Mickey Durey , our Welfare Rights advisor has been helping the people of Derry for nearly 20 years now and is acknowledged and respected as an expert in the field. In addition to providing day to day advice he is very active as an advocate before various boards and tribunals on behalf of centre clientele.

Since our inception, a Welfare Rights service has been at the core of our activities. Traditionally this service has provided advice and assistance to those entitled to one or other of the state benefits. The standard provision of benefit advice and tribunal representation has been added to by those seeking information on the various training options now on offer. We are finding that, increasingly, our Welfare Service acts in conjunction with our training programmes. Those seeking placement on New Deal, Worktrack and Jobwise need to know the effect these placements will have on Housing Benefit, Childcare, Family Credit etc.

It is our contention that the process of moving individuals and communities out of social exclusion involves a dual approach. On the one hand we need the resources to deal with the immediate urgency and we need the parallel resources necessary to provide pathways to progress. In essence if an individual comes to us seeking a social fund grant or help with an alcohol or drugs crisis, it is of little help to offer them a placement on a New Deal Programme or an IT course. Neither is there much point in dealing with the immediate problem if it is obvious that a radical change in the individual's circumstances is necessary to break the cyclical recurring nature of the problem.

© Copyright 2001. All rights reserved Rosemount Resource Centre
Westway, Creggan, Derry Northern Ireland BT48 9NT
Tel: (028) 7128-2829 /Fax (028) 7128-0014.

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