Sherry recently lost her home and was sleeping in her friend’s car. She had no food or money and had nowhere to go. She applied for income assistance through the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction and was told her application would take several days to process. Desperate for some immediate assistance, Sherry contacted us for help.

Our investigation found that Sherry’s application was only partially completed and had not been submitted to the ministry for review. As a result, her application had not been assessed for urgency or placed in a queue for response.

We discussed the situation with the ministry and the options available to support Sherry in completing her application on an expedited basis. A ministry staff member then contacted Sherry that day and assisted her with the application and was able to assess her eligibility. Sherry was approved for assistance and was issued a pro-rated cheque the same day.