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Could you help transform a young person's life?

Step by Step, the local charity which helps homeless and disadvantaged young people, is searching for warm-hearted, caring people in the Aldershot, Farnborough, Fleet, Camberley and Woking areas to become carers in their Supportive Lodgings service.

Most young people experience some difficulties when they leave home and this is particularly true of those who have been in care or have been forced to leave home because of family problems. Many lack the confidence and basic skills required to live independently and as a result may end up in trouble or drift into a life of drugs and petty crime. Step by Step’s Supportive Lodgings service, working in partnership with local authority housing and children’s services departments, aims to prevent this by providing a stable, caring and supportive home environment for young people aged 16-19, where they can learn to take control of their lives and become integrated and useful members of society.

Key to the success of Supportive Lodgings are the carers, also referred to as hosts - people from all walks and situations of life, irrespective of age, family, status or ethnicity - who are prepared to offer a room in their home and to provide help, advice and a listening ear to a teenager. Patience, a sense of humour and genuine desire to help are common character traits of successful carers. Step by Step provides comprehensive training and ongoing professional support throughout the placement to overcome any difficulties that may arise. Young people and their carers are careful appraised and matched prior to their moving in.

In return for opening their homes to a needy and vulnerable young person, hosts receive payment for rent, food and support, but most carers will testify to the immense reward of knowing that they have helped someone to avoid a downward spiral and move confidently towards independent living.

Bekki is typical of many of those who have been through the Supportive Lodgings service and is now embarking on a course in Law at Winchester University. “There have been good and bad times.” she says. “I have had to cope with a variety of different things, including my relationships with my parents and emotional issues, but with the brilliant support of my carer, Caroline, and Marie at Step by Step, I made it through these struggles and I have learnt a lot.”

Caroline confirms that “Bekki has really matured and grown into a responsible young woman and the help and support given by Step by Step has been very good.”

Whatever your situation: married, single, young, old, if you are interested in the possibility of becoming a Supportive Lodgings carer with all its challenges and rewards and have a room to spare, Step by Step would be delighted to arrange an exploratory 'no obligation' chat. Please contact Marie Glover on 01252 324193 or 07515 051888, or email her at marie.glover@stepbystep.org.uk.

If you don't feel that being a Supportive Lodgings host is for you, but you'd like to help, Step by Step have many other rewarding ways in which you can help them achieve their aim of 'empowering homeless people and those facing adversity'. Visit their web site at www.stepbystep.org.uk, or telephone 01252 312364 for more information.

©2010 Step by Step Partnership Ltd   :   Reg. Charity No. 900308    :   Company No. 2431825