The family of an unemployed gardener who took his life last year are celebrating after his Telford Job Centre announced they are working to improve transport and costs for rural clients
Tony Lakeland, of Weston-under-Lizard, attempted a 1,500 mile hitch-hike in September last year in a bid to find work after being unemployed for nearly two years.
But Tony’s sister, Joanne Lakeland, said he took his life on December 1 “after unemployment and transport difficulties became too much for him”.
The family have since taken up his crusade to create more awareness of services available for people like Tony.
Mrs Lakeland said: “My brother died on December 1 last year and almost immediately we got in touch with Job Centre Plus.
“Instead of putting forward a complaint it was more of an incentive for us to help someone else rather than be angry about what went wrong.
“I think it is a much better way of approaching what has happened and to be there for anybody else who might be affected.
“It is a very positive stand which is what my brother wanted.”
Mrs Lakeland said since starting their campaign they are pleased to announce officials from Telford Job Centre plus have agreed to highlight services to help others in similar situations.
This includes providing more information on what is available for clients and acknowledging that not all people can access the internet. Officials are also working with a number of organisations in Shropshire to address transport issues Mr Lakeland highlighted.
Mrs Lakeland said: “Tony talked a lot about how difficult it was to understand what else he could do differently but a lot of the time he kept things to himself.
“Tony’s family hope that letting people know about these services might help others who, like Tony, feel desperation of losing jobs in the recession.
“Tony wanted these issues debated openly at the beginning of the credit crunch so that the plight of those without transport could be addressed.”
A Department for Work and Pensions spokesperson said: “Like many other organisations delivering services in rural areas, Jobcentre Plus wants to make it as easy as possible for people to use our services.
“Much of the contact with Jobcentres these days is by phone or online, job searches can be done online from home or the local library and people travelling to interviews may also qualify for financial help to meet the costs.
“In Telford Jobcentre Plus we are working with local partners to improve transport and associated costs to help people attend training centres. We are also raising awareness with our customers about the local ‘Wheels to work’ initiative that helps provide transport for people who are in employment. Jobcentre Plus continues to use mobile offices to go out into the rural community, including parts of Shropshire, to bring our services directly to our customers.”