Voice to forgotten struggling households TOMORROW: How YOU can make a difference to kids in need this Christmas

recorded by the Covid Realities project, tracking the experience of low-income households to provide a real-time record of the pandemic.

Scrolling through, you feel their fears, sense their frustrations and share their small joys and victories.

For Maria, 37, who gave up a job in electronics to look after her disabled son John, the project has been a lifeline.

“We’re having to make hard choices,” she says. “Do you take your kids on public transport? Do you risk it to get to the foodbank? What do you do when the kids need new shoes?

“There were times during the first lockdown when I’d have 19 days without any money, so I’d have to borrow.”

She adds: “This project is really important. We need people with power to understand how we’re living.”

Covid Realities is led by Dr Ruth Patrick with colleagues from the University of York, Birmingham University and the Child Poverty Action Group, and funded by the Nuffield

Foundation. Dr Patrick says: “It’s vital that we understand the impact the pandemic is having on families living on a low income, who have been almost completely forgotten in the Government’s response.”

Parents log into a safe online space where they can answer big questions of the week and complete online diaries.

Their experiences are then shared on the Covid Realities website.

On the project’s notice board, Connie G writes: “I am missing the hugs. A full bear hug is needed sometimes to squeeze away the worry of life.”

At other times, these parents share joyful moments. Lone parent Victoria B writes: “So we ended up in the front garden on a blanket, with neighbours in each of their respective gardens, shouting at each other over how loud and pretty and fun the fireworks are.”

The outpouring of experiences shows how important it is to be listened to.

One parent writes: “So easy to think we’re alone in our struggles. Being able to share with and listen to others is such a precious thing.”

Aurora from London, who lost her husband three years ago, has to raise their children, aged seven and 11, on Universal Credit after losing her parttime hospitality job in the pandemic. She says of the project: “It’s somewhere to tell people what life is really like, a platform where we can be heard and that does give me some hope.”

The project continues all the way to next June, creating a remarkable portrait of an extraordinary time.

You can share your story with Covid Realities here: covidrealities.org/ get-involved/