CHESTER Jobcentre brought together fifteen local partners at a Steps to Change event.

The event was for customers who need extra support with their health and wellbeing and to introduce them to the wide range of help available in the Chester area.

More than 40 customers attended on Wednesday to meet with a variety of local organisations.

These included Citizen’s Advice, Chester and Cheshire West Council who gave advice on a range of topics such as housing, budgeting and financial support and employability skills.

Remploy and Able Futures came along to talk about the government’s Access to Work Mental Health Support Service and how it can help people who are dealing with mental health issues in their working lives.

Charities such as Mind and local Chester charities, the Bren Project and I Can Cook were also there to discuss the practical support they offer to help people make the right choices about their future.

Jobcentre staff were on hand to give advice about jobs, looking for work and training opportunities.

Adele Ablett , Jobcentre manager said: “We’re delighted to be able to stage an event of this kind. Many of our customers have health issues and we recognise that we often need to help them address these before they can begin to look for work. We have close relationships with the organisations who attended, as we all work together to support the citizens of Chester.

"As well as events such as this, we use a variety of innovative approaches to support our customers. We’ve set up a monthly café in the Jobcentre – Community Connect Chester, for people with mental health issues. It provides a safe environment for customers to seek advice from organisations such as Mind and Citizen’s Advice as well as specialist disability staff from the Jobcentre.

"We also have an active outreach programme for the homeless and we help them to manage their Universal Credit accounts. This approach has helped build trust and at the same time, improved their interaction with us. We’ve received many comments from our customers that they now feel more confident in accessing our services.

Tracey Hewitt, outreach worker with MIND, said “We have a successful partnership with Jobcentre Plus. Events such as these, are important as they give us wider exposure to people who can benefit from our help. It’s essential that we work hand in hand with the Jobcentre to support people with mental health issues."

Matthew Edwards, team leader for the Cheshire West and Cheshire Welfare Team, added: “We offer lots of support that people don’t know about. This event is a great way of interacting with customers and building a relationship. We have shared objectives with the Jobcentre and we work together well”.

The event was well received by customers.

Chester and District Standard:

Edvard Salmon, pictured above, said: “I’ve signed up for a training course today and the whole experience has been really worthwhile. I would definitely recommend these types of events to anyone, whether you need a job or support with mental health issues, it’s all here. They are fantastic”.

And Katie Thomas added: “I wasn’t sure what to expect but I’ve been really pleasantly surprised. I’ve talked to lots of people and found out about one-to-one support, training and volunteering. I feel much more informed and I’m really glad I came.”