Shelter releases Christmas campaign showing families trapped in temporary accommodation

Shelter has released its Christmas advert for this year to showcase the temporary accommodation crisis.

The one-minute film, created by agency Don’t Panic specifically for Shelter, set to the song Total Eclipse of the Heart by Bonnie Tyler, shows a young boy singing the ballad at school and on his way back home.

The boy then returns home and finds his mother on the phone, trying to get through to the accommodation service, with the song playing as the hold music on the line.

Families stuck in temporary accommodation

According to Shelter, this year a total of 84,240 families in England will wake up on Christmas Day in insecure temporary accommodation.

In a press release, the housing charity claims to have worked closely with people who have lived experience of temporary accommodation “to understand the true human cost of homelessness.”

The advert, directed by the director of the musical The Greatest Showman, Michael Gracey, claimed they decided to have the schoolboy sing acapella, rather than with a backing track, in order to stand out amongst other Christmas adverts.

The housing charity claims people are stuck in temporary accommodation with damp and mould and is asking people to donate.

Mairi MacRae, director of campaigns and policy at Shelter, said: “With genuinely affordable social homes in short supply, families often face months if not years in cramped, insecure temporary accommodation, with little or no support. Every day we hear from people, like the mother in this film, who are terrified of being stuck living in appalling conditions, watching as damp and mould climb the walls.

“No family should face homelessness alone. This Christmas, we’ll be doing everything possible to help parents fight for a better home for their children.”

Anti-tenant rather than pro-tenant

The housing charity has previously praised the Renters’ Rights Act as “a victory for renters,” but as previously reported on Property118, the reality could be very different.

Landlord organisation iHowz says the Renters’ Rights Act is “anti-tenant rather than pro-tenant” and will force landlords to leave the market, leaving only expensive, rental properties.

The full advert can be seen below