"You Don't Feel Like a Person."

Patricia Leatham
It's just living in conditions like this, you almost don't feel like a person to be honest.

TEXT:
Housing Rights
London, UK

More than 96,000 homeless families live in government-provided temporary accommodation in England.

Patricia Leatham
We moved in, in October of 2019. We were made homeless because we were in a property, which was my parents’. And wn my mother died, that's how we became homeless.

TEXT:
The UK government should ensure proper standards of living for everyone in temporary accommodation.

Patricia Leatham
When I first moved in, I had no proper heating. My son was always cold and when it's cold, it’s absolutely freezing. And then obviously I have no access to any portable heating. So, it's just actually using lots of clothing and blankets to just to keep making sure that he's warm.

And you've got lots of wires it's all exposed. At one point there was a leak. So, it was all very damp, and the bathroom was very moldy, kind of you know, very grim looking.

TEXT:
Living in temporary accommodation significantly impacts the rights of children.

Patricia Leatham
I remember actually having a little box because I tried to connect up the WIFI to get some WIFI for my son for school. So, my WIFI box was just kind of hanging somewhere here. So, my son could never get proper reception for his schoolwork. 

They will give you a shell of a place. That's it. Regardless of whether you've got food, whether you've got chairs with you've got beds, that's it, they've given you somewhere to live and you can't say no.

TEXT:
The UK government should ensure adequate housing in temporary accommodations, and make sure families’ needs are met, including children.

Patricia Leatham
The powers that be are just not considerate. They're not compassionate or they don't care.