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

YABU because you're fibbing - she gave birth in town because the labour was fast, not because she was homeless.

I didn't think people could possible be this dense

Also if you are homeless and cannot prove you are British and entitled to public finds you cannot get a bed in a shelter, as it is paid for by housing benefit. This also applies for abused women trying to access a refuge. You will be charged for rent to access the services which usually comes to £250 -£700 a week depending on the area you are in.

She could have asked for help for months before ending up in this situation. An abusive partner can keep hold of your identity documents and make it difficult to get help.

@Fraggling that is one of many possible scenarios.
What I don't think is that she has sought help and being turned away. This is very unlikely. A heavily pregnant woman who has not sought help with her pregnancy would likely have big issues as most women would want their babies to be well protected in pregnancies.

I just don't believe all the posts that are ssaying it's because the tories don't help homeless people. Sorry.. I think that's bushit

There are three - yes, you read that right - 3 beds for homeless women and 20 for men in Cambridge. Considering it has one of the highest numbers of homeless people in the country, that’s fucking scandalous.

As and person with reasonable social awareness if I were suddenly homeless and had no money for my phone apart from a go I would have no idea who to go to for help.
Homelessness is more visible now but I remember council that used hoses to clean shop doorsteps early in the mornings in town centers,moved on beggers made them less visible to those who didn't want to see.
Most homeless cant access food banks and most need more help than a roof and food.

'What I don't think is that she has sought help and being turned away. This is very unlikely. A heavily pregnant woman who has not sought help with her pregnancy would likely have big issues as most women would want their babies to be well protected in pregnancies.'

A lot to unpack in that. Seems to be an implication she is neglectful. And that is why you think she is more likely to be a drug addict with mental health probs?

See all previous posts including from those who work in this area about issues women can have getting help and support etc.

I don’t think anybody would ever possibly suggest that this was a remotely acceptable situation but, like some others have advised on here already, there is nothing at this stage to support that this was the ‘fault’ of the local authority and/ or health services.

Pregnant women are automatically deemed in ‘priority need’ for local authority housing assistance under s.189(1)(a) of the Housing Act 1996 (Part 7) and this means that they are entitled to emergency accommodation if homeless. If they meet other criteria beyond this following investigation by the LA housing team, they will then be owed the ‘main housing duty’ which means they will remain accommodated pending a final offer of housing (which often takes years of course).

In the event that a pregnant woman does not meet all criteria to be owed the main housing duty, the housing team will refer her to their Children’s Services department, who are legally bound to accommodate her irrespective of the reasons for her circumstances. This includes in cases where a woman is not ‘eligible’ for housing assurance, because she has no legal right to reside in the UK.

I have worked in housing for a long time now and I have never once seen a local authority ‘gatekeep’ and refuse assistance to a pregnant woman so as to make her rough sleep.

This does not mean that this isn’t what has happened here, but I suggest it’s more likely that this woman was either entirely unknown to services altogether, or did not engage after being offered assistance (such as refusing an offer of temporary accommodation).

If so, this does not mean we should blame or judge her (only an incredibly vulnerable person would do this) but it certainly shouldn’t be assumed that the blame lays neatly elsewhere.

I do very much hope that whatever happened to lead to this desperately sad situation, that she and her children are now receiving the support they require.

Also human - what % of homeless are Male and female?

@FoamingAtTheUterus. So you admit that many homeless do have other issues which is sometimes why they are on the street, or as a result of homelessness and may explain why its so hard to break the cycle. No othering here, just making a point that the woman for a variety of reasons may not have sought help. Rather, than the fact the tories don't help homeless pregnant women. Without the facts, we cannot say its the government's fault.

I remember seeing a heavily pregnant woman on the streets in an area heavily populated with beggars and commenting how shocked I was to a nearby police officer. He agreed but told us that she had been offered various forms of help from different authorities but declined them all. They couldn’t force this woman to accept help - I still wonder what happened to her child.

And a lot of it is lack of mental health provision and access.This is down to successive governments .

Also human - what % of homeless are Male and female?

No idea. But three beds?

15 years ago there was very little tough sleeping.

I saw it in central London from the mid 1980s. Obviously it's worse now than ever but there have always been homeless on the streets.

Something I cannot see improving under this government.

'Rather, than the fact the tories don't help homeless pregnant women.'

Erm it's s general running down and defunding of a range of support mechanisms both state and third sector.

No one thinks Boris picked on this woman specifically

I work for an organisation with over 600 high street premises. Over the last 3/4 years the number rough sleepers using our doorways etc has increased hugely. Many branch colleagues do a lot to help "their rough sleeper" including taking them clothes, bedding and food. They hear their stories and the women are largely afraid of taking beds in hostels due to their experience of sexual violence.

I've a friend a midwife, and there are unfortunately, people who are unable to care for themselves, their children or even unborn children.
The need for drugs/alcohol is all consuming. They just leave the hospital after they give birth. They don't look back.
Sometimes people give birth to a stillborn baby, and they don't (appear) to care. They just head on and walk out. Again, the need for alcohol/drugs is bigger than anything else.
People often turn down a bed in a hostel, or shelter, as you can't drink/take drugs if you are in overnight.
People who are homeless often become that way due to complex issues. Maybe they had turbulent upbringing with no education? Maybe they were abused from an early age? Maybe they got hooked on to drugs and everything else stopped mattering. Maybe they had every chance in life and just couldn't cope? Maybe they have numerous health issues including mental health problems?
The causes/reasons/issues relating to homelessness are certainly not just because of the tories, and would not be resolved with a labour government. It needs concentrated, long reaching support with experts in the field of homelessness.
Just keep seeing them, and pushing for help for them, not just a bed. Resources, education, care. It can change.

@Fraggling I'm saying that it's very possible there could have been other issues as to why she did not seek help, rather than the govt being responsible as others have said. Drug use or mental illness are just two possibilities of why she may not have sought help.

Ridiculous to use this as a bat to beat politicians. No one here knows the full story of why this happened and there is no question that if she had asked someone to call an ambulance or turned up at the hospital, she would have received appropriate treatment. She may have been an illegal immigrant too scared to seek treatment or someone who had been people trafficked and in fear of her life.

Absolute rubbish to say this is an indictment of the current, or any other government policy with simply no evidence of the background

That doesn't explain the increase in rough sleeping since austerity started, and the explosion in the last couple of years though.

I mean unless you want to ignore broad picture and focus on each individual news story (and find an explanation as to why it's their own fault/ not a problem etc).

Should have made clearer that I don't mean to imply that the lady in question was an addict in any way. Just pointing out that sometimes people won't put a baby first.
Also, not meaning to imply a labour government couldn't change things.

How does a homeless women get to a hospital when she goes into labour several weeks early, in the early hours of the morning?

Calls 999, they’re hardly likely to leave the poor woman in the street.

@Fraggling. Now, please remind me why austerity started? Aahhhh you'll probably blame the tories for that too. 😂

rubyroost the fact that social care services have been slashed under the Tory government AND homelessness has spiralled is enough to tell me the government is to blame. Because the two go hand in hand.

YABU because you're fibbing - she gave birth in town because the labour was fast, not because she was homeless. They're in hospital now.

But if she hadn't been homeless, she'd have been at home, not on the street, wouldn't she?

Yes @yellowallpaper exactly what I'm tryi g to say, but it's definitely the tories' fault