“I never know where my son and I will sleep at night”
As more and more mums-to-be find themselves homeless, we speak to those families affected and look at the reasons behind the crisis
I WAS IN A CONSTANT STATE OF PANIC ABOUT HOW
I’D BRING UP MY BABY
At eight months pregnant, most women are excitedly nesting and preparing their homes for their new arrivals. But for Petagaye Grant, her experience couldn’t have been more different. When she was eight months pregnant, she ended up homeless, moving between friends’ and family’s homes, sleeping on their sofas.
Petagaye, 33, whose son Aiden is now three, says, “It was awful living with such uncertainty. I felt like a terrible mother before he was even born. I was in a constant state of panic about how I’d bring him up with nowhere to live. No new mum should go through that.”
HORRIFYING
Sadly, there are more homeless mums-to-be than ever before. In the last decade, homelessness has risen by 165 per cent. A joint survey carried out by the Royal College of Midwives and Channel 4’s documentary programme Dispatches found that 99.7 per cent of midwives had seen homeless mothers in the last six months; 97 per cent had seen at least one pregnant woman sofa-surfing; and
81 per cent had seen at least one pregnant woman living on the street.
And they warned that they are dealing with increasing numbers of pregnant women who are at risk of becoming homeless.
The survey said cuts to benefits, changes in the welfare system, and widespread shortages of suitable housing in many areas of Britain are disproportionately affecting pregnant women. They’re left sofa-surfing, living in overcrowded or unsuitable accommodation, in hostels, and even on the streets.
Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, says, “The idea of any mum-to-be having to deal with the trauma of homelessness is truly horrifying.
“No mother wants to bring their newborn baby back to a grim hostel where, after putting their body through childbirth, they don’t even have access to a private loo.
“Yet, every day, pregnant women across the country – some just weeks from their due date – are facing homelessness and the prospect of an unstable future in temporary or unsuitable housing.
“A safe home is a fundamental human need, especially in those vulnerable early years. But day in, day out, we see how housing benefit cuts and the lack of social homes mean this need is not being met.
“That’s why we want the government to increase housing benefit so that it at least covers the cheapest third of private rents, and to commit to building more social homes – at least 90,000 a year during this parliament.
“At the moment, just 6,000 homes are built a year, which simply isn’t enough.
DEPRESSION
The reasons behind Petagaye’s plight are complicated. She split with her ex-partner after their relationship broke down, and in November 2016 found out she’d been removed from her tenancy agreement. But because her mother had a spare room, she wasn’t deemed a priority, despite being pregnant.
Petagaye, who’s a youth worker but currently can’t work due to depression, says, “My relationship with my mum can be strained, and her spare room was for her other grandchildren, who stayed regularly, so I had to move around, staying on friends sofas, only taking a tiny bag and my hospital notes with me.”
FRIGHTENED
When Aiden was a few months old, Petagaye was placed in temporary accommodation – a room in a house with six other rooms that each had at least one tenant in them. Petagaye stayed there until last November.
She says, “When I moved in, one of the other women warned me there were mice, so I slept with a towel under my door. We had a shared bathroom, which was mouldy.
“The room Aiden and I shared was tiny. The fridge and cooker were just feet from where we slept, and we had to eat sitting on the bed. The other tenants used to argue loudly and I was often too afraid to leave my room.”
Petagaye is now in a onebedroom flat, but it’s only
temporary, so she still doesn’t have stability.
She says, “Since Aiden was born, I haven’t known for sure where I’m going to sleep at night – and more importantly, where my son will be sleeping.
“I’ve suffered from depression, stress and anxiety. I’m a good mum, but of course Aiden has suffered. He’s a small boy and yet there were times when he was cooped up with me in a tiny room because I was too frightened to leave the house and face the other tenants, who have their own struggles. That’s no start in life for a baby. I just hope that, one day, we’ll finally have a place to call home.”
● For more information, visit Crisis.org.uk