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Shelter issues warning ahead
of critical Christmas season
SHOCKING new figures show Shelter
received a call for help from the North West every 4 minutes in the run up to
Christmas 2016, and the charity is warning that the situation this winter
could be set to get worse.
New research from Shelter and M&S shows that in 2016 the charity's national
helpline received over 10,700 thousand calls from the North West in the 2
months leading into Christmas. And crippling combination of rising homelessness,
sky high rents, problems with Universal Credits and a dearth of affordable homes
means this winter the charity is preparing for huge numbers of people struggling
with homelessness and housing problems to come to them for support. And with
calls from people in the North West to the free Shelter helpline increasing by
36% over the past year (2017), their expert advisers are overwhelmed with pleas for
housing help.
The Shelter helpline is funded by M&S customers throughout the festive season,
with 5% of every purchase made from the:- 'Festive Collection for Shelter' going
directly to the charity. This means the helpline can offer housing advice and
support every single day of the year for people battling bad housing and
homelessness.
Mark Cook, a helpline adviser for Shelter, said:- "Every Christmas I speak
to parents in despair as they face the trauma of homelessness, when they should
be filling stockings and looking forward to Christmas dinner. Even though I'll
be working at Christmas, I think myself so lucky to be able to go home at the
end of the day when there are so many families having to go without such a basic
need. No family should face the agony of losing the roof over their heads, which
is why we're calling on people to get their lunch from M&S's Festive Collection
for Shelter. Something as simple as buying a sandwich could make the world of
difference to a family whose home is on the line this Christmas."
Mike Barry, Plan A Director at M&S, said:- "We know our customers care
about this issue and purchasing lunch from our Festive Collection for Shelter is
a small, simple way they can make a big difference this Christmas. With calls to
the Shelter helpline increasing by 25% over the past year it's more important
than ever we support this important cause."
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