Advice & Support
Perennial can help with advice and support across a whole range of challenges that might be affecting you and your family.
Whether you are experiencing problems with housing or accommodation, disability, long-term illness, financial hardship, bereavement or the unique challenges that come with old age, Perennial is here to support you.
Call us free of charge and in complete confidence on 0800 093 8543 (Mon – Fri 8.30am – 5.00pm) or email us to find out more today. Every Wednesday we operate a late advice line from 12 noon – 8.30pm.
We provide advice, help and support to everyone working in or retired from horticulture during times of need.
Each individual’s circumstances are different, but following an initial telephone call, their contact with us usually begins with a visit from a professionally trained caseworker to help find a solution and offer support for their particular situation. We aim to provide a one-stop shop to help our clients get back on their feet.
We can help:
- offer advice on a range of social and financial benefit eligibility and support you in applying and claiming
- provide debt advice and financial support, in times of crisis
- help with training and educational activities for you and your family, including your dependent children
- give support when problems arise with your employer
- provide services for the disabled, vulnerable, elderly and bereaved
- provide direct financial grants and help to find and apply for other statutory funding sources (including a fund for children of horticulturists)
- offer advice on housing problems from temporary accommodation to registered care
When a problem occurs, we respond quickly and effectively to the needs of the individual concerned – at whatever time of life that need arises.
There is no standard answer to a problem and our approach is one of identifying the best methods of support and getting them into place as soon as possible.
Our services are free and confidential.
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Download our Help & Advice leaflet to find out more.
of clients said we had a 'huge' or 'quite big' positive effect on their lives. (Perennial client survey 2011)
Find out more about us →The future’s bright for John
After working all his life in horticulture, John retired to Spain where he was able to supplement his small pension with part-time gardening work. But when he became ill and too frail to work, John’s dream retirement turned into a nightmare as the exchange rate reduced the value of his pension; he ended up selling all possessions in order to live. He became confused and was unable to look after himself properly; finally a concerned neighbour contacted a British friend who brought him back to the UK in 2010.
We were alerted to John’s desperate situation when he eventually moved into sheltered accommodation. He had no furniture or kitchen appliances and was living on a negative disposable income. Perennial arranged an immediate visit; our caseworker helped John with an application for Housing Benefit, and we have since provided grants towards carpets, furniture and appliances and awarded a regular quarterly benefit, so John now has a small net income.
Perennial will continue to give whatever help and support John needs, for as long as it is needed.
We know how hard it can be to make the call or write the email to ask for help – our clients often tell us how hard they found making that first move. We can only offer you our reassurance that we take all enquiries for help seriously and offer a professional, compassionate and efficient one-stop-shop service and aim to help resolve your issues as soon as possible.
If you would like to know more about how Perennial could help you and your family, please contact us by telephone, email or post to tell us, in confidence, about your particular situation.
Our team of dedicated caseworkers aim to visit all new clients within 10 days of making contact. We will deal with your enquiry quickly, professionally and in the strictest confidence.
To find out whether we can help you or to ask for further information, please contact us – all our advice and support is free and confidential.
General Advice Line: 0800 093 8543 (Mon, Tues, Thurs & Fri 8.30am – 5pm and Weds 12pm – 8.30pm)
Debt Advice Line: 0800 093 8546 (Mon, Tues, Thurs & Fri 8.30am – 5pm and Weds 12pm – 8.30pm)
Email: services@perennial.org.uk
Or send us a message now using our online form to tell us more about you and your situation.
