Meet the team – Rebecca Dunn - Our Accommodation Team Lead

Say hello to Rebecca! This time we chat with Rebecca Dunn our Accommodation Team Lead. A complex role that spans across all cases. Working with various members of the team, Rebecca had a short chat with us to help us understand more about her role and why working with and for My CWA is more than just a job.

Tell us a bit about yourself – how long have you been working My CWA? 

I have been working with My CWA for just over 2 years and I love it. Previously I worked as a room leader in a nursery and loved working with children. This is still putting people, families and children first, but is so very different – I love it. What attracted me to working for My CWA was by chance really. My housemate was doing a placement with My CWA and telling me how much she loved it and the support that the charity offers. I was looking for a hands on supportive role that truly made a difference so I was so thrilled when I got a role!

What kind of things does you role entail?

I have just recently become the team lead – before this I was carrying out refuge interviews and had a case load of clients all of whom needed accommodating or were accommodated in one of our refuges.

I have grown my experience over the past two years being a part of the support sessions we run to help people recover from domestic abuse. I have worked with families and individuals who needed access to budgeting and help them with housing support so they can go on to lead a more independent life.

Now as team lead I oversee the accommodation team, helping the team understand how to support their clients and act as a soundboard when needed. We then have once a month supervision to discuss the cases and give support to the wider team.

What do you enjoy most about your role?

I love how my role means I get really involved in getting to know people and providing long term support. Our work is not just a quick, short intervention. I get to make great relationships and get to know the clients too. The work is so rewarding as you really get to see the progress of a person and their whole family.

It is fantastic to see the ‘lightbulb moments’ that people have and they start to understand their worth – seeing someone’s journey and being a part of it is so special.

The work with the professionals is great too,  as we get really involved and see the projects we work on together through. I particularly love how we are able to deliver multi-agency support, which means we can help with mental health issues, drug and alcohol abuse, etc. Working with clients who have complex needs and being able to offer a full wrap around support really makes the job worthwhile.

How has it been since being able to see more people face to face and the restrictions lifting?

Before covid we did a bit of everything, and this worked well as it meant we got to have a touchpoint in every area of the services we offer. This was not possible once covid hit and so we were each given a specialism. This is actually really great as the governance is now more granular.

Of course our ability to go out and see clients was limited due to the lockdown restrictions, but now that these have lifted we have been able to resume going to clients at least once a week, as opposed to the once or twice a month.

I much prefer the face to face support – we can create a better relationship but the video support sessions that were forced by Covid has meant that we did not have to change the support. In fact a hybrid of both ways of working means that we are able to offer enhanced support and mean we are even more available.  

What are some of the most memorable things you have done when finding people somewhere to stay?

I think that in my role, I always get the joy most out of clients moving into their own permanent home. This is when they are ready to make the step away from the DA relationship and they are feeling stronger.

In many cases too, when children have been removed and our client have worked hard to get better and become more independent, at the point of closing a case the children where then returned to their birth family, this was truly lovely.

Another aspect, which I think is unique to My CWA is our work with perpetrators. So when I have worked with clients who have struggled with their own behaviour which can be a barrier to them accessing support. I have found it really positive when they have worked with My CWA and overcome these challenges. They have worked hard and are then at a point where they  are now ready to maintain a tenancy it is really fantastic.

What is unique about working for My CWA?

I will sing My CWA praises all day long. I absolutely love it. This is a predominantly female environment and it is incredibly supportive and always cheerleading one another – no competition always striving for the same goals.

Management team are so supportive – I know that if there was an issue I would have the support.

They would always want you to be open – there is no in fighting or politics

What is your vision for the accommodation in the future?

We are seeking to offer the very best. Our Gold Standard project at the moment is being worked on to strive to get the accommodation all equal and at a superior standard.

We are aiming for all homes to be beautifully decorated, welcoming and clean – to a hotel like standard.

We want to furnish the properties with things like all new curtains, bed linen etc, so all the properties match and offer consistency

Included in getting great accommodation is our work with the House for Life project. We have just had funding confirmed for a house and so it is really exciting to be working on this. We have had  some properties  in the past and they offer such a positive experience for someone.