A Brighton charity has been given a £70,000 funding boost.
Brighton Housing Trust (BHT) has been awarded the money to deliver specialist legal advice in Brighton and Hove and across East Sussex.
As a result BHT will employ two full-time legal advisers to work in its Brighton, Hastings and Eastbourne advice centres for a year.
The specialist advisers will offer legal advice on welfare benefits, debt and housing issues. They will also recruit, train and supervise a team of volunteers, such as law students, to increase their capacity and the number of people who can be seen.
Local community and frontline organisations will also be trained by the advisers to provide general advice throughout the area.
Training will be provided through a range of training sessions, workshops and a telephone and email consultancy service.
John Holmström, BHT’s assistant chief executive, said: “We are really pleased to receive this funding.
“The mix of direct provision and capacity building will maximise the impact and value for money of specialist advice.
“We anticipate that over 700 additional service users will avoid homelessness and the worst negative effects of debt and poverty as the welfare reforms begin to take hold.”
The money comes in the form of a grant from the government’s Advice Services Fund which is administered by the Big Fund.
The Big Fund is the part of the Big Lottery Fund organisation that handles non-lottery money.
The Advice Services Fund makes grants of £40,000 to £70,000 to help pay for advice on
- debt
- welfare benefits
- housing
- employment
The Brighton Unemployed Centre Families Project in Tilbury Place, Brighton, has also received a grant from the Advice Services Fund as has Age UK East Sussex, which is based in Lewes.
