For Mawushi, her journey to a safe home has been transformative, “I was sleeping in a train station with my children. Now I look out the window and feel calm. A place like this, it’s gives you warmth and security.”
A journey of loss and resilience
Mawushi’s story is one of unimaginable hardship. After losing her husband and facing abuse from a subsequent partner, she struggled to afford rent and resorted to chasing job opportunities across the Midlands. When a promising role fell through, she was left stranded with no money for food or travel. With nowhere else to go, she and her children resorted to sleeping at a train station.
She is grateful to the kindness of strangers who signposted her to the right support, and she was offered temporary accommodation through Nottingham City Council.
Mawushi was grateful for a place to stay, but found temporary hotel accommodation brought its own challenges. She explains: “For a long time we were moving around from one hotel to another, always packing. In a hotel there is nowhere to cook, nowhere to wash clothes.”
In July 2025, she and her children were offered a move to NCHA supported housing, and everything changed.
A place to heal and grow
Their new home doesn’t just offer a roof over their heads, it’s a place where they can rebuild their lives with dignity and support.
A new supported housing service, delivered by NCHA and commissioned by Nottingham City Council, the scheme of 14 independent flats is offering hope to families experiencing homelessness. Offering more short-term, stable accommodation, it allows families the space and confidence to look for a new home and plan for the future.
“It’s heaven here,” Mawushi says. “We can cook our own food. Cooking relaxes me – it’s one of my favourite hobbies. The boys feel at home.”
She speaks warmly of the staff: “They’ve helped me with food and electricity vouchers, set up my bills, and register with Nottingham HomeLink. They check in on me, make sure I’m okay, make sure the boys are okay. They make you feel alive – God bless them.”
“Before, the boys were always asking ‘When are we going home?’ They don’t ask anymore,” she adds. “This place gives you warmth and security. It makes you feel like you’re not alone – that people care.”
Mawushi has found secure employment in the city and, with this newfound stability, is actively searching for a permanent home for her family.
Her message to those who deliver supported housing services like hers is simple but profound: “Please keep it up. Some of us have nasty stories, the world has treated us badly, but the care you provide for me and my children is so important. Services like this give people hope, when they have lost hope. Please keep doing what you’re doing to help other people too.”
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