Kimberley’s story
November 9, 2018
Kimberley and her family became homeless when their landlord decided to sell.
They desperately tried to find another flat to rent privately but because they were receiving housing benefit, or DSS, time and time again they were refused.
No room for a tree
At the last minute, the council found them emergency accommodation. All four of them spent Christmas in a single cramped hostel room – Kimberley, her husband Mark, their 3-year-old son Kai, and baby daughter Mya.
The space was so small they had to eat dinner on the beds. They could only put up one decoration because there was no room for a tree.
Little Kai couldn’t sleep and Kimberley and Mark were barely coping. That’s when Kimberley called our helpline.
Our helpline advisers supported Kimberley with each step of the process and every meeting with the council. They made sure she knew her rights and the law.
They moved from the hostel into temporary accommodation and then, at last, into a permanent home. From now on, they’ll be able to spend Christmas with family.
‘It was the biggest relief. I had a whole team of experts on my side.’
Unfortunately thousands of other families across the UK are homeless right now, and their children are struggling like Kai did because they don’t have a home.
We are facing an unprecedented national housing emergency, and something urgently has to change.
You can help. Every penny we receive helps fund our vital services and enables us to campaign to make sure that one day, nobody has to face homelessness.