At Pelham Road we support six men with learning disabilities so they can live independently. From day one Lucky told staff it was his lifelong dream to visit Elvis’s home, so we knew we wanted to support him to make it happen.
We had got to know Lucky before he even moved in, as we support his friend John at Pelham Road, and Lucky would visit every other weekend. When the person Lucky used to house share with moved out, Lucky asked if he could move into Pelham Road with John. The local council agreed, and we were only too happy to have him.
Service manager Debbie said: “Lucky is a very independent person who has been volunteering at a local British Heart Foundation shop for 15 years. We had to explain to Lucky that if he really did want to make his dream a reality, he would have to start seriously saving. We sat down together and looked at his finances and ways he could manage his spending.
“We also sorted his bank accounts so he had a savings account he couldn’t touch, his bills account and then a weekly spending account. This meant he had control of his finances, and knew what was coming and going, which took away a lot of his frustration and anxiety.
“He had to really change his focus and although he sometimes found it hard, when other people were going out more than him or buying things, we encouraged him and reminding him of why he was saving, and he stuck with it.”