Helping Hands supporting people into better lives

Helping Hands is a community support charity and a registered Warm Welcome Space based in Portadown, Northern Ireland. It is open Monday - Friday and has a wide range of support services available for those in need. Its services are supporting people from all backgrounds who are facing a variety of challenges. Some, like John, have engaged with the space for many years.

John (not his real name) got in contact with Helping Hands through professional mental health services around nine years ago. At that time he was in and out of a residential mental health facility struggling significantly with his self worth, family issues and feelings of suicide. Helping Hands began to engage with him and with the professionals who were supporting him to develop a plan of support that would enable a rehabilitation journey. This meant providing a safe space for him to come and be involved in community, bringing him to appointments, and engaging with his family so that there was a wraparound support network for everyone involved. 

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John began to engage on a regular basis 2/3 days per week, this allowed him to get to know the community at Helping Hands and develop relationships with the staff and volunteers. It was through this regular connection that the space leads learnt about his significant skills and interest in woodwork and his general creative genius! This lead to developing a workshop and through a number of grants the space was able to set up a workshop that would become a place for many people, where they can gain support. This space has also meant an opportunity to create a small revenue stream through the refurbishment of furniture and the creation of products to sell. 

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To cut a long story short, John was eventually discharged from mental health services and continued to volunteer his time with Helping Hands. He became part of the team and eventually joined the staff team. He would go on to manage the workshop, providing training to those in need and helping people through some of the challenges he too had faced. He also was involved in the café and this led to an exciting opportunity as he was recently able to secure a full time managerial position in a local café. Helping Hands is disappointed to lose him, but John is excited about this opportunity and being able to provide for his family. It is such a joy for Helping Hands to see the transformation and excitement in him as he rebuilt his life and navigated the challenges he was facing. 

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