Advice & Support
Our Advice & Support service helps people who are sleeping on the streets, in a hostel or B&B, in supported housing, on a friend's sofa or being threatened with eviction.
This service is for more complex cases, simple queries are dealt with by a case manager in the Gateway. You will need to come in to the Gateway and be assessed before you are offered an appointment with Advice & Support. One-to-one appointments can help you:
- Deal with housing issues
- Find accommodation
- See if you are eligible to claim benefits
- Register with a GP
- Obtain a National Insurance number
- Dispute a decision with the DWP
We can also refer you to other agencies who can give further support and advice on housing and legal issues.
We can't help with immigration issues, this is because if you need help with immigration or asylum you will need proper legal advice, and our Advice & Support service isn't legal advice. Lewisham Refugee and Migrant Network are specialists in this area, visit http://lrmn.org.uk/.
Some people have no recourse to public funds, this may apply to you if you are subject to immigration controls. Your visa or residency permit should inform you if you have no recourse to public funds. If you have no recourse to public funds, we can help with employability, but you will not be entitled to benefits, including housing benefit.
This means most housing providers we use won't be able to house you, as they need housing benefit to pay the rent for their properties.
If you are sleeping rough and have no recourse to public funds, please do come and see us and we can see what we can do for you.
To access Advice & Support you will need to come into the Gateway and a member of staff will fill out an assessment and refer you to Advice & Support.