Dan Bebbington - Mental Health First Aider at the Wrekin Housing Group
This Mental Health Awareness Week, Wrekin would like to highlight the level of the expertise and support throughout our workforce, available to staff, customers and other stakeholders.
Dan Bebbington, Debt advisor in Wrekin’s Money Matters Team, is also a Mental Health First Aider. Dan benefited from the training, which highlights some of the signs to look out for in dealing with people who are going through a crisis; brought on by financial pressures and hardships such as dealing with fluctuations of bills and the stress that comes with it.
Dan knows full well the impact of financial abuse, having been a victim himself in the past. This experience gave Dan a new found appreciation for the support he received during this period, which inspired him to want to do more and help others through their challenging times.
The Mental Health First Aiders emphasised that during these difficult moments, it was important to diffuse the situation as much as possible, treat people with respect and empathise with their situation. Dan takes great pride in supporting people in challenging situations and helping them out of financial difficulty.
Dan and his colleagues in the Money Matters Team will not leave anyone to struggle through financial hardship alone, and everyone at Wrekin is committed to giving the best care for a diverse group of customers.
The Money Matters Team is there to support tenants, but everyone can contact the team if you need support. The Money Matters Team are able to find out what benefits people are entitled to and put measures in place to help people tackle their debt. Wrekin’s Tenancy sustainment team provide consistent support to help tenants uphold their tenancy agreement and can provide further support if necessary.
Speaking on the subject Dan said: "Mental health and money problems are often linked. One problem can feed off the other, creating a vicious cycle of growing financial problems and worsening mental health that's hard to escape. The stigma around debt can mean that people struggle to ask for help and can therefore, become quite isolated. Please don't suffer alone! 1 in 4 adults with a mental health problem has problem debt - reach out, we are here to help!"
If you'd like to find out more about the Money Matters Team at Wrekin, please click here.
14th May 2021