Please help to return to normal life

My name is Ewa and I am 36 yo.

 

I live in London (UK) since 2010 with my 14 years old daughter and 4 dogs (3 of the are rescue dogs) and everything was going well till 10th July 2013.

 

On that date, in the middle of the night, due to a fire in next door flat – we have all became homeless. The fire completely destroyed the flat next to ours but also damaged our rented flat – especially the roof, making it unsafe/unfit to live it. Additional damage was caused by the Fire Brigade trying to put out the fire.

 

The flat was “secured” by the Police, my dogs were taken to kennels and myself and my daughter were placed in homeless accommodation provided by the council where I was not allowed to take my dogs. I was also told not to go back to the flat as it was unsafe and secured.

 

So secured it was that few weeks later when I did go in – it turned out that someone broke in and stole our belongings. So not only we were homeless, we also lost everything that was not damaged by fire/water – we lost it to thieves who broke into the flat that was “secured” by the Police.

 

Still, I was hoping to be able to return to my flat in reasonable time and have my dogs back with me as having them in kennels was not a long term option. The cost was £20.00 per dog per day and with 4 dogs very expensive.

 

2 kind people that I have heard about my story via Facebook – agreed to take my dogs in pairs into free “foster care”  while I was waiting for my living situation to improve. All the time I was looking for a place where I can live together with my daughter and the dogs but in UK it is very difficult to find a landlord who will accept dogs as well as part of the rent being paid by benefits.

 

In the meantime it turned out that we will not be able to return to the flat we were living before the fire as the landlord’s insurance company is dragging their heels re payment which means the landlord is not in position to make necessary repairs.

 

I have found a temporary accommodation for myself, my daughter and 4 dogs – a room (yes, one room in a shared house) and moved in few weeks ago, hoping I can stay there till my flat is repaired. Short lived joy as now the landlord’s mother fell ill and he wants to bring her to UK meaning me and other lodgers have to move by the 21st October.

 

It is extremely difficult to find a landlord who will accept 4 dogs and  part payment of rent via Housing Benefit dotation but I have now managed to find one – a small 2 bed house where I could move in with my daughter and our 4 dogs on the 27th October.

 

BUT – I need to be able to pay £1500 deposit plus £1500 rent in advance, total of £3000 which despite working (I am a hairdresser) I simply do not have.

I would so much like to return to a normal life where I have a place to call home for myself, my daughter and our 4 dogs. I am not worried about material things but I need a place to live and the amount needed to move in is out of my reach.

 

After about 6 weeks, the Council will substitute my rent and pay part of it for me as I am a single mum on low income but the initial £3000.00 I need to find myself.

 

Can anyone help please? I have no relatives in UK and my family back home (Poland) are not well off so can not help me out.

 

 Any dotation, no matter how small will help me. Thank you so much.

 

Kind Regards,

 

Ewa