0:00:02 > 0:00:04My name is Sensi and I'm nine years old and I love scooting.
0:00:07 > 0:00:10Hi, everyone. I'm Jade. I'm 13 years old.
0:00:10 > 0:00:12And this is my sister Melina.
0:00:12 > 0:00:13How old are you?
0:00:13 > 0:00:15- I'm eight!- Eight.
0:00:15 > 0:00:19I'm Henry and I'm ten, and I love football.
0:00:20 > 0:00:23This is my park and I love it very much.
0:00:23 > 0:00:25I spend a lot of time at this park
0:00:25 > 0:00:27because I don't have my own garden.
0:00:27 > 0:00:31In fact, I don't even have my own home, cos I'm homeless.
0:00:31 > 0:00:33I live in a temporary accommodation.
0:00:33 > 0:00:35Still classified as homeless.
0:00:35 > 0:00:39I'm still homeless. I'm living in a temporary accommodation.
0:00:39 > 0:00:41Even though we are homeless, we all have big ambitions.
0:00:42 > 0:00:46When I'm older, I want to be a human rights lawyer,
0:00:46 > 0:00:48so I can help loads of people.
0:00:48 > 0:00:50My dream is to be a Chelsea football player
0:00:50 > 0:00:52and I'm going to buy my mum a house
0:00:52 > 0:00:55so we can be out of this homelessness situation.
0:00:55 > 0:00:58My life's a bit topsy-turvy right now.
0:01:00 > 0:01:03We'll be filming ourselves so you can see what I see.
0:01:03 > 0:01:06So you can see what life's like when you have nowhere to live.
0:01:35 > 0:01:38Hey, I'm going to show you around my house so you can see
0:01:38 > 0:01:40what it's like for me.
0:01:41 > 0:01:44Me and my mum have to share bedrooms.
0:01:44 > 0:01:47Like, for a ten-year-old it's not that great.
0:01:47 > 0:01:50I'll show you something really disgusting about this.
0:01:51 > 0:01:55Baby snails with its friends, dads and mums.
0:01:55 > 0:01:57It's disgusting.
0:01:57 > 0:01:58The whole house is disgusting.
0:02:03 > 0:02:06- It's damp, it's full of snails. - Maggots.
0:02:06 > 0:02:12Sometimes you find cockroaches come in and I've got so many bites.
0:02:17 > 0:02:18So I'm helping my mum cook.
0:02:20 > 0:02:23Even though I'm in a house, I'm still homeless,
0:02:23 > 0:02:28because this is a temporary accommodation.
0:02:28 > 0:02:32So you don't know when we can be kicked out.
0:02:32 > 0:02:37I've moved houses five times and my mum's moved seven.
0:02:37 > 0:02:39The food's on. Looking good!
0:02:42 > 0:02:46I'm homeless because my mum works as a carer looking after old people
0:02:46 > 0:02:49and she doesn't get enough money to pay for the rent,
0:02:49 > 0:02:52so the council keeps on moving us from place to place.
0:02:55 > 0:02:57What does it taste like?
0:02:57 > 0:02:58Mm, mm!
0:02:58 > 0:03:03It's really hard to move houses because, like,
0:03:03 > 0:03:07you've settled in and then you're going to move again,
0:03:07 > 0:03:08and it's like...
0:03:08 > 0:03:14It's just not fair on us because we've been moved so many times.
0:03:21 > 0:03:27My mum found a cockroach in the kitchen and it's really horrible.
0:03:27 > 0:03:28Can you see that there?
0:03:28 > 0:03:29Inside the jar?
0:03:31 > 0:03:34But that's what it's like to live in the hostel.
0:03:34 > 0:03:37OK, so this is the tour of the hostel room that we live in.
0:03:37 > 0:03:40This is the sitting area and sleeping area,
0:03:40 > 0:03:42and we sleep altogether with our beds pushed.
0:03:42 > 0:03:44A lot of the time we're on top of each other
0:03:44 > 0:03:47because it's just really small and cramped.
0:03:47 > 0:03:49Oh, sorry, darling.
0:03:49 > 0:03:54It's really, really, really hard to have some space.
0:03:54 > 0:03:55Now Opi's hiding under the table.
0:03:56 > 0:03:59- Mum?- Yeah?- Why are we homeless?
0:03:59 > 0:04:02Because people always ask me and I don't really know.
0:04:02 > 0:04:05OK, erm, well, me and Dad can't live together any more and
0:04:05 > 0:04:09it's really, really expensive to rent privately.
0:04:09 > 0:04:11So it means we don't have anywhere to live
0:04:11 > 0:04:16until the council can find you somewhere to live that's affordable.
0:04:16 > 0:04:18OK, let's carry on walking.
0:04:18 > 0:04:19OK.
0:04:26 > 0:04:28OK, now I'm going to show you around my house.
0:04:28 > 0:04:31First, the room I'm going to show you is Malachi's room.
0:04:31 > 0:04:32It's a bit small.
0:04:32 > 0:04:37And then the room next to it is mine and my younger sister's room.
0:04:37 > 0:04:39We have the bathroom.
0:04:40 > 0:04:41Hi.
0:04:41 > 0:04:45We can't actually have a bath because the tank is too small.
0:04:45 > 0:04:47This is our kitchen
0:04:47 > 0:04:49and then this is our garden.
0:04:49 > 0:04:51As you can see,
0:04:51 > 0:04:55there's, like, loads of weeds in it and it's actually a poisonous weed,
0:04:55 > 0:04:58so we can't actually go in the garden.
0:04:59 > 0:05:03Even though the house I'm living at at the moment has many problems,
0:05:03 > 0:05:05it was much worse before.
0:05:05 > 0:05:07I used to live in a B&B.
0:05:07 > 0:05:09This is my mum.
0:05:09 > 0:05:11She's been really, really good throughout the whole of this,
0:05:11 > 0:05:14but to be honest, we're still quite fortunate because there's so many
0:05:14 > 0:05:16people who are worse off than us.
0:05:16 > 0:05:18I know.
0:05:18 > 0:05:21The statistics is like 80,000 kids are in a bed and breakfast,
0:05:21 > 0:05:23so we do have to be thankful that...
0:05:23 > 0:05:25- Yeah...- ..where we are.
0:05:25 > 0:05:27I mean, even some of the stories that you hear
0:05:27 > 0:05:31of people's temporary accommodation is far worse than what we've got.
0:05:35 > 0:05:39I can't play football around here because I don't have a garden
0:05:39 > 0:05:42and everywhere you go, there'll be a sign
0:05:42 > 0:05:45saying that you can't play football and you'll get a fine.
0:05:47 > 0:05:50My mum's going to take me to the park
0:05:50 > 0:05:54because I never get the chance to play football, and it's miles away.
0:05:56 > 0:05:58Been walking ages and we're still not there.
0:06:00 > 0:06:03Ugh, it took so long to get here,
0:06:03 > 0:06:05but now I'm going to show you some tricks.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10My dream is to be a Chelsea football player
0:06:10 > 0:06:11and I'm going to buy my mum a house,
0:06:11 > 0:06:14so we can be out of this homelessness situation.
0:06:17 > 0:06:20Playing football is when my mind is empty
0:06:20 > 0:06:23and I don't think about being evicted from this flat.
0:06:23 > 0:06:25Even though the house is horrible,
0:06:25 > 0:06:27we can't afford the rent,
0:06:27 > 0:06:30and we're waiting to find out if we have to move out.
0:06:32 > 0:06:34The new flat could be even worse.
0:06:38 > 0:06:40Wheeee!
0:06:40 > 0:06:42Can I come round to your place today?
0:06:42 > 0:06:46Right now I'm living in a hostel because I don't really have a home.
0:06:46 > 0:06:48So...
0:06:48 > 0:06:50there's strict rules that you can't have visitors.
0:06:50 > 0:06:52I'm afraid you can't.
0:06:52 > 0:06:53Why do you live in hostel?
0:06:53 > 0:06:57Because I don't have anywhere else to live, so I'm basically homeless.
0:06:57 > 0:07:00I thought homeless meant when people lived on the streets.
0:07:00 > 0:07:02Well, not really.
0:07:02 > 0:07:06It only means that you don't have somewhere that you feel comfortable,
0:07:06 > 0:07:07and that is yours.
0:07:07 > 0:07:11- I don't think it's fair you have to live there.- Me neither.
0:07:15 > 0:07:17We're coming, we're coming!
0:07:17 > 0:07:20So we're just at the park now so that we can get out of the house,
0:07:20 > 0:07:23cos that home's getting a little bit crowded.
0:07:23 > 0:07:25Well, the last one there's a rotten egg, so...
0:07:27 > 0:07:28You won.
0:07:28 > 0:07:29Hi!
0:07:37 > 0:07:40I'm done with this one cos I feel sick. This is really dizzy.
0:07:40 > 0:07:44Oh, yeah, I forgot from here that you can see where our old B&B is.
0:07:44 > 0:07:45What's a B&B?
0:07:45 > 0:07:47A B&B is where we used to live.
0:07:47 > 0:07:50When we lost our house, this is where we were moved to.
0:07:50 > 0:07:51- You don't remember?- No.
0:07:51 > 0:07:53We had to share a house with another family.
0:07:53 > 0:07:54I don't remember it.
0:07:54 > 0:07:58Well, we had to share a room and we were all sleeping in the same place.
0:07:58 > 0:08:00We had to share a bathroom, we had to share a kitchen.
0:08:00 > 0:08:03- With the other family? - The living area, yeah.
0:08:03 > 0:08:04Mm-hm.
0:08:04 > 0:08:06And we all had to stay in one bedroom.
0:08:06 > 0:08:09- OK.- And you shared a bed with Mum.
0:08:09 > 0:08:11No, I don't remember that.
0:08:11 > 0:08:12We were there for six months
0:08:12 > 0:08:14and we were only supposed to be there for six weeks,
0:08:14 > 0:08:16so that's a long, long time.
0:08:16 > 0:08:18We had no space to ourselves.
0:08:18 > 0:08:21And this was literally like the only place where we could come and relax.
0:08:21 > 0:08:23Do you want to go see it?
0:08:24 > 0:08:25Yeah.
0:08:37 > 0:08:40Well, it doesn't look that horrible from the outside.
0:08:40 > 0:08:43- But it was from the inside. It wasn't really nice.- Yeah.
0:08:43 > 0:08:46This room right where the windows are, that's, that's...
0:08:46 > 0:08:48- That was our room. - The room that we shared.
0:08:48 > 0:08:50- Oh.- All five of us.
0:08:50 > 0:08:52OK.
0:08:52 > 0:08:54And there was damp on the walls.
0:08:54 > 0:08:56Th-that's disgusting, then.
0:08:56 > 0:08:59And the other family never kept the bathroom tidy
0:08:59 > 0:09:03so there was always, like, the toilet was never flushed.
0:09:03 > 0:09:05- Eurgh.- And it was disgusting.
0:09:05 > 0:09:08Do some people actually stay there for six weeks?
0:09:08 > 0:09:10I doubt it, they leave them in there for as long as possible,
0:09:10 > 0:09:13but let's hope they're not going through the same thing that we did.
0:09:13 > 0:09:15OK. Let's go to that slightly nice home.
0:09:15 > 0:09:16- Yeah.- Let's go.
0:09:19 > 0:09:22When I get older, I'd like to be a human rights lawyer
0:09:22 > 0:09:24because I've been through many different experiences
0:09:24 > 0:09:27and I don't want children to go through the same thing.
0:09:32 > 0:09:35Most of my friends don't even know what eviction is.
0:09:35 > 0:09:38I knew that since I had to move the first time.
0:09:38 > 0:09:42Eviction is when the council kick you out of the house
0:09:42 > 0:09:44for a various reason.
0:09:44 > 0:09:48My mum can't afford the money for the rent sometimes,
0:09:48 > 0:09:49so we get evicted.
0:09:49 > 0:09:51It makes me feel very stressed
0:09:51 > 0:09:55and I don't know where we're going to go if we get evicted again.
0:09:55 > 0:09:59I really want a new house, but at the same time, I don't want to move.
0:09:59 > 0:10:03If we to move, then I'm going to have to say, like,
0:10:03 > 0:10:07my last goodbyes to my friends and I'll never see them again.
0:10:07 > 0:10:09And, yeah...
0:10:19 > 0:10:22Mum's taking me out for hot chocolate to have a chat.
0:10:22 > 0:10:24I don't know what it's about. Let's go.
0:10:24 > 0:10:28Could I order a hot chocolate and a cup of tea, please?
0:10:28 > 0:10:30- Sure, I'll bring it over. - Thanks very much. Thank you.
0:10:33 > 0:10:36Mum, you never take me out for hot chocolate by myself.
0:10:36 > 0:10:38What's this all about?
0:10:38 > 0:10:41Erm, I've got a bit of news that I wanted to talk to you about,
0:10:41 > 0:10:43- just me and you.- Yes?
0:10:43 > 0:10:48Cos you know that I had asked the council if, erm,
0:10:48 > 0:10:49we could move out of the hostel
0:10:49 > 0:10:53- cos I didn't think it was big enough for us.- Yeah?
0:10:53 > 0:10:57And unfortunately they have said no.
0:10:57 > 0:10:58I don't want to go back.
0:11:02 > 0:11:03Why did they do that?
0:11:03 > 0:11:07Well, the law says that, erm,
0:11:07 > 0:11:12a room our size is big enough for two people.
0:11:12 > 0:11:17- And because you and Opi are under the age of ten...- Mm?
0:11:17 > 0:11:21..legally, you don't count as a whole person, you're half a person.
0:11:21 > 0:11:24- That's stupid. - So I've got two half-people...
0:11:24 > 0:11:27- That's stupid. - ..and one adult makes two.
0:11:27 > 0:11:28I think that's silly.
0:11:28 > 0:11:30I agree.
0:11:30 > 0:11:32Don't we?
0:11:32 > 0:11:33I'm sorry, babe.
0:11:36 > 0:11:39For the past three years, I've been helping campaign
0:11:39 > 0:11:43to help change the homelessness situation.
0:11:43 > 0:11:45Our group is just made up of loads of children
0:11:45 > 0:11:49who have been through homelessness, care...
0:11:49 > 0:11:51This is Shanon,
0:11:51 > 0:11:52this is Layla
0:11:52 > 0:11:54and this is Leah.
0:11:54 > 0:11:58So this is my badge from when I went to go and speak,
0:11:58 > 0:12:01um, to the UN in Geneva.
0:12:01 > 0:12:03When we came back,
0:12:03 > 0:12:07the UN committee said that they wanted to focus on homelessness,
0:12:07 > 0:12:12so then we put together a housing and homelessness campaign pack.
0:12:14 > 0:12:16I want to do more.
0:12:16 > 0:12:19When I'm older, I want to be a human rights lawyer
0:12:19 > 0:12:21so I can help loads of people.
0:12:21 > 0:12:24However, for now, I'm just going to stick to try and campaign
0:12:24 > 0:12:27for children going through homelessness.
0:12:27 > 0:12:30One thing that's really important to me is the fact that children are
0:12:30 > 0:12:33still being put in bed and breakfasts
0:12:33 > 0:12:35even though it's illegal for a child
0:12:35 > 0:12:37to be put in a B&B for longer than six weeks.
0:12:37 > 0:12:40But the government are still doing it.
0:12:40 > 0:12:42So that's one thing I really want to change.
0:12:47 > 0:12:50So, Henry, here is the letter from the council again.
0:12:50 > 0:12:53It's telling us that we have only two weeks to leave.
0:12:53 > 0:12:57We've only just moved into this house and now we have to move again.
0:12:57 > 0:12:59We keep on getting so many eviction letters
0:12:59 > 0:13:02and it's just stressing us out
0:13:02 > 0:13:05because we just get too many. It's annoying.
0:13:05 > 0:13:06So where are we going to go now?
0:13:06 > 0:13:08I don't know. I have no clue.
0:13:08 > 0:13:11We have to go back to the council, homeless unit.
0:13:11 > 0:13:13I don't know where it will end.
0:13:13 > 0:13:14It's hard, Henry.
0:13:14 > 0:13:16That's not good, Henry.
0:13:18 > 0:13:20I'm really upset.
0:13:20 > 0:13:24To be evicted, it feels, like...
0:13:26 > 0:13:29..bad, because I'll have to leave all my friends
0:13:29 > 0:13:31who are out there when I play.
0:13:31 > 0:13:33To make new friends all the time is nerve-racking
0:13:33 > 0:13:37cos every time you make friends, you say,
0:13:37 > 0:13:39"Oh, yeah, can I be your friend? Can I play with you?"
0:13:39 > 0:13:42And then as soon as you start to get into that,
0:13:42 > 0:13:45playing with your friends at the beginning,
0:13:45 > 0:13:48you have to leave them because you you got evicted.
0:13:48 > 0:13:52How are you going to make any friends to play with after school,
0:13:52 > 0:13:55on the weekends, the summer and holiday?
0:14:01 > 0:14:03My alarm just went off.
0:14:03 > 0:14:04I guess I should start getting ready.
0:14:06 > 0:14:09Even though our situation in the B&B was really bad,
0:14:09 > 0:14:12we had to share one room for the five of us.
0:14:13 > 0:14:15Yeah?
0:14:15 > 0:14:17And we shared it with people that made it so dirty.
0:14:17 > 0:14:20Still took 18 months to get this place
0:14:20 > 0:14:22and it's not even that good because it's temporary.
0:14:22 > 0:14:24There's just way too many homeless people
0:14:24 > 0:14:26and not enough houses to go round.
0:14:26 > 0:14:30Something needs to change cos the system is just really messed up.
0:14:30 > 0:14:32Come on, Jade. Hurry up. You're going to be late.
0:14:32 > 0:14:34OK, Mum, I'm coming.
0:14:38 > 0:14:43I'm off to see Maria, who helps run the Change It campaign I'm part of.
0:14:43 > 0:14:47And what we're trying to do is change the homelessness situation
0:14:47 > 0:14:49in the UK for children like me.
0:14:49 > 0:14:52So I'm hoping that Maria has some ideas
0:14:52 > 0:14:55how I can help more and get more involved. Let's go.
0:14:56 > 0:14:59- Hi!- Hi, Maria.- Hi. How are you?
0:14:59 > 0:15:00Good.
0:15:02 > 0:15:04We're really pleased that you want to do more.
0:15:04 > 0:15:07We have got something coming up next week that you can come along to
0:15:07 > 0:15:09which is an event in Parliament.
0:15:09 > 0:15:12Does that sound like something you'd be interested in?
0:15:12 > 0:15:15Yeah. I've kind of, like, realised that homelessness
0:15:15 > 0:15:20is still a growing problem and I need to do more to help out,
0:15:20 > 0:15:23so that other children don't have to go through what I went through.
0:15:23 > 0:15:27One thing I wanted to ask you about is if, at the event,
0:15:27 > 0:15:29you might be willing to give a speech?
0:15:29 > 0:15:30Erm...
0:15:30 > 0:15:34I would be a bit nervous to speak in front of all those MPs.
0:15:34 > 0:15:37Yeah. I can understand you'd be nervous,
0:15:37 > 0:15:39but I know that you'd be really, really good at it.
0:15:39 > 0:15:42You can speak really well about your experiences
0:15:42 > 0:15:44and all of the work that you've done with us.
0:15:44 > 0:15:46So I think you'd be great,
0:15:46 > 0:15:49but we'll be there to support you as well if you're feeling nervous.
0:15:49 > 0:15:51Thank you.
0:15:51 > 0:15:52Thanks!
0:15:55 > 0:15:57For the event that's going to be happening on the 25th,
0:15:57 > 0:16:00I'm quite nervous, because I don't really know how, erm...
0:16:00 > 0:16:04I don't even know if I'm going to be able to talk to all the MPs.
0:16:04 > 0:16:06But that's it for now. Bye.
0:16:09 > 0:16:11So me and my mum,
0:16:11 > 0:16:15we are looking on the internet for properties to move into,
0:16:15 > 0:16:18because we're being evicted from this house.
0:16:18 > 0:16:21Being homeless, you get points for various things,
0:16:21 > 0:16:24like how bad your living situation currently is,
0:16:24 > 0:16:27how many people are in your family, that kind of thing.
0:16:27 > 0:16:31And every week you have to check if you have the points to be at the top
0:16:31 > 0:16:34of the list to be offered a flat.
0:16:34 > 0:16:38You still have to pay for the rent and we can't afford most places.
0:16:38 > 0:16:41That one is way out of our budget.
0:16:41 > 0:16:43That one's too expensive.
0:16:43 > 0:16:45Yep, that's £370.
0:16:45 > 0:16:48Tiny house in Greenford
0:16:48 > 0:16:52for £1,580 per month.
0:16:52 > 0:16:54Seriously?
0:16:54 > 0:16:56- Yes.- Man.
0:16:56 > 0:16:58I hate it.
0:16:58 > 0:17:01They don't want you to have, like, have a house,
0:17:01 > 0:17:06they want you to, like, be on the streets and stuff, because
0:17:06 > 0:17:09they just have to have people that do not take housing benefits
0:17:09 > 0:17:14because they know that the people that do go on housing benefits,
0:17:14 > 0:17:17they know that they're the poor ones here.
0:17:17 > 0:17:19That makes me feel really sad.
0:17:26 > 0:17:28So where are we going?
0:17:28 > 0:17:31So we're just going to go to the cafe cos I haven't got any Wi-Fi
0:17:31 > 0:17:33in the hostel, and I want to have a look at some houses.
0:17:33 > 0:17:35- OK.- OK? Come on.
0:17:35 > 0:17:40Every week, my mum has to take us somewhere with Wi-Fi
0:17:40 > 0:17:43to look at what flats have come up to rent.
0:17:43 > 0:17:46I hate having to do it because it takes ages
0:17:46 > 0:17:48and we never find anything anyway.
0:17:51 > 0:17:53Mm-mm.
0:18:23 > 0:18:24Oh, hun.
0:18:27 > 0:18:29It's going to be all right.
0:18:29 > 0:18:31I will get this sorted.
0:18:31 > 0:18:34- Oh, Mum...- I'm sorry.
0:18:45 > 0:18:48I've got so much to write my speech about
0:18:48 > 0:18:51but I just really don't know where to start or how to start.
0:18:51 > 0:18:55But first I think I might get a couple facts.
0:18:55 > 0:19:01More than - whoa - 250,000 are homeless in England.
0:19:01 > 0:19:04And this was in 2016.
0:19:04 > 0:19:08Whoa, these statistics show how much of a problem
0:19:08 > 0:19:10homelessness is in the UK.
0:19:10 > 0:19:12# Work, work, work, work, work, work
0:19:12 > 0:19:15# He said me haffi Work, work, work, work, work, work
0:19:15 > 0:19:18# He see me do mi Dirt, dirt, dirt, dirt, dirt, dirt
0:19:18 > 0:19:20# So me put in work, work, work, work, work, work... #
0:19:20 > 0:19:22- Hi, Mum.- Hi. How's it going?
0:19:22 > 0:19:24- It's good.- Finished?
0:19:24 > 0:19:26Yeah, just about.
0:19:26 > 0:19:28But I don't really want to show anyone what I've written.
0:19:28 > 0:19:31Yeah, but Jade, how are you supposed to do this
0:19:31 > 0:19:34in front of everybody if you're not going to do it in front of me?
0:19:34 > 0:19:35Have you got any advice?
0:19:35 > 0:19:39Don't be nervous about being nervous!
0:19:39 > 0:19:42When you go there on the day, you'll be fine, you know,
0:19:42 > 0:19:44a little bit of nerves never hurt anybody anyway.
0:19:44 > 0:19:47- Thank you. - You're welcome, my darling.
0:19:47 > 0:19:49- You'll be fine.- OK.
0:19:49 > 0:19:51You can - wait - you can read it.
0:19:51 > 0:19:53But you can't!
0:19:57 > 0:20:00Hi, guys, so I just got back from school
0:20:00 > 0:20:04and my mum's on the phone to the estate agent
0:20:04 > 0:20:08and we might have a possibility of getting a new house.
0:20:08 > 0:20:09What are they saying, Mum?
0:20:10 > 0:20:12Cross.
0:20:12 > 0:20:13Fingers crossed!
0:20:13 > 0:20:15Oh, my good Lord!
0:20:15 > 0:20:18Wow! Henry, bingo!
0:20:18 > 0:20:22They just gave us a new flat, nice flat where we're going to live.
0:20:22 > 0:20:24And the snails are gone!
0:20:24 > 0:20:26We'll never see them again!
0:20:26 > 0:20:27Yes!
0:20:28 > 0:20:29Get in!
0:20:29 > 0:20:31- Whooooooo!- Ha-ha!
0:20:31 > 0:20:32Get in!
0:20:34 > 0:20:37So today's the day I'm going to Houses of Parliament
0:20:37 > 0:20:38to do my speech.
0:20:38 > 0:20:43We're also going to talk to MPs about why B&Bs are so bad.
0:20:43 > 0:20:46I'm really nervous, but I'm going to try and take my mum's advice
0:20:46 > 0:20:47and try not to be.
0:20:51 > 0:20:54Right, so we're on our way to the Houses of Parliament.
0:20:54 > 0:20:55How do you feel about your speech?
0:20:55 > 0:20:58Erm, I'm a little bit nervous, but I'm quite confident.
0:20:58 > 0:21:00I think you'll do all right. In we go!
0:21:03 > 0:21:04Erm,
0:21:04 > 0:21:07so this is where I'm going into.
0:21:07 > 0:21:09How are you feeling?
0:21:09 > 0:21:11Erm, I'm a bit nervous to talk in front of everyone,
0:21:11 > 0:21:13but otherwise I'm OK.
0:21:16 > 0:21:21So Jade's going to tell us some of the key facts about why we're
0:21:21 > 0:21:23here today and what it is that we want to change.
0:21:27 > 0:21:32So in 2013, 1,560 children
0:21:32 > 0:21:35were living in B&Bs.
0:21:35 > 0:21:37And since then, in 2016,
0:21:37 > 0:21:42it's got up to 3,390.
0:21:42 > 0:21:46And over a third of families housed in B&Bs in 2016
0:21:46 > 0:21:48lived there for longer than six weeks.
0:21:48 > 0:21:50And six weeks is the recommended amount
0:21:50 > 0:21:52that you should have to stay there for.
0:21:56 > 0:21:59So I think my speech went pretty well,
0:21:59 > 0:22:02and after that we had the opportunity to meet with the MPs
0:22:02 > 0:22:06one-on-one to tell them about our own experiences.
0:22:06 > 0:22:09A week on Tuesday, we have a debate in the House of Commons
0:22:09 > 0:22:11- about temporary accommodation... - Yeah.
0:22:11 > 0:22:14..and we really want to tell the stories of people who have
0:22:14 > 0:22:16lived in temporary accommodation.
0:22:16 > 0:22:18I wondered if you might tell me a bit about your experience.
0:22:18 > 0:22:19Yeah, sure.
0:22:19 > 0:22:22In our B&B, it was five of us
0:22:22 > 0:22:24and we all had to share one bedroom.
0:22:24 > 0:22:27And there was another family that stayed there with us.
0:22:27 > 0:22:29We shared the kitchen and we shared the living area.
0:22:29 > 0:22:31Have you met Renee and Jade, Siobhain?
0:22:31 > 0:22:33- Oh, no. Hello, Renee. Hello, Jade. - Hi.
0:22:33 > 0:22:36They lived in temporary accommodation in Acton
0:22:36 > 0:22:37for six months, a B&B.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40I was saying we might try and use it in the debate if we can,
0:22:40 > 0:22:42cos it's a really powerful one.
0:22:42 > 0:22:44- Thanks a lot for opening up to us. - Thank you.
0:22:44 > 0:22:46Thank you very much. Nice to meet you.
0:22:46 > 0:22:48It was quite nice that someone was taking down notes
0:22:48 > 0:22:50on what we were saying, cos it kind of shows that
0:22:50 > 0:22:53they're actually trying to make a difference.
0:22:53 > 0:22:56So next week, Tuesday, they're going to have a three-hour debate
0:22:56 > 0:23:00in Parliament about temporary accommodation,
0:23:00 > 0:23:03so hopefully they'll be able to use what we've given them today
0:23:03 > 0:23:06in the lobbying event, um,
0:23:06 > 0:23:08to strengthen their argument.
0:23:08 > 0:23:11And now we're going to go home because I'm really tired,
0:23:11 > 0:23:15but I feel like we had a very productive day and we got a lot,
0:23:15 > 0:23:17we said a lot, we said what we needed to say.
0:23:17 > 0:23:19Yep.
0:23:19 > 0:23:22SCHOOL BELL RINGS
0:23:22 > 0:23:25I'm at Sensi's school and I've got some news for her.
0:23:25 > 0:23:26- Sensi...- Mm-hm?
0:23:26 > 0:23:29OK, so, erm, I've got some news for you.
0:23:29 > 0:23:31Oh, I hate it when you say that cos it's always bad.
0:23:31 > 0:23:33No, no, no, no, no.
0:23:33 > 0:23:35This time it's really good news.
0:23:35 > 0:23:38Erm, we haven't had anywhere to live for...
0:23:38 > 0:23:39- over 16 months.- Yeah?
0:23:39 > 0:23:42And we've been in a hostel and it's been hard work for all of us.
0:23:42 > 0:23:44Mm?
0:23:44 > 0:23:46But we've got somewhere to live now.
0:23:46 > 0:23:48- Really?- Yes, my darling,
0:23:48 > 0:23:50we've been given somewhere to live and we will,
0:23:50 > 0:23:52er, if we, erm,
0:23:52 > 0:23:55- want to go now, we can go and have a look at it.- OK.- And get the keys.
0:23:55 > 0:23:58- OK?- OK, let's go. Eeee!
0:24:03 > 0:24:06So I'm outside the front door of our new flat
0:24:06 > 0:24:08and I'm really excited to go in,
0:24:08 > 0:24:11so my mum's going to film my reaction.
0:24:14 > 0:24:15OK...
0:24:15 > 0:24:17I'm a bit rubbish at this.
0:24:23 > 0:24:25SHE WHISPERS: My God...
0:24:25 > 0:24:27There's no carpet, but it's...
0:24:29 > 0:24:32Oh, my gosh!
0:24:32 > 0:24:34Yeah. There's power.
0:24:34 > 0:24:35Which one is this?
0:24:37 > 0:24:38I've got my room!
0:24:41 > 0:24:43So I'm going to see my room.
0:24:43 > 0:24:45Which one is it?
0:24:47 > 0:24:50I think this is going to be my room.
0:24:50 > 0:24:51Let's put the light on, shall we?
0:24:53 > 0:24:54Oh!
0:24:55 > 0:24:58Oooooh, eeeeee!
0:24:58 > 0:25:00How do you feel, Mrs?
0:25:00 > 0:25:02Oh, it's so much better than the hostel.
0:25:02 > 0:25:05That cramped, tiny room.
0:25:06 > 0:25:09Maybe we'll do that.
0:25:09 > 0:25:10We're in!
0:25:13 > 0:25:16Hey, guys, so I'm finally in my new flat.
0:25:16 > 0:25:19Because we couldn't afford enough money for a private flat,
0:25:19 > 0:25:21the council have put us in a different flat.
0:25:21 > 0:25:23Have a look.
0:25:23 > 0:25:25This is my own bedroom.
0:25:25 > 0:25:28I have this much space,
0:25:28 > 0:25:30which is pretty good!
0:25:30 > 0:25:32I don't have to sleep with my mum any more.
0:25:32 > 0:25:33Finally!
0:25:33 > 0:25:36There's no more snails and no more mould
0:25:36 > 0:25:38and I can play football outside.
0:25:38 > 0:25:41And that's the best thing about it.
0:25:41 > 0:25:44Mum, I'm just going to play football in the garden. See you in a bit.
0:25:53 > 0:25:54GLASS SMASHES
0:25:57 > 0:26:00When I went to the Houses of Parliament to give my speech,
0:26:00 > 0:26:03I also spoke to Siobhain McDonagh
0:26:03 > 0:26:09and, erm, she said that she was going to give a speech in Parliament
0:26:09 > 0:26:12a couple weeks later, erm,
0:26:12 > 0:26:16and she was going to talk about the homeless problem.
0:26:16 > 0:26:19So today we're going to watch what she said.
0:26:19 > 0:26:22- Has it started yet? - No, it's just about to start now.
0:26:22 > 0:26:24Take Renee and her sister Jade.
0:26:24 > 0:26:26She mentioned your name! Oh, my gosh!
0:26:26 > 0:26:29Two young, brave girls who I had the pleasure of meeting in Parliament
0:26:29 > 0:26:31just a fortnight ago.
0:26:31 > 0:26:33After living in their friend's house for over a year,
0:26:33 > 0:26:36Renee and Jade's family became homeless
0:26:36 > 0:26:39and had to move to temporary accommodation in Acton.
0:26:39 > 0:26:43Does the Minister agree with me that a B&B is no place for Renee
0:26:43 > 0:26:46or in fact any family for longer than six weeks?
0:26:46 > 0:26:48Well done.
0:26:48 > 0:26:51It just kind of shows me that this is something that I should continue
0:26:51 > 0:26:54until not only I'm helped,
0:26:54 > 0:26:57but loads of other children that are going through the same thing.
0:27:02 > 0:27:04- Say hi, Elizabeth!- Hi.
0:27:04 > 0:27:07Your room's going to be way prettier than mine now.
0:27:07 > 0:27:10Oh, well, we'll see about that.
0:27:10 > 0:27:13If you're going through what I went through, all I can say is
0:27:13 > 0:27:14never give up.
0:27:19 > 0:27:20This flat is good.
0:27:20 > 0:27:23However, we'll probably have to move again soon,
0:27:23 > 0:27:25but I'm going to focus on the positives.
0:27:25 > 0:27:29That there is no snails here and I can play football outside.
0:27:33 > 0:27:38With me campaigning, there is change happening and people are taking,
0:27:38 > 0:27:39like, notice of it.
0:27:44 > 0:27:47Because no children in the UK should be homeless.
0:27:47 > 0:27:49I'm so proud of you and what you've achieved today
0:27:49 > 0:27:52and I think you've got a really bright future ahead of you
0:27:52 > 0:27:53- in politics.- Thank you.