Jasmine Harman, the presenter of Collectaholics and A Place in the Sun, supported our National Hoarding Conference, held on 14 May, by becoming a patron.

Jasmine’s help at Help for Hoarders has been invaluable.  She set the site up because of her mother’s chronic hoarding problems and because of her own experiences as a child growing up feeling ashamed and isolated because of their messy and cluttered home.

Before the television shows… before the clinical criteria… when there seemed to be no support… we’ve been here to help!    Established in 2008, as a not-for profit organisation, HoardingUK is now the UK National Charity supporting people impacted by hoarding behaviour.

HoardingUK is the only UK-wide charity solely dedicated to supporting people affected by hoarding behaviours. Our aim is to empower individuals experiencing hoarding behaviours to achieve spatial and personal change to reduce isolation and improve their health and well-being. We are a multi-service organisation, helping thousands of people each year through our National Helpline with:

• • Psychological Support Groups (award nominated by Chartered Institute of Housing/Inside Housing)
  • Events
  • Information
  • One-to-one in-home Support Service
  • Free Benefits Advice Service
  • National Training Programme for professionals and organisations.

We also have a presence via social media and contribute to the professional debate and to public understanding by means of free talks and seminars.  We receive hundreds of referrals to our services from the NHS, public, private and voluntary sectors using our integrated model of support. We are managed by a Board of Trustees who include a leading specialists in hoarding. Our services are delivered by volunteers, psychology students, trained staff and our founder. When HoardingUK began its work, hoarding behaviour was largely considered a ‘lifestyle choice’.   Our work, alongside others, has improved understanding but there is still such a long way to go.

We provide free helpline, email and remote advocacy support for people and professionals. We provide talks to community groups and training to statutory and housing professionals. We work with organisations throughout the country to set up and run support group development programmes. We support ethical media and research.