Daniel Tesfay (not his real name) came to our My Place team last November holding a letter from his landlord. He owed a substantial amount in rent arrears. He didn't know how he'd fallen into so much debt, and he had no way of paying it back.

For someone who's just left prison and is trying to rebuild their life, a letter like that can be the beginning of the end. Lose your housing, and you're back on the streets. Back in the cycle. Back to square one.

Our team started making calls. Turns out Daniel hadn't received money he was actually owed. An administration error, somewhere in the system. Simple mistake; massive consequences.

Fixing it wasn't simple at all. It took six months of coordinating between Universal Credit, Daniel, and his landlord. Phone calls, emails, chasing people down, explaining the situation over and over.

But we got there. The payments were recovered. Daniel's debt is cleared. He's not losing his home. He can focus on his job now instead of lying awake at night wondering where he's going to live.

Why My Place matters

This is what My Place does. We support people leaving prison who are trying to hold onto their tenancies.

A lot of landlords won't rent to someone with a criminal record. Even when they do, things can fall apart quickly. Maybe someone's never learned to budget. Maybe they're battling addiction. Maybe they just don't know how to deal with a problem before it becomes a crisis.

We work with Derby Homes and landlords who are willing to give people a chance. Then we walk alongside the tenants. Sometimes that looks like going for coffee to build trust. Sometimes it's accompanying them to probation or Job Centre appointments. Sometimes it's sitting in our office filling in forms, making phone calls about benefits, chasing up medication from the GP.

We meet with landlords monthly to talk through any issues and work together to make the tenancy succeed.

It's working

Since My Place started, we've seen real progress. One person's completed a training course so they can look for work. Another's registered with a GP to address mental health issues. Someone's joined the gym and goes regularly. Another set up a bank account so rent gets paid directly to the landlord.

These might sound like small things. They're not. When you're living in chaos, when everything feels like it's falling apart, these are huge achievements.

For Daniel, six months felt like a long time. But now he's got stable housing, a job, and a future that doesn't involve losing everything again.

That's what My Place is here for.