If you need help, start here
What we do, who it is for and how to reach us. If you would like to help instead, there is a way to do that further down.
Photo: RDNE Stock project / Pexels
What we are
- 1
Open to anyone
If you are not sure whether we are the right people, ask. We will point you somewhere if we are not.
- 2
Run by people here
Local, with a committee that meets and members who can vote it out.
- 3
Where money goes
Accounts and a yearly report, published rather than summarised, and a plain answer about what a donation pays for.
- 4
Confidential
What you tell us stays with us, and we will say clearly if that ever cannot hold.
What we do
01Help and support
Somebody to talk to, and practical help where we can give it.
02* Information and advice
Straight answers, and help understanding letters, forms and decisions.
03Groups and meetings
Regular times to come along, with no need to book or explain yourself.
04Activities
Things to do, for people who want company as much as anything else.
05Helping you get elsewhere
Referrals and introductions to people who do what we do not.
06Volunteering
Real jobs for people with time, with training, an agreement setting out what each side expects, and hours that suit you.
07Donations
Money, and the things we can use directly — the list of what is needed this month is on our page.
08Membership
For people who want to belong to it rather than only give to it, with a say in how it is run.
09Projects
Funded pieces of work with a start, an end and a report at the end of them.
10Speaking up
Raising the things that keep coming up with the people who can change them.
11Working with others
With local services and groups, so nobody falls between them.
Getting help
What happens when you contact us.
- Step 1Get in touch
Call, write or come in. You do not need a referral and you do not have to explain everything first.
- Step 2We listen
In private, at your pace, and without a form to fill in before anybody talks to you.
- Step 3We work out what helps
Our own support, or somebody better placed — and we will make the introduction rather than hand you a number.
- Step 4We stay in touch
Until things are settled, or for as long as you want us to.
What we do
Our work and the people doing it, shown with everybody's permission.
Photo: cottonbro studio / Pexels01 / 04 
Photo: Julia M Cameron / Pexels02 / 04 
Photo: RDNE Stock project / Pexels03 / 04 
Photo: Chuot Anhls / Pexels04 / 04
Photo: Berna / Pexels
About usStarted because somebody needed it
Groups like this usually begin the same way: a problem nobody was dealing with, and a few people who decided to deal with it. Everything since has been built on what people actually asked for rather than what looked good in a plan.
We are small enough that you will speak to a person who knows your situation, and we would rather tell you honestly what we cannot do than take on more than we can hold.
Questions people ask
Does it cost anything?
Our help is given freely. If anything ever has a cost, it is said clearly before you commit.
Do I have to be referred?
No. Get in touch yourself, or ask somebody to do it for you.
Will what I say be private?
Yes. If there is ever a situation where we must pass something on, we will tell you what and why.
Where does the money actually go?
The accounts and the yearly report are published, and we will tell you plainly what a given amount pays for.
Can I volunteer?
Yes, and we need people. Tell us what time you have and what you are good at.
Can I give something other than money?
Often, yes. There is a list of what is actually needed, which is more useful than a cupboard of things nobody asked for.
When we are open
If you cannot reach us and it is urgent, please contact the emergency services.
- Monday to Friday
- daytime
- Weekends
- closed
Where to find us
The address, opening times and how to get here are below. Come in without an appointment.
1 Example Street, Anytown
Could you help?
Time, skills or money — all three keep this going, and the first two are needed most.
Monday to Friday, daytime