IKEA has partnered with homelessness charity Shelter to launch ‘Real Life Roomsets’ in four of its stores, highlighting the real living conditions of those who are forced into temporary accommodation.
Providing a stark contrast to the showrooms in IKEA stores, the roomsets are based on real stories of people local to the stores involved. Sam, Claire, Channah and Kate all worked with the brand to share their experiences with the UK.
Each roomset – located in IKEA stores in London, Manchester, Birmingham and Bristol – highlights the ‘cramped, dangerous, and grotty’ spaces that an increasing number of people who are experiencing homelessness are forced to experience when living in temporary accommodation. The spaces are provided by councils to qualifying families who are experiencing homelessness.
According to the Swedish brand, due to a shortage in social housing, some families are finding themselves living in temporary accommodation for years, and are very often asked to move several times with short notice. One in every 208 people in England is currently experiencing homelessness, with thousands more likely to lose their homes by the end of the year as a result of the cost of living crisis.
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“The focus on building ‘affordable’ homes rather than social housing is a distraction from finding a real solution to the housing emergency, which currently relies on the unsuitable provision of temporary accommodation where families are being forced to live in uninhabitable and unacceptable conditions,” IKEA UK and Ireland country retail manager and chief sustainability officer, Peter Jelkeby, said.
“At IKEA, we believe that everyone deserves a place to call home, which is why we’re so proud to partner with Shelter in demanding for long-term change, whilst also helping those directly affected by the housing emergency in our local communities.”
IKEA has also partnered with Shelter to amend the ‘Levelling up and Regeneration Bill’ with a new Infrastructure Levy, to ensure all new truly affordable homes are social housing.
Shelter chief executive Polly Neate added: “A grotty hostel or B&B is not a home, but this is the reality for too many families stuck in temporary accommodation. That’s why we’re working with IKEA to show the grim living situations that families who become homeless are having to face – from having no space for children to do homework or play, to having to share beds, to being moved miles away from schools and support networks.
“With rents at an all-time high and no end to the cost of living crisis in sight, we’re desperately worried that more people are going to become homeless this year. The solution to this crisis is simple and it’s staring the government in the face: we must build a new generation of good quality social housing that people can actually afford to live in.”
