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36 | THE VOICE OCTOBER 10-16, 2013
BUYING
OCTOBER 17 -23, 2013
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RENTING
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LIVING
| PAGE 36
25 years in existence and still going strong, residents tell The Voice how this housing association transformed their lives CASE STUDY I am 18 years old. I moved into Ekaya Supported Housing on the 1st December 2008 with my 4-month-old daughter, I was 17 years old. I was referred to Ekaya by Lambeth SNAP team. I never knew that there were mother and baby schemes that specialise in working with teen mothers. After my interview I felt a bit worried about how I would live in a house with 5 other girls and their babies, I thought the house may be overcrowded. However, after I moved in I felt uneasy as I did not know anyone and how I would cope without my mum. However, my House Manager, helped me to settle in, and after a while I felt welcomed. I was hoping to make my knowledge of parenting better. I came in the house, never paid a bill in my life and never lived alone before. I learnt how to manage my money and became a better mother to my daughter. My main goals were to pass college and attend university, and find a job. My opinion on Ekaya Housing Association is that they are very helpful and organised. When I needed help they were there to help and guide me. I have become more independent and organised myself. I learnt a lot during my time with Ekaya Supported Housing - they taught me how to manage my money by budgeting and buying the most important thing first. Their support at Ekaya can help a lot of teen mother’s in Lambeth. Service User Satisfaction Over the last 25 years Ekaya has been and continues to be, committed to delivering a great service to their service users and tenants. This is demonstrated in the success reported in their annual satisfaction surveys. For over the last 3 years 90% of services users fed back that they were happy with the service that supports them through the early stages of motherhood into independent living. Equally the teenage mothers were pleased with their support planning and key work sessions. Through service user involvement Ekaya works very hard to develop and maintain a service that responds to the needs of the service users, ensuring that they provide them with the best support for the young mothers and their children.