AIBU to think its not acceptable for a homeless woman to have to give birth on the street.

[Thelnebriati]

Homeless woman gives birth to premature twins on a cold street outside Cambridge University college
www.cambridge-news.co.uk/news/cambridge-news/homeless-woman-birth-premature-twins-17471458

As awful as some things are, we are all lucky to live in this country where there is help available.

The help should have kicked in before she got to 29 weeks pregnant. Nobody should be sleeping rough, let alone a pregnant woman in winter.

Yes, NHS care during pregnancy/ birth/ postnatally is generally good but what happens now? With such a huge shortage of affordable and social housing will this women and her babies (assuming the survive) be given somewhere warm and safe to live?

@LoveNote they would have done a lot more to work towards eradicating it then the bunch of spivs in power now.

Of course there were food banks before 2010 ffs

But it was, well not eradicated, but rare.

The only rough sleepers you saw were the extreme derelict types that are v hard to help.

It started increasing when Tories got in and had exploded in last year or 2 I'd say.

Anyone who hasn't noticed the increase has their eyes wilfully closed.

Welcome to the real world and life in Britain in 2019

It’s not acceptable but I’d be interested in knowing why she was there . I doubt she has a straightforward story .

YANBU. But plenty of people truly believe that those who are on the streets merit their fate.

Can we not make this in to yet another Tory bashing thread?

Maybe there were foodbanks previous to 2010 but they weren't in your face like they are now (there are collection points in all food shops & various other places)
That's why many of us are questioning.

Given the Tories are in power and have been for years, I think they can take a little bashing. Poor them.

But this is a direct result of conservative policies.

Like I say, before they got in there was very little rough sleeping, when they got in it noticeably increased, and has exploded in last couple of years.

There was a lot of rough sleeping when I was a child as well, which is again Tory govt.

It's no secret that labour and conservative have different approaches to public spending, surely? And obviously, the different levels of spending and where they are spent have consequences.

So I really don't see why it's not relevant to mention this.

I think it's awful of course - shameful. Cambridge is a busy town with good hospital, someone surely could have guided her to A&E while she was in labour, she wouldn't have been turned away.

Obviously not in this poor woman's case!

Bless her heart, I hope she is recovering well and the babies are alright. They are very early.

We are going to hear more stories like this unfortunately, the government has no heart.

Yeah let's not get precious about the Tories. They can take it. They've been in power, they're in power again. This is something they should be fixing.
It's not been getting better. It's been getting worse. I've been witness to it in the last 10 years in Cambridge.
Now isn't the time for "Someone think of the politicians!".
Even if you like the tories, you should want them to be doing more about it.

stophuggingme Cambridge has just returned a Labour M.P and the council has been Labour for years.Of course housing the homeless is nothing to do with the local council

It’s not acceptable but I’d be interested in knowing why she was there . I doubt she has a straightforward story .

That's it who knows why she was there, it isn't right at all but people blaming governments ect, it might have been a series of her own actions.

Koshkat Tory’s can create such a large division between rich and poor and then not expect to get bashed when poverty like this happens

15 years ago there was very little tough sleeping.

Sorry but this is bollocks.

There has been a very evident homeless population in London going back decades through the Cameron, Brown, Blair and Major years. I was at uni in Bristol during the Blair years before moving back to London and there were beggers and rough sleepers in most shop doorways in the evenings. It's as tragic now as it was back then but it has been a problem under the government's of all political stripes.

'This is something they should be fixing.'

No it isn't as it's not what they are about. They want low tax, minimal health and welfare type support from state, for people to look after themselves, and if they can't trust is their problem. This is bog standard right wing philosophy, in no way surprising or secret.

Also with an early labour she may not have had time to get to the hospital or realised it was happening until it was too late to get there. The hospital isn't fantastically easy to get to without transport.
Still, I'm very happy to see her crowdfunding is going well.

You do NOT know that this poor woman's plight is directly down to Tory polices.

It is a horrible, terrible thing to happen and I wish her and her babies well but you do not know her personal circumstances so unless you do know her then stop using her appalling situation to score cheap political points.

@Fraggling
My point is more that their approach to homelessness is obviously not working.

Yes and England still voted in the tories.

It's very sad but if someone had called an ambulance they would have come straight away, I'm guessing she didn't realise/ignored the labour pains etc. If she had approached the council she would have been housed immediately, I'm guessing there's more to the story

Sad this is what people want, otherwise they wouldn’t have voted for it

lifeisgood how do you know she would have been housed right away if she’d approached council?