We’re not going to lie lately it’s been a bit all too much. Our city is under siege from real poverty and deprivation which can only be described as something constantly shocking our teams on a near daily basis and recently the levels of destitution and the despair these severely unfortunate families and newborns are facing is rising to the point were the living conditions for many are intolerable and the worst part is the cost of living crisis will deepen as we fall into a bitter recession which will affect every single one of us.
And there’s been some real tear jerking moments for the volunteers from asylum seeking fathers never imaging they’d be holed up in between four walls for months on £8 per week being told what to eat, what to wear and where to go like drones, so desperate to live a decent life they ask our volunteers if there’s any work opportunities under the table to feed their families culturally appropriate food and wear new clothes and live the British dream that they envisioned when they embarked on their perilous journey to the UK.
We’ve had mum’s who have fled domestic abuse or some form of life altering violence or trauma who once lived a decent ordinary life in comparison to the shelter there living in now (a mouldy room with shared amenities in houses across London that look like something out of the upside down from Stranger Things and to really hit it home for them financial support such as hardship funds and the time it takes for a benefit decision can all be too overbearing.
To young British lone parents with children who are constantly being rehoused and having their lives uprooted because their being forced into overpriced private unfurnished housing without being properly advised on the tenancy agreement, conditions of rent or the monthly price only to find that Universal Credit won’t cover the entire cost leaving them in arrears from day one and let us be clear this not just affecting the mums wellbeing, its hurting the children the most because they never have room to settle or are afforded the basic amenities a child should get in London like food and soap.
All in all as Vinnie Jones once said “It’s been emotional”
Could you as a Londoner live this life like this if you were suddenly put into this position?
Everywhere we go, the looks on parents faces just say it all in a nutshell without even asking what’s the matter so the team here rather than talk about our hard work in supporting parents and newborns have instead chosen to highlight the worsening living conditions of many.
We want to leave you with an image and just imagine what some of these families are going through on a daily basis living in a 2m x 2m square box with nothing but a bed, a side table and the dream of one day living a normal happy life.
Leave a reply