A LEADING property management group is launching a campaign to help make sure people receive the benefits they are entitled to.
Glasgow-based Wheatley Group are behind the campaign, which will be available to residents in the properties they manage.
Providing a 24 hour contact line, benefits which advisors will be able to provide assistance with include for people reaching pension age, for parents, for bereavement and for people will disabilities or illnesses.
Between September 2020 and September 2021, the group helped its tenants to claim over £11m in benefits and tax credits.
Renewing their efforts with this campaign, they are aiming to increase awareness amongst tenants of the benefits they are able to claim and the help available to them.
In its initial phase, the service will be available to residents of GHA, Dumfries and Galloway Housing Partnership, Dunedin Canmore, Loretto Housing, West Lothian Housing Partnership and Lowther.
Other advisory services which the group provides already include help cutting fuel bills, for tenants struggling to put food on the table, helping to furnish homes, help with employment, training and more.
Olga Clayton, group director of housing and care, said: “The benefits system can be difficult for people to navigate and our advisors are there to help tenants claim all the benefits and tax credits they’re entitled to.
“Welfare benefits are a vital safety net for many people on low incomes. It’s important people don’t miss out.”
It is estimated that, every year, up to £15bn in benefits goes unclaimed in the UK.
Helen, 66, said: “My welfare advisor Mairi helped me with Pension Credit.
“I’d been trying to contact the DWP on the phone and couldn’t get through. It was very stressful. But Mairi explained what to do, what information to send them, and helped me with everything.
“She was great. She was always there to support me, no matter how busy she was. She was like my guardian angel.
“It can be frustrating dealing with the DWP – but Wheatley’s benefit advisors take the stress out of it. They really know their stuff and will do all they can to help. Tenants who need help should get in touch.”
Anyone who wants to book an online or telephone appointment with a welfare benefit advisor is advised to speak with their housing officer.
