Joanne Stafford, 32, is Projects and Events Leader, at the charity Emmaus. She tells Claire Donnelly how Universal Credit is plunging more people into poverty – and making them feel worthless.
Universal Credit is problematic. If you’re someone who’s leading a chaotic life and you’ve suddenly got a month’s money it can be hard to manage.
Many people get into rent arrears, lose their tenancy and become homeless.
The system dehumanises people, makes them feel they aren’t valued.
(Image: Daily Mirror)
Part of my job is to make people feel valued again. Give people a reason to get up in the morning, give people a job, self-respect, companionship and a social life, all the things we all need.
We meet a lot of older men. They might have been through some kind of crisis, lost their job, had a relationship breakdown, and they are often too proud to ask for help.
They’re less connected to sources of support than women.
A lot of the support that’s out there seems to be quite short-term. So people might be given accommodation but they aren’t ready to live independently and it doesn’t work out.
We need more long-term support, ways of helping build people back up again – people who have often been broken by life or the benefits system or a crisis.
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