To really worry about families in temp accommodation right now

[formerbabe]

So, I got to thinking as I've seen lots of Facebook posts with great ideas about how to keep kids busy indoors and all of them showing kids sitting in lovely big kitchens baking cakes, nice gardens...parents who've turned a corner of their house into a little classroom.

I'm very lucky...we have a decent sized house...kids have their own bedrooms, we have a playroom, a big kitchen, a big table. However, lots of homeless families will be stuck in bedsits and hostels and very cramped small spaces with shared kitchens. How on earth are they going to cope with self isolation and their children being at home constantly for weeks?

i have no idea, when i was in one we shared kitchens and bathrooms so the contamination risk was huge.

Yes firstly there's the risk of contamination and spreading the virus and secondly, I'm wondering how you could teach and entertain potentially several children in a cramped space without losing your mind.

I agree. I used to be a primary school teacher in a deprived part of London and a lot of the families lived in temp accommodation and in tiny flats with no outside space. Those people will not be able to cope with this.

Me and do have talked about the same in the last few days. I was in a hostel for almost a year 17yrs ago so I know the struggle, luckily at the time I was childless, I cannot imagine how parents with children will cope all in one room and many have no cooking facilities so rely on cans on radiators etc so the food limiting will be especially hard on them
Much more needs to be done by government to think about these people.

I’m not scared of getting the virus but the impact for many will be huge, my neighbour has recently got her children back and is with another abusive asshole, argue every day so I’m scared next door they’ll be a huge DV incident at some point with all of them in all day for weeks.

YANBU- it’s good to remind myself of this, how fortunate we are- when I go steer crazy by mid next week

Not sure if this is a stupid question or not but I'm not even sure if in hostels and bedsits have Wi-Fi? Most of my dcs school work is online and they need a laptop to do it.

Oh and lots of the lovely ideas I'm seeing on Facebook require craft items, ingredients etc...these things cost money and you need space to store them.

I was worrying about people who are sufferers of domestic abuse as well - this isn’t going to be great for them either.

@formerbabe, temp accommodation that are bedsits have microwaves and hot plate IME. The ones that are rooms, so in effect shared houses (not that many in my area so I was told at time when given choice of bedsit or a room) with shared kitchen & bathroom are a huge risk for spreading infection. They're also not safe, I met a very vulnerable woman at the time who was sharing with 3men & no lock on bathroom door. I went to Wickes & bought her one as she'd been walked in on more than once: & told her to say landlord had fitted it if any comeback .

There must be holiday homes and air b&bs sitting empty now. There could be a system to ensure owners are paid a minimum cost to cover damages and utilities if they open to these families.

Many families from Eastern Europe live in shared accommodation. Occasionally there can be up to 15 people in a house, with a shared kitchen and bathroom. It can be difficult even when things are going well, but with the problems comes the DV. Imagine having all the people there and then add a couple of babies and toddlers to that.

I think YABU, as it happens.

I’ve seen a lot of these sort of posts, and they are a bit condescending. Not all poor people are vulnerable and not all vulnerable people are poor. There’s a hint of romanticism about poor people trapped in rooms, starving slowly, and it’s family distasteful to generalise in these ways.

Most children will be fine, they will benefit from having their families around them.

I’ve seen a lot of these sort of posts, and they are a bit condescending. Not all poor people are vulnerable and not all vulnerable people are poor

I agree but even if you're not vulnerable you're still going to struggle if you're in cramped conditions right now.

There is provision for vulnerable kids and kids in care etc to still go to school. Along with the key workers kids.

It’s the dc with really crap horrible parents I feel for, imagine being with them 24/7. I saw this on social media the other day and it’s so sad to think about.

So many dire situations are going to be made worse by this

There is provision for vulnerable kids

Yes but I don't think just being in cramped accommodation makes you vulnerable necessarily.

I'm also thinking of the point of view of the parents. I'm going to find the next few weeks challenging enough but things that make will make life easier are a large house, car, money to buy resources, a laptop for them to work on etc.

I can't imagine being stuck in one room with my dc trying to make the next few weeks reasonably enjoyable.

@Stayawayfromitsmouth
My brother and sister can still go to school if they want to because of social services involvement.
Guess what?
You already know they wont be going because my parents are shitheads. And social services are shitheads for not letting me take them too.

Being in temporary accommodation does make them automatically vulnerable, according to the Children's Commissioner. So they can go to school.

There are many more categories of vulnerability than the government specified in their statement (they just said "including", but not limited to):

www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/vulnerability-in-numbers/

This is try. U was talking to a foster social worker and they are expecting a lot more work. But at the moment they are still discussing how and when to get out for their usual family checks.

*this is true. I was...
Sorry autocorrect.