They understand that needs are complex: and that a roof over a mother’s head is only the start. They have seen amazing turnarounds, including 10 top grade GCSEs by a girl now well on her way to becoming a doctor, and a former refugee guest now practicing as a Chartered Accountant. Breaking the cycle of despair and dependency is possible.
The right support now, can save five decades on benefits!
In 2023 they decided to use their savings to buy a property and turn it into a refuge for mums with NRPF. This is where the Welcome Home Project began. They wish to show that it is possible for landlords to invest in properties with a reasonable return on their money whilst providing good quality accommodation and support.
We all know too well now the image of a struggling single mother and her children, bouncing from cramped hotel rooms to noisy hostels.
The uncertainty and insecurity take a toll on their well-being, impacting their health, education, and potentially creating a generational cycle of dependency. This is the harsh reality for over 70,000 children in London alone, living in temporary accommodation without proper support.
The supply of suitable accommodation in the UK is in extremely short supply which leads councils to make emergency placements in hotels with charges of £100+/night, for a room without cooking, laundry facilities, or outside space.
Children are left inadequately fed, and sometimes traumatised. Toddlers are learning to walk on a bed, because cramped rooms have no clear floorspace. We want to help children be children, and allow them to flourish, potentially cutting by 80% the lifetime cost of supporting a mother & her children who have found themselves in this predicament.
The first home in the project is a 5 bed + 5 bath house in leafy Twickenham (TW2), where London councils can place NRPF single mums with the option of high quality, nightly accommodation until a suitable long term home is available.
For less than the price of a Travelodge, families will have: