Homeless Mother Slept Rough Before Muir Helped Her Christmas Wish Come True
A MOTHER is looking forward to providing her son with stability this Christmas after being made homeless before finding Muir.
Rachel Lord was forced to face life on the street and was camping in a work unit after failing to secure a home when her previous landlord sold the property she was renting.
But after also spending time in emergency accommodation, the self-employed 32-year-old can now enjoy Christmas in comfort with her 12-year-old boy after Muir gave her the lifeline she needed to make her wish come true.
“It was horrendous,” said Rachel, from Colne in Burnley.
“We were homeless, we had nowhere.
“We were camping in an empty works unit.”
While Rachel was able to give her son more shelter at his father’s house, she struggled to find anywhere better for herself because of a unique set of circumstances.
My partner spends so much of his time working abroad that he is no longer effectively a UK citizen,” Rachel said.
“I am self-employed, but because of these circumstances nobody would take us as tenants.
“We had the money to pay, but people saw us as a risk.”
After approaching the council, Rachel moved into emergency accommodation, but she revealed that it lacked hot water and was in poor condition.
“It was far from ideal but it was a roof over my head,” she said.
“Then I got in touch with Muir. I had never thought social housing was available for people like me, but when I explained the situation they were lovely.
“A one-bedroomed property became available, so it was another step in the right direction, and Muir got me the keys within a couple of days.
“It meant I could provide a home for my son, and even though it just had one bedroom, it was somewhere to base ourselves.”
“Then my partner’s contract ended and we couldn’t afford to get anywhere else, so we spent 12 months in that situation before he got another contract.
“From then, Muir’s Tenancy Service Officer, Rebecca Miller, kept us informed of anything that came up.
“We weren’t pleading poverty but living in one bedroom with my son meant we had to make another move.
“Then this two-bedroomed property became available. It ticked all the boxes and we were happy to take it.
“The transition with Muir was really easy – everything was just so good, and Becky was absolutely amazing, I hope she realises how much she has helped us.
“We can get back to being a normal family and feel like we can provide for my little boy again.
“I can give him stability for the first time in two years, and some of the things you take for granted.
“At times, we felt like it was never going to happen but now we are really looking forward to Christmas.
“I would recommend Muir to anyone else after everything they have done to help us.”