Transform staff have helped me through so much red tape and so many barriers that I probably would have given up on by myself. They made things feel possible when I thought they weren’t

My name is Ash, and I came to Transform because of drug and alcohol addiction.

For most of my life, I used anything I could get my hands on to change the way I felt. It started when I was around nine or 10 years old after being exposed to substances by older kids. From there, addiction became a huge part of my life.

I can't point to one major trauma or event and say, "That's why I started." Maybe it was early exposure, maybe I was just wired that way. What I do know is that for years I struggled to stay clean. I'm 35 now, and although I'd managed periods of sobriety, I could never make recovery last. I'd get six to nine months clean, then relapse, and each relapse was worse than the last.

When my relationship with my children's mum ended, I stayed with a friend who was also in recovery. After my third relapse, he asked me to leave. I spent months sofa surfing, drinking and using as much as I could. That was my rock bottom. Eventually, I ended up in hospital for detox.

Afterwards, another friend gave me somewhere to stay temporarily. Around that time, I met someone I'd known through Alcoholics Anonymous who was living at Transform. He looked like a different person – healthy, hopeful and happy. He had something I wanted. He gave me Transform's number, and I referred myself.

Transform gave me a room, and I've been here for almost a year. The biggest difference has been stability. For the first time in years, I've had somewhere safe and secure to live, giving me the space to focus properly on my recovery. Before that, I was just surviving.

I realised that if I wanted a better future, especially for my children, I had to get well first. So, I committed fully to my recovery. I went to meetings, worked the 12 steps and put my recovery before everything else. I'm a bricklayer by trade, but I knew I had to rebuild myself before I could rebuild anything else.

Today, I'm a year clean and about to complete my first year at university studying illustration.

Transform has been an incredible launching pad. The staff have helped me overcome so much red tape and so many barriers that I probably would have given up if I'd tried to do it alone. They made things feel possible when I thought they weren't.

Transform gave me more than housing. It gave me the chance to rebuild my life, and for the first time in a long time, I truly believe in my future.

I still attend three or four recovery meetings every week because recovery is now part of who I am.

The three things I value most about Transform are the security, stability and community. Having a safe place to live has changed everything. It's given me space to breathe, relax and focus on building a better life. What started as somewhere to stay became a place of healing, growth and hope.

When I came to Transform, I didn't want to die anymore. That was a huge turning point. Recovery isn't easy, and I've lost friends along the way, including one of my closest friends, who took his own life. It reminded me just how important it is to get help and keep going.

Today, I have something to lose. I have hope, purpose, a future and a family. When I came to Transform, I had nothing. Transform gave me far more than housing – it gave me the chance to rebuild my life. For the first time in a long time, I truly believe in my future.

For the first time, I’ve had somewhere safe and secure to stay… That stability has been the foundation I needed to finally sit down and focus on recovery properly.”