Ikea shoppers may find that displays in their local store look a little different to normal this week.
That’s because the furniture retailer has teamed up with housing charity Shelter to highlight the living conditions faced by homeless people across the UK.
The ‘Real Life Roomsets’, which have gone on display at Ikea’s Birmingham, Warrington, Bristol and Hammersmith locations, tell the stories of four people in the UK who have found themselves in temporary accommodation.
A qualified nurse and teacher who lost her job and home after the pandemic, Kate, is the subject of one of these. After fleeing severe domestic abuse, the tent Kate and her daughter were living in was set of fire and they were placed in a dirty property with no kitchen.
Another woman, Channah, features in Warrington’s Real Life Roomset. The mother-of-three ended up in accommodation covered in black mould after being served a no-fault eviction notice by her private landlord.
The place was so cold her feet would become numb, and the family’s mental and physical health suffered as a result.
Sam, whose room is represented in Ikea’s Hammersmith store, was assaulted twice in the temporary home she and her three young children were placed in. This was also full of mould and hours away from the kids’ school, and she was forced to sleep in her car for weeks as a result.
Shelter said each roomset shows the ‘cramped, dangerous and grotty spaces that an increasing number of people who are experiencing homelessness are forced to experience when living in temporary accommodation.’
The charity believes the cost of living crisis will see an increase in homelessness and is calling on the government to build more – and better quality – social housing.
A poll of 4,000 Brits in February revealed that 59% of people think the housing emergency in the UK is worse than it has ever been, while 21% of adults are worried about losing their current home and 49% say that if they did they would struggle to find somewhere else to live.
Polly Neate, Shelter chief executive, said: ‘A grotty hostel or B&B is not a home but this is the reality for too many families stuck in temporary accommodation.
‘That’s why we’re working with Ikea to show the grim living situations that families who become homeless are having to face – from having no space for children to do homework or play, to having to share beds, to being moved miles away from schools and support networks.
‘With rents at an all-time high and no end to the cost-of-living crisis in sight, we’re desperately worried that more people are going to become homeless this year.
‘The solution to this crisis is simple and it’s staring the Government in the face: we must build a new generation of good quality social housing that people can actually afford to live in.’
The partnership sets a target of 90,000 new social homes each year, with the aim of half-a-million people having a better life at home by 2030.
The Real Life Roomsets can be viewed in Ikea Warrington, Bristol, Birmingham and Hammersmith now.
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