help you decide what you need to do to feel better. If you believe someone close to you may be feeling like this, try strengthening your own relationship with them by setting meaningful time to just talk and be together with no judgement or expectations.

Action: Try connecting with yourself to better understand why you are feeling this way. Set meaningful time with yourself and others to strengthen your relationships.

3. Authentically expressing

It can be difficult to connect with others when you have your guard up or dismiss your own authentic self. This, coupled with societal factors and expectations, can contribute to feelings of disconnection with others and/or in group settings. Try seeking outlets to express yourself such as connecting with close friends and family and/or doing activities that bring you joy. Expressing yourself authentically in a way that you are comfortable with is valuable for your own mental health and wellbeing. Taking some time out to recharge your social meter is important too.

Action: Try seeking different ways and outlets to express yourself like connecting with close friends and family and doing activities that bring you joy. Take time out to recharge your batteries too.

4. Sincerely asking

Asking questions to yourself and others can help to generate better solutions to problems and uncover different challenges. It can also help you remain open, non-judgemental and sincere in supporting yourself and others. “I care about you. Is there anything I can do to help you work through this?” “May I help you find someone who can support you?” “How would you like things to be different?” Remember to check in regularly with yourself too.

Action: Ask open-ended, non-judgmental and sincere questions to generate better solutions to problems and uncover different challenges. Check in regularly with yourself too.

5. Holistically supporting

When you’re talking to someone, it helps to see that person as a system – in that system is a person, their needs, background, parentage, education, culture, faith etc. You’re not seeing a situation or a person as one-dimensional but seeing them in a holistic frame. At Kineara, our support is holistic and tailored to the needs of the individual and family. This means we look at the bigger picture, addressing different challenges they may be facing in life, including issues with rent or housing insecurity, emotional wellbeing, or household needs and relationship. Although holistic working is a specialism, it helps to recognise this approach, be aware of those other issues, and bring in specialist support as needed.

Action: Connect with support services that add value and find out more about holistic support.

Helpful links

Marmalade Trust – A charity dedicated to recognising loneliness, helping people make new friendships and connections, and hosting Loneliness Awareness Week.

Apply For Help – WaveLength – Wavelength has really helped our clients who have been isolated and many have lost everything through homelessness. To be able to listen to music or watch a television has really helped their mental health.

Digital Inclusion Project – Many of us were fortunate enough to get through lockdown with a phone, computer and the internet. But there were many who couldn’t FaceTime or Zoom their friends and family, they had little or no contact with others. Our digital inclusion courses help people gain confidence so that they become digitally independent and connected to the services and networks they need.

Jun

2021

A focus group: Life and debt in temporary accommodation

We hear from people we’ve supported on their experiences of temporary accommodation and what councils and support services can do better.

There are currently over 250,000 people living in temporary accommodation across the UK, a figure which jumped by 6000 in the first three months of the Covid crisis. With a chronic lack of social housing and unaffordable rental prices in the private market, too many people are trapped in temporary accommodation without the means to move on.

But what is the real experience of living in temporary accommodation? Last month, we were approached by Oak Foundation and Trust for London to take part in research about the lives of people living in temporary accommodation and the kinds of support and advocacy available to them.

We hosted a focus group with 6 people we’ve supported over the last year in our housing projects, to hear about the challenges they have faced and their view on what could help them and others who are living in temporary accommodation.

And before the conversation could start, one of the common problems that we’ve supported families with cropped up: could everyone get online for the Zoom call? For Gary, the only way was to go over to a friends house and get Wifi access from there because he’d been unable to top up electricity that week. But it was important to him to join us and share his experience: “I was homeless, the Refugee Council connected me with Council support, they gave me a hotel room but I never saw the case worker, it was all over the phone. I saw a place that was all one room, I signed the contract.”

In Gary’s case, an error meant the benefit cap wasn’t taken into consideration when he signed the agreement. Unable to work and with little to live on after the rent is paid, day to day life is a struggle. “Now I’m living on £200 for a month. I didn’t know how I’m going to live, I can’t top up electric, it is very complicated for me and very traumatizing.”

When you’re suffering from mental health, its difficult – its like trying to put a jigsaw puzzle together in the dark.

Our other participants could relate to the stress caused by the mismatch in benefits and high rent prices, even in TA. When Ajay got his temporary accommodation, he set up a direct debit to cover the utilities and believed his housing benefit would cover the rent. He explains, “I’m going about doing as I should, then 10 months after I was told I was going to be evicted because I hadn’t paid the rent and I’d got into all this debt. I didn’t even know. If it wasn’t for Kineara I don’t know what would happen.”

For Rick, it took two years to get his housing benefit and was moved twice in that time. The housing he was moved to didn’t feel safe, and he wasn’t sleeping due to the stress. It was also hard to get the right information at the right time from council services, saying “They often they tell you ‘I’ll get back to you, I have to check.’ Once I travelled in to the office only to be told to write in.”

Angel, who works part time and whose son is a full time student, had similar frustrations: “They told me ‘Don’t worry, housing benefit will cover it, just make an application’. The arrears kept going up and up. Its frustrating. They need to communicate better – its currently very poor.” Another added, “It seems that different Council offices have different systems to manage who is coming in, one team doesn’t speak to the other.”

So what did the group think could be improved to better support people through and out of temporary accommodation? Many of them described feeling like they weren’t cared about, even feeling like a burden on society. “Then you fall through the cracks and enter world of desperation due to mental relapses, and then you become more of a burden.”

They also wanted to see council services be considerate to the multiple barriers and hardships that they experience, because when they don’t, it feels like they’re being set up to fail. “And you need that when you’re suffering from mental health, because its difficult – its like trying to put a jigsaw puzzle together in the dark.”

For others, the most important thing was also the most simple – to have someone by their side, listening to what they were going through and advocating for them through crisis. “Big thanks for Carly, because I [felt] abandoned but Carly started fighting for my case. She’s been helping me get set up, like with Council Tax which I didn’t know about.”

As we wrapped up our conversation, it was clear that the opportunity to meet and share stories had been important to everyone. “So much of my experience has been reflected today… its been useful because you feel alone.”

This focus group was hosted on behalf of Oak Foundation and Trust for London’s ongoing research project exploring advocacy and support in temporary accommodation. To find out more about the project, contact leila@leilabaker.net and ugo@trustforlondon.org.uk.

*Names have been changed for privacy purposes

Feb

2021

Practitioner Insights: Teaching your pupils during the pandemic 

Over the last year, you’ve seen how challenging teaching during the pandemic has been. Kineara’s holistic approaches to school and home life can provide you with some helpful tips and tricks to support your pupils’ learning and wellbeing, as well as your own. Use these learnings to build upon your own, deepen your empathy and recognise the hidden challenges that your pupils and families may be facing during the pandemic. You can also visit our education page to read more about how holistic support works in practice, and how we can support you.

Emotional health and resilience

Many pupils and families have been struggling with their mental health and wellbeing during the pandemic. They may also be feeling stressed, fearful, and anxious about the upcoming changes, including the reopening of schools.

Studies have shown the negative mental and physical health effects of increased screen-time, so it’s natural to see a dip in pupil motivation and energy levels during online classes. For some families, this is coupled with practical challenges like the lack of space (or workspace), financial hardship, or personal struggles with maintaining a daily routine. All these challenges in the home can make it even harder for pupils to focus. As for returning to school, psychologists have warned that the current “catch-up narrative” is also putting huge pressure on pupils. Recognising these pressures will help you to prioritise pupil wellbeing, which will positively impact on your pupils’ learning. 

While we equip parents with effective tools and strategies to support their children’s wellbeing, we encourage you to prioritise this, and your own wellbeing too. As a teacher or school staff, you know that you play a crucial role in the academic progress and attainment of your pupils. Focusing on your own wellbeing will not only help you thrive in your role, but it will positively impact on your pupils. Here are some top tips to get you started:

Genuinely check in with your pupils and let them know that you and the school are here to support them. 
Give your pupils the opportunity to communicate and ask you for things.
Create a positive classroom culture which includes mutual respect, kindness and sharing. 
Introduce team building exercises and different activities like the “emotions meter” or “emoji game”, if you haven’t already.
Maintain and build positive relationships with your pupils and families. 
Focus on your wellbeing (Remember that ‘you can’t pour from an empty cup’)
Get extra support for yourself or your pupils if needed (See ‘further support’ below)

Challenges for ‘vulnerable’ families 

Families living in precarious situations, facing financial hardship, and going through other personal challenges have borne the brunt of the lockdown. Some families have felt particularly isolated and fearful, and/or have fallen behind on rent due to rising living costs and income hits. To this, both benefit cuts and the end of furlough are set for spring, along with unemployment levels predicted to rise, all of which may drive up rent arrears even further. 

As you want pupils to engage and benefit from your lessons, it’s important that these families get the necessary support. Otherwise, you may see a fall in your pupils’ learning and attainment, emotional wellbeing, and even their relationships with others. Families who took part in our M2E programme have told us that their children have now started to engage more in school and in the home, developed emotional awareness, and improved their grades. While organisations like Kineara work to uncover these hidden challenges through tailored, holistic support, here are some top tips you can try: 

Teachers are natural problem solvers – teach and model this to your pupils to help them develop problem solving skills, which is key to building resilience during adversity. 
Be compassionate and lenient, but also hold your pupils to high expectations. You could, for example, not penalise pupils on deadlines, but also give constructive feedback and hold students to account.
Encourage your pupils to set goals and coach them to achieve these goals. Whether they achieve them or not, it will help them boost their confidence, self-esteem, and motivation in school. 
Recognise that often pupils are dealing with things we know nothing about, which may affect their time in school. Help your pupils relax by introducing breathing exercises or other mindfulness activities if possible. You can read how his has helped our M2E pupils here.

Working together

This pandemic has highlighted the resilience and passionate resolve of our teachers and school staff. As our CEO, Maria Morgan, said, “We recognise that teachers give a lot – their work doesn’t just stop at school, it’s at home, and it’s not just teaching children – they’re social workers, doctors, parents, they’re everything!” While we like to believe that teachers are superheroes (which you are), we know that superheroes need support too. Here are some key learnings from other teachers: 

Don’t try to do it all. Acknowledge when you need support. And if so, get support and advice from other teachers and/or someone you trust.
Connect and socialise with other teachers, friends, and family. This will help you maintain and strengthen positive relationships, emotional wellbeing and even job satisfaction.
Strive to maintain work-life balance. Not only will this help you become a better teacher, but it will also help you take care of yourself mentally and physically. 
Be flexible at home and at school. Planning is important, but you need to be able to quickly adapt plans when new situations and challenges arise. The changes brought about by the pandemic is a key example of this.

Further support

As a school or teacher, you are already dealing with heavy workloads and ongoing pressures, so it’s important to seek out support you need it. Kineara is well equipped to support you to work through multi-complex or hidden challenges your pupils are facing, as outlined above. Our intensive support for pupils and embedded wraparound support for schools are part of our holistic service that aims to improve wellbeing at school. All this is delivered by experienced practitioners and is tailored to meet the needs of your school.

With the rising demand for pastoral care and specialised support post-lockdown, contact us today to find out how we can help. We’d love to support you.

Visit our Education page to find out about our services
Find out more about our Motivate to Educate programme
Read our blog about supporting pupils back to school 
Watch and share our short tips video

At Kineara we talk about ‘breaking barriers’ to housing issues as we holistically support those on the verge of homelessness, but what do these barriers look like?

1. Supply vs demand for social housing

2. A flawed private rental market

3. Misconceptions about low income and vulnerable renters

4. Stigma associated with landlords

5. Pitfalls with Local Housing Allowance (LHA)

6. Language

Breaking barriers to make long-term sustainable tenancies the norm

For more information on how we support residents in Southwark with tenancy sustainment, click here

Last week, as this year’s Motivate to Educate service came to a close at Stepney Park Primary, we held a feedback day with pupils who had attended counselling sessions and groups with our education lead, Gail.

Pupil counselling: Why and how

Tiana’s story: Holistic techniques and amazing outcomes

This Fuel Poverty Awareness Day, we are joining NEA and others to raise awareness of this multi-faceted and preventable issue. Highlighting the experience of Anna and her family, you can support us and make a difference to those who are unfairly trapped in the vicious cycle of poverty.

1. Actively listening:

2. Meaningfully connecting

3. Authentically expressing

4. Sincerely asking

5. Holistically supporting

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