Getting started

What helped me was noting the date whenever someone promised to call back, then setting my own reminder for a few days later. I learned that following up does not mean you are being difficult. Enquiries can move between social care, housing, landlords and other organisations, and occasionally something gets lost along the way.

I found it useful to keep a record of the first contact date; the organisation and team; the name of the person spoken to; their telephone number or email address; the reference number; what should happen next; the expected contact date; and my follow-up date.

What helped me was contacting the organisation again and explaining when I first got in touch. I asked whether the enquiry had been allocated, who currently held it and whether they needed anything from me. If nobody can locate yours, you might find it useful to ask for the team responsible for home adaptations or housing grants, rather than starting the whole story again with each person.