THE new boss of family support charity Home-Start paid a visit to its Winchester offices to meet families and discuss his strategy.

Home-Start chief executive Rob Parkinson met the group’s Hampshire chiefs as well as local families, staff and volunteers.

He is touring the charity’s 300 UK branches to connect with the grass roots and lay out his plans for the future.

Liz Cooper, Home-Start’s Hampshire chairman, said: “We were very impressed with the new man at the top and hope that he will be able to meet with Hampshire’s Children’s Services Director later this year. We were very assured by his vision for the future of this great charity and look forward to working with him.”

A recent report found that families in Winchester are shackled with almost £6 million in unsustainable debt caused by payday loans, credit card bills and other repayments.