With over 17 million individuals throughout the UK because of buy their Christmas bushes this week, the nation is gearing up for a weekend of adorning and festivities.
Many will probably be adorning their houses with Christmas playing cards, snow globes and decorations depicting cosy cottages, presents below the tree and stockings held on warming fireplaces. However for many individuals experiencing homelessness and residing in momentary lodging, the image of this good Christmas is in stark distinction to the truth of their residing situations.
Newest authorities figures, launched on 28th November 2024, present that 159,380 youngsters throughout England are spending this winter in momentary lodging – the best quantity on file.
To focus on the awful and sometimes insufficient situations that many households are experiencing this Christmas, B&Q has partnered with Shelter and actual households to create different snow globe scenes that shatter the phantasm of festive perfection. These snow globe baubles are based mostly on true accounts from households residing in momentary lodging.
The choice snow globe scenes will probably be held on bushes at B&Q shops nationwide from this week. B&Q is donating £1 from each actual tree bought to Shelter throughout the festive season and internet hosting fundraising actions throughout 311 shops all through the UK from sixth – eighth December the place clients can donate at checkout which can then be matched by B&Q. The retailer can also be promoting Shelter Christmas jumpers and playing cards with all proceeds donated to the charity.
The B&Q initiative was impressed by Shelter’s ‘Dwelling in Limbo’ report that surveyed over 1,000 individuals residing in momentary lodging****. The report discovered {that a} devastating 4 in 10 (40%) reported issues with damp, mould or condensation, over a 3rd (35%) had points with insect or animal infestations and over half of oldsters (57%) say that residing in momentary lodging has harmed their little one’s well being.
Graham Bell, CEO of B&Q, says: “At B&Q, we imagine all people ought to have a secure and settled house – particularly at Christmas. However sadly, that picture-perfect festive scene might not be the truth for a lot of youngsters and households residing in momentary lodging. Since launching our partnership in 2017, our colleagues and clients have raised greater than £5 million for Shelter and their accomplice charities – Shelter Cymru, Housing Rights in Northern Eire and Focus Eire, and we’re proud to be persevering with our dedication to Shelter this Christmas.”
Polly Neate, chief govt of Shelter, says: “It’s completely unacceptable that so many households will spend the festive season homeless and trapped in overcrowded, damp, unsafe momentary lodging. Sky excessive non-public rents mixed with a dire scarcity of genuinely reasonably priced social houses has precipitated homelessness to spiral and sadly it’s youngsters who’re paying the worth. Too many are rising up sharing beds with siblings, in one-room hostels infested with cockroaches, bedbugs, and rats, in situations that hurt their well being and futures.
“At Shelter we’re doing the whole lot we are able to by way of our frontline companies to assist households going through homelessness this winter. We couldn’t do that important work with out the generosity of our companions like B&Q, whose donations permit us to supply the recommendation, assist, and sensible assist households want to search out and preserve a secure place to name house and marketing campaign for lasting change.”
To seek out your nearest B&Q to buy your tree and assist donate in direction of B&Q and Shelter’s shared mission, go to: https://www.diy.com/find-a-store.
B&Q additionally absolutely funds Shelter’s DIY Abilities Advisor Service that helps individuals to achieve elementary DIY abilities to construct a optimistic future of their houses by sharing sensible abilities and supporting house enchancment duties after a protracted interval of homelessness.
