(Client Services) Janice suffered a nervous breakdown, following the death of her father and a close friend. As a consequence, she was unable to work and was made homeless. After living in temporary accommodation for 5 years, Janice finally moved into permanent council accommodation in 2011. Suffering from ill health and not in position to work, she turned to NABS to help her with the cost of carpet, to cover the bare, concrete floors.

NABS provided Janice with a grant for the carpet and a fund for emergency expenses.

NABS is providing Janice with on-going emotional support and maintains contact with her as and when required.

Phillipa Croft #71

(Marketing and Communications Manager) Following the birth of her daughter, Phillipa was diagnosed with M.E. During this time her relationship with her partner deteriorated and she became a victim of domestic abuse. She suffered a nervous breakdown and had to give up work. Wanting to move closer to her family and without the funds to do so, Phillipa asked NABS for help with the moving costs and housing deposit.

NABS provided Phillipa with grant towards the deposit and moving costs, thus enabling her to have a better support network and provide a brighter future for her daughter.

Jennnifer Spencer #70

(Advertising Sales) Jennifer had to put her life on hold and went into hiding after fleeing a domestic violent relationship. Homeless and with almost no personal possessions she moved into permanent council accommodation in 2011. She now suffers with complex medical problems and is unable to work.

NABS provided Jennifer with an emergency financial grant towards clothing and household furnishings. We are currently providing on-going assistance towards her household utilities so she doesn't have the added worry of trying to keep her flat warm during the winter months.

With NABS' help, Jennifer's daily struggles are less severe. Our critical financial assistance, emotional support and eventually our career coaching will help Jennifer to move closer to her goal of returning to work.

David Morris  #69

(Creative) David worked at a very senior level for a number of top ten agencies during his career and at one point, had his own agency. Due to financial difficulties, his circumstances significantly changed and he found himself needing to move into sheltered accommodation. The studio flat was unfurnished and with no means to acquire furniture, he turned to NABS for assistance.

NABS contributed a one-off grant towards the cost of carpet to cover the bare concrete floors plus a new bed.

With NABS' help, David is living comfortably in his new home.

Deborah Coleman #68

(Media Sales) NABS first helped Deborah in 2000, after her husband's Media Sales company folded due to his ill health. Following her husband's death in 2009, Deborah discovered he had run up a lot of debts and unable to repay it, she found a job working for a local company. Unfortunately, she was made redundant and subsequently declared herself bankrupt. Deborah now relies on state benefits and a pension but turned to NABS for help with winter fuel bills. She suffers from mild anxiety/depression.

NABS provided Deborah with three monthly payments to contribute towards her winter fuel bills, and therefore hasn't had to worry about keeping warm during the cold months.

Deborah is now starting to look for work and has cleared all her debt.

Jeff Davies #67

(Project Manager) Jeff has worked as a Project manager for various agencies and has been helped by NABS before. During the period of 2009-2010 he was out of work and his mortgage arrears built up. To avoid repossession of his house, he was required to meet his full monthly mortgage payments. He struggled to meet the payments when he started a new contract, as he was now being paid monthly instead of weekly. Jeff turned to NABS to request a one-off grant.

NABS was able to provide Jeff with a one-off payment towards his mortgage shortfall, thereby avoiding having his house re-possessed and helping him get back on track. This is an example of an exceptional circumstance where NABS is able to help an individual in crisis.

(Creative) Brendan had to give up his long term career as a creative to care for his 18 year old son who was diagnosed with retrograde amnesia following an accident playing football. With an unexpected drop in their household income Brendan contacted NABS.

NABS provided Brendan with short term financial assistance specifically towards the family's day-to-day living costs, emotional support and career coaching around freelancing.

Brendan is now in position to return to work and his son's health has improved significantly. Together they are in the early stages of setting up a company which is proving to be a form of rehabilitation for Albert's son.

Fiona Scott #65

(Account Management) Fiona called NABS because she was looking for advice around managing stress. When she became ill she had to turn down the offer of a new job.

She has been to see a NABS Careers Coach for help around future job search and NABS has been helping Fiona financially with travel costs to interviews.

"Thank you so much for taking the time and consideration to support me during these challenging times. I am most grateful for the funds to pay for travel to interviews. This will help alleviate the financial pressure in helping me secure the right job to support my health and wellness goals."

Polly Fenton #64

(Studio Manager) Polly has worked as a Studio Manager at various agencies for 10 years. She recently found out she would be made redundant after 15 months with her current agency.

NABS helped by talking through the redundancy process, helping to ensure she received a fair package. She also met with a careers coach for tips on how to build up her confidence and find a new job.

Within a month, Polly had three job offers and was weighing up which one to accept.

"Thank you NABS, You gave me exactly the information I needed and more importantly were all very supportive at a time when I really needed it."

Robbie Wright #63

(MD) Robbie runs a small Digital Agency and one of his employees is pregnant. This was the first time that Robbie had to manage maternity rights within the company and he called NABS to guide him.

Over a series of calls NABS were able to provide Robbie with practice guidance for the company to follow during his employee's pregnancy, her maternity and on her return to work.

NABS is able to advise employers on best practice which in turn has a positive impact on the employee and making the working environment as stress free as possible.

George Young #62

(Advertising Sales) George worked for the majority of his career in Advertising Sales before problems with his heart prevented him from working. George first contacted NABS when his marriage had broken down and was struggling to keep in contact with his young daughter.

NABS was able to help with both financial and emotional support, enabling George to maintain a close relationship with his daughter.

"I want to say that NABS actually saved my life. I would never have survived without your kindness, help and consistent presence. I really can't thank you enough for keeping us afloat and believing in our cause."

Julie Kelly #61

(Media Planner) When Julie was having issues with her line manager about the amount of work and time she was expected to commit to one her accounts she turned to the NABS careers service for help around work balance.

NABS' business coach was able to help her review the situation more realistically and plan how to take control of her situation in the workplace.

After a few meetings Julie was able to address her concerns with her line manager and is now working across some different accounts. She now feels much happier as she works towards her appraisal.

Michelle Clemence #60

(New Business Manager) Michelle called NABS when she wanted to find out how to advance upwards in her career. She was quite stressed and this was exacerbated because her relationship with her boyfriend had ended. They were still living together and she was finding the situation was impacting on her development

NABS' Careers coach was able to help her identify her longer term vision of becoming a leader and help her prepare to be a more effective manager. The NABS Flatshare also helped Michelle get out of her awkward living scenario.

Michelle is now working as a New Business Manager for an on-line company and is managing a small team of people.

Emily Petersen #59

(Advertising Sales) Emily worked the majority of her career in Advertising Sales before clinical depression prevented her from working. She was encouraged to contact NABS by her industry colleagues when the cost of living became too much and was impacting on her recovery.

NABS is currently contributing towards Emily's household bills. This has alleviated some of Emily's pressures, allowing her to focus entirely on her health.

Throughout the period of assistance, our critical financial assistance, emotional support and career coaching will help Emily move closer to her goal of returning to work.

(Advertising Recruitment) Following redundancy Isabel had been out of work for seven months before calling NABS. In the midst of the economic downturn she was struggling financially and becoming worried that her age may be against her.

NABS eased the pressure by covering some of her utility bills, whilst the careers team helped her to focus on her marketability and expertise, and raise her perceptions of her abilities.

After a few months she found a new job at a media agency and is now back on her feet.

Kate had been working in London for 10 years. Her circumstances changed when she was forced to flee an abusive relationship and relocate to Scotland with her 2 young children. After a period of homelessness she managed to secure council accommodation. This is when she turned to NABS for help as she had no furniture and, without employment and suffering from depression, was struggling to pay the bills.

Sanjan is a freelance Senior Account Manager and when work recently dried up he contacted NABS. With two young children and a wife to support, he was entering a stage of mild panic as their money was beginning to run out and his confidence had hit a low.

After an unsatisfactory review meeting, Louise resigned from her role at an Agency where she had been for two years. For a while she had been questioning if she was in the right role and how she could be moving her career forward.

Andy, a freelance creative, called the Advice line when his invoices weren't being paid. He was owed approximately £4k and wasn't sure what to do next.

NABS advised on how to arrange an informal repayment agreement as well as how to avoid entering into a lengthy dispute in order to avoid court action and explained the risks involved in taking the case to court.

Andy successfully negotiated a repayment plan with his client – the total sum was repaid in full and without the need for court action.

Kyle called the Advice Line when he was offered a role as digital planning manager. His employment contract had a clause stating that if he was to leave within the first 12 months, he had to reimburse the company the recruitment fees of approx £6k. Kyle hadn't yet signed the contract and wanted to know if this was usual, especially in the wake of the economic downturn.

Kerri called the Advice Line when her contract was terminated.  Her main concern being an outstanding loan from her employer for a training and development course because she still owed her employer half of the total loan amount. If her employer insisted on a final repayment from her notice money she would have been left with such a small amount to live on until she found another job.

NABS referred her to the terms and conditions of the loan and encouraged Kerri to express to her employer the financial difficulty in paying the loan back in one go.

With the NABS advice Kerri was able to calmly negotiate a realistic repayment plan that suited both her and her employer.

Aisha had been out of the business for a few years whilst bringing up her children. Over this period she had lost her self-belief in what strengths she could offer a new agency.

Through careers coaching NABS helped her to identify her skills and areas of expertise which in turn helped her to regain her self-belief and drive.

She is now back in a senior planning role at a major creative agency working four days a week so that she can still spend time with her children.

"I found seeing you so helpful – I was really in a rut, feeling very negative. You jolted me out of it and see things clearly"

James, highly experienced Art Director who had turned to freelance work 5 years ago which during the tougher economic period meant that finding work was increasingly difficult causing him to suffer from depression and debt.

NABS was able to offer financial support to help alleviate the pressure with his debts and also referred James to an expert to help with debt advice. NABS provided a meal service to ensure that when James was sick, he could rebuild his strength and health. In addition, a NABS Careers Coach worked with James on rebuilding his confidence.

Polly has worked as a Studio Manager at various agencies for 10 years. She recently found out she would be made redundant after 15 months with her current agency.

Polly contacted the NABS AdviceLine and the advisors were able to talk her through the redundancy process, helping to ensure she received a fair redundancy package.  She also took advantage of the NABS Careers Service, meeting with a careers coach for tips on how to approach her new job search and to build up her confidence.

Within a month, Polly had three job offers and was weighing up which one to accept.

"Thank you NABS - You gave me exactly the information I needed and more importantly were all very supportive at a time when I really needed it"

Nick, a senior advertising director, recently returned to the UK in desperation after an Agency pulled its business out of China.  With a young family to support he was unable to make ends meet. Since he was out of the UK for many years he was not immediately eligible for state benefits.

NABS initially helped with an emergency one-off grant which was followed by short term help towards his job search expenses.

As a consequence of seeing a NABS Career Coach he has had interviews with several prospective employers which he hopes will come to fruition soon.

Emma had to declare herself bankrupt from a large amount of debt ran up her ex husband. Not receiving any maintenance payments and reliant on state benefits, Emma was finding the cost of day-to-day living a struggle and essentials for the children including shoes and clothing were unaffordable.

With NABS' financial assistance, Emma was able purchase school uniforms, winter clothes and shoes for her 3 children. NABS continues to support Emma financially as well as helping her with careers coaching.

With the children back at school, Emma is now in a better position fulfil her dream of returning to work.

"I would just like to say the assistance that NABS has given has been an incredible life line. I really don't know what I would have done without your help and I would just like to say a big thank you from the children and I"

Stephen, aged 35 years, was a Senior Planner who had worked in a number of creative agencies before being made redundant. With a wife and baby daughter to support, Stephen's savings and redundancy package were soon depleted and a delay with his state benefits added considerable financial pressure for the young family. They were living in a one bedroom rented flat. All of these pressures caused Stephen to become depressed.

NABS provided emotional and career support as well as covering the cost of a deposit for a new flat and related moving costs. NABS also helped Stephen with a series of careers coaching sessions to help him get back to work.

Stephen is now settled and has just returned to work as a Senior Planner in a major Marketing company.