Hartlepool agency secures over £50,000 to help families impacted by drug and alcohol abuse

Parents In Need of Support (PINS), based at Stranton, has been given a £54,585 grant from the Government's Coronavirus Community Support Fund distributed by the National Lottery Community Fund.

The fund was announced to help the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (sector) respond to the coronavirus crisis.

PINS works with around 200 families a year providing support, advice, information and training to parents or carers whose family members are involved in substance misuse or at risk.

Their services include counselling, life coaching, alternative therapies, social events, art therapy, self-health support and home visits.

PINS manager Kay Barron said: “This money will be a tremendous help. Many of the families that we had been working with were suffering isolation due to the stigma of having a family member with drug or alcohol misuse which is massive and still very much there.

"All the work we had done previously took a step backward with the coronavirus lockown.

"This funding is going to help us get them back on track. Over the next six months we will be helping those families pick up the pieces and rebuild their lives.”

The Covid-19 support funding came just at the right time as PINS’ previous lottery grant came to an end in May after three years.

Like most places during lockdown, they had to close their Greenbank HQ to clients but managed to stay in touch with them using the internet and apps such as Zoom.

PINS is slowly beginning to reopen and plan to welcome clients back with a socially distanced afternoon tea in the grounds.

Kay said the services they offer are in demand with Hartlepool’s ongoing drug problem which continued despite the lockdown.

She added: “That has increased the stress and domestic abuse parents are experiencing.

"It is very stressful for them to have to live with someone that has an addiction.

"We are the only agency in Hartlepool that specifically works in that field so it’s important that we keep that service going.”

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