Nadine lives with her five children in a terraced house on a quiet street in Peterborough city centre. But it’s not a place they can call home because they might be told to leave at any moment.
Nadine’s children are among more than 5,000 children in east England living in so-called temporary accommodation, which can range from a private home, bed and breakfast or hostel.
For Nadine, every move not only means a change in her private life, but also a change of school for her children.
“Sometimes I’m at my wit’s end and I struggle to keep the kids in any form of routine,” she says.
“It’s difficult to have a routine in such an uncertain and ignorant situation where you’re in temporary accommodation and you don’t know when you’re going to get a call saying, ‘It’s time to go, it’s time ‘to move on’. “
Nadine and her children have moved three times in three years.
“It’s terrible,” she says. “I sometimes sit there and think as a mother I should be able to have some consistency for them, which means I either go to school every day or drop them off myself.
“That’s something I can’t do right now because they have to have some form of transport to pick them up because it’s so far.”
Her 13-year-old son says it’s “difficult,” adding, “It’s quite difficult making new friends.”
The Light Project, a homelessness charity based in the city of Cambridgeshire, has seen firsthand the impact this type of situation has on families.
At the moment there is no system in place to ensure schools are notified when their students are homeless, meaning they may have to travel a long way to get to class.
“We want to change the whole system. We want to make sure that any time a child or young person goes into temporary accommodation, the school is informed,” says executive director Steven Pettican, who believes parental permission should be obtained.
“Then the school can do its excellent work and support this family.”
Just a few kilometers away is another family in a similar situation. Andrea, who is not her real name, sleeps on the sofa with her husband while their two children share a bedroom.
Her family lives out of boxes, waiting for a permanent home. It is the third place they have lived in the last two years.
“I tell my kids, ‘Let’s look at this as an adventure,'” says Andrea.
“We’re in the system … but I try that they don’t focus on that if they think we have to move again, I have to leave my friends behind.”
Her 10-year-old daughter adds: “I’m just grateful for the house I have, I’m just grateful for the hostel.
“It kind of makes school hard, but I just love going to school, it’s all I ever wanted to do.
“At least I get some knowledge in my head, an education.”
Andrea says she tries to stay positive but “it’s hard to think”.
“We don’t know where we’ll end up and when we’ll move again.”
- Local authorities use a variety of shelters as temporary housing for homeless households, which may include private or social housing, hostels or bed and breakfasts
- 473 children live in temporary accommodation in Peterborough and 320 in the rest of Cambridgeshire
- In England, 119,840 children live in shelters
Source: Government data
At the city’s Thomas Deacon Academy, more and more students are living in makeshift housing, according to director Rick Carroll.
“We wanted to make sure we know when that’s going to happen, because the moment a family gets into that situation, there’s a whole host of unknown pressures that if we’re aware, we can support,” he says .
Mr Carroll says one impact on students was that they arrived late because the temporary accommodation was further away and the school had to work with a parent to get a bus pass.
He says another challenge homeless students face is access to the internet.
“Students who are in this situation will not be able to do their homework,” he says.
“That could be seen as negative at school, which could affect their progress.
“We overhauled the Department of Education (DfE) laptops and got them internet codes. It just takes away some of the stress and difficulties this family is struggling with.”
The DfE said admissions registers will include the address where students live and that schools should encourage parents to let them know of any changes.
But councils say they won’t always know if an address is a temporary home.
A DfE spokesperson said: “Vulnerable children in schools, including those who are cared for or cared for by social workers, will benefit from targeted additional funding and the support of a dedicated staff member in each local area to identify and advocate for their needs.
“We are also strengthening the links between welfare and education to keep these students engaged in school ahead of a major reform of the care system through our response to the Independent Review of Child Welfare.”
Additional reporting by Phil Shepka
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