People PWR – Pembrokeshire Welfare Rights project
People PWR launched in 2023 and is a pilot project that takes a holistic approach to supporting families affected by or at risk of poverty and the associated effects. Inspired by the success of ‘Maximise!’ in Scotland, the People PWR team focus on engaging with families who have school age children with a clear aim of creating greater financial stability for households, addressing inequalities and improving financial capability.
Whilst families can self-refer into the project schools are our main referral route is through schools. Once a referral is accepted the advisers conduct, in essence, a financial MOT focusing on welfare rights and income maximisation, ensuring that clients are claiming all that they are entitled to whilst at the same time helping families to identify and address the underlying issues contributing to hardship.
Dignity is at the heart of this project design. All advisors have undertaken rigorous and varied training to ensure that consistent and compassionate interactions are facilitated. Work is carried out in a familiar setting for the client to help alleviate barriers to engagement, with privacy being a key feature of the spaces utilised.
If you are a family with a school age child in Pembrokeshire and think that you could benefit from connecting with the People PWR team, email Pwr@pembscab.org to contact the team directly to request support.