This week, we’d like to do something for a family of 5 in need of help.
They sought asylum in the UK 15 months ago, and were originally housed in London. They have a teenage son who started attending college, as well as a 7 year old and a 1 year old.
This year, they were disbursed to a town just outside London, which means the teenage boy now has to travel by train into London to attend college. He is doing really well, and has even won awards from his college for outstanding work, so his mum and dad are trying to do everything they can to make sure he can stay and finish his final year. But the travel costs are leaving them in extreme poverty.
They’re not allowed to work and have no access to normal benefits. They receive around £170 a week from the home office, £70 of which is spent on their son’s travel. The college would usually be able to help with bursaries for families in need, but they have no bank account and are unable to open one, which means they're not eligible for help with travel costs.
They were nominated by their social worker, who has been helping them access their local food bank. She said they are under a lot of strain and desperately need help.
We raised an incredible £2900 in just one week and all the toys, clothes, nappies and gifts were bought from the wishlist. With the funds donated, we will be able to make sure the teenage boy can travel to college for many, many months - without having to worry about the impact it will have on his family's ability to buy food.