Lido Foundation currently runs the projects below to ensure that our users access culturally sensitive advice and hands-on support on benefits, debt, energy, housing, employment, and food insecurity. Our intervention enables users to access free, confidential support and advice to help them find a way forward and make informed choices.
Our dedicated housing Advisor supports clients with a) Housing benefits, b) Rent arrears, and c) Homelessness.
Each year, we support 900+ people mainly BAME women year from West London Boroughs to make the right claims for Universal Credit. Most of the people supported are BAME women who had limited digital knowledge to use the online forms and resources to make the right claims for Universal Credit. Our dedicated staff worked with DWP, local authorities, shelters, the NHS, and other agencies to ensure claimants received the legal and right amount of Universal Credit. The project addressed the difficulties that people experience with UC by providing advice and advocacy. For example, the DWP regularly makes errors in calculating entitlements, leading to wrong housing benefit entitlements, which push clients into debt, evictions, and further poverty. We also know that many people have difficulties with the administration of UC, such as meeting evidence requirements or having difficulty communicating online with the DWP. The project offers face-to-face advice for individuals struggling with UC. This included advice on challenging DWP decisions on UC entitlement through mandatory reconsiderations and appeals. Our intervention increased the beneficiaries’ income and averting them from homelessness and further poverty.
This project supports BAME women to a) negotiate with their creditors and help create repayment plans; b) look at ways to maximise their income and minimise their expenditure; c) get advice about budgeting and managing their finances better; and d) identify sources of financial help that are available to them. This project offers FREE, impartial, and confidential money advice to BAME women who are facing financial difficulties. This ranges from managing your money to debt counselling, checking Welfare Benefit entitlement, applying for benefits, and providing budgeting advice.
This project provides food and emergency supplies vouchers to struggling households in the London boroughs of Ealing, Brent, Hammersmith and Fulham, and Hounslow. Most of our beneficiaries are BAME women who are facing real crises under the current cost-of-living crisis and food emergency. This project also works with community food banks, local authorities, food providers, and others to support users access to food vouchers, period poverty, and necessities. Depending on the needs of each family, we will continue to provide support to 200–300 BAME residents in the London boroughs of Ealing, Brent, Hammersmith and Fulham, and Hounslow until March 2024. Many of our beneficiaries will be families with multiple generations living in the same home.