Southampton City Mission

Vouchers

For clients

In order for a client to receive food and/or clothing help from Basics Bank they must be issued with a voucher from one of our referral agents. We have over 300 referral agents who issue our vouchers to people in need when they think it is appropriate. Social workers, Health visitors, Doctors, Benefits offices, community workers, shelters, drop-ins, charities, churches and others.

Once a client has been issued with a voucher they can redeem it for food and clothing help at any of our venues, on any day that they are open.

We are an emergency food and clothing project, providing help for people to get through short-term crises, emergencies and problems that they encounter. We are not able to provide help for people on a long term basis and do not wish clients to develop any kind of dependency on our service. As such, in conversation and cooperation with our referral agents, we reserve the right to refuse food or clothing from any clients we feel are either abusing our service or becoming unhealthily dependent upon it.

For referral agents

If your group, agency, charity or church wishes to become one of our referral agents you need to contact our sister charity SCRATCH (02380 773132) and ask to become a voucher holder. SCRATCH administers the provision of vouchers on our behalf and will write to you with a letter explaining our system.

Vouchers are purchased by referral agents for 50 pence each in bundles of 50 vouchers at a time from SCRATCH. They are given out to the clients free of charge. The small cost on the voucher to the referral agent provides a financial ‘brake’ so that they are not given out too readily or thoughtlessly by our often hard pressed referrers.

It is the referral agent’s responsibility to assess the client’s situation and to ascertain if they are in genuine need of emergency food and/or clothing provision or not.

If the referral agent believes that the client is in genuine need, THEY MUST ring Basics Bank BEFORE issuing the voucher to check that the client has not been receiving vouchers from other agents in recent weeks and months.