Seventy-six year-old Evelyn, who has learning difficulties and short-term memory problems, was living alone in an old terraced house, which had become dangerously damp and run-down.

Evelyn cannot write beyond signing her own name, and is confused by money matters. She has no friends or family other than her son, whose severe learning difficulties mean he is in permanent residential care.

Increasingly vulnerable, Evelyn was approached by a builder who offered to fix her bedroom ceiling, but he botched the job, made an appalling mess, and conned Evelyn out of far more money than the job was worth. This traumatic experience made Evelyn afraid to let people into her home, and suspicious of anyone who tried to persuade her to go ahead with the repairs that were so desperately needed.

Evelyn was referred to Shelter’s Older Persons’ Project in Sheffield. A Shelter caseworker took her time getting to know Evelyn, and building up her trust. We liaised with local tradesman to re-do properly the botched job on Evelyn’s ceiling, and to install central heating, smoke alarms, and modern window and door frames to keep the heating bills down.

Shelter also helped Evelyn buy a new TV and bedding, and we continue to visit regularly, to make sure she can live a safe, comfortable life in the only home she knows.