The hidden face of homelessness in Brighton

I love growing up in Brighton. It’s a city which has something for everyone – beaches, music, cafes, restaurants, and so much kindness. But it’s also a city where more than 2,900 families are living in ‘temporary accommodation’, many in the most awful conditions imaginable.

It’s supposed to be temporary but the reality is that many families end up stuck there for months, sometimes even years. When I tell people that, they can’t believe it. Most have no idea it’s happening right here on our doorstep.

How It All Started

When I was much younger, I didn’t understand any of this. I remember seeing people sleeping on benches or in doorways, and couldn’t understand why they didn’t have a home. It didn’t seem fair. That’s  when I started busking around the city to try to raise money for homelessness causes. When I was eight, I stood on a bench, and sang Hallelujah at the top of my voice in the middle of Brighton. I was terrified, and definitely couldn’t sing very well, but people smiled at me and put money into a craft box I found at home. That afternoon, I raised £67 and thought that would be enough to buy everyone a home!  My parents gently explained it wasn’t quite that simple.

From Busking to Building Homes

Since then, I’ve busked, written songs and raised over £10,000 for homelessness charities. Through this work I’ve met families living in temporary accommodation who never know when they’ll have to pack their bags and move somewhere else. Imagine being a child and thinking that at any moment you might have to change schools and make new friends.

Hearing stories like these made me realise that raising money wasn’t enough. I needed to do something that actually tackled the root of the problem – that councils aren’t building enough permanent housing for families in need.

So, with a small but brilliant team helping me, I started Mission: HOME. We’re a community-powered initiative and our mission is simple: we want to turn small, unused council-owned sites into secure, sustainable council homes for families who need a permanent home.

We think the council would build homes on these small sites if they genuinely felt the public supported it. And we think that people would support it if they knew these sites existed and understood the impact they could make.

That’s where Mission: HOME comes in. We’re raising awareness, explaining the problem by showing the solution, and then helping people take action quickly and easily.

The Woodingdean Campaign

Right now, we’re full steam ahead with our Woodingdean campaign. There’s a site there which the council has identified for new social housing and it’s applying for planning permission to build four homes for families with children. It’s an underused patch at the end of a row of houses. There’s only a three-week consultation period when anyone can comment, either for or against. We want to show the council that people support this, so getting lots of “yes” comments really matters. So, if you think the development should go ahead, please visit www.missionhome.org.uk and we’ll help you send your support to the council.

Over the next few weeks, you might even see me going door to door in Woodingdean, chatting with residents about why small, unused sites like this should become homes for families who desperately need stability.

How businesses can help

We already have some fantastic local businesses on board, but we’re always looking for more support. Some businesses have helped by printing our leaflets, designing parts of our website, or offering their premises for events. Others have given professional advice or helped us connect with the right people.

Right now, we’re especially keen to partner with businesses that want to become official sponsors. You’d not only be supporting a really important cause but would be helping your own company, as people notice when companies support  their community.

You can also sign up to receive our newsletter and we’ll keep you up to date on what we’re doing and when there’s a new site you can help get approved.

I truly believe that if we work together – residents, businesses, councillors, and communities – we can make sure every child in Brighton & Hove has a place to call home.

And that’s what Mission: HOME is all about. Not huge buildings. Not impossible plans. Just small patches of land turned into big opportunities for families who need them most.