Homelessness can happen to anyone – even qualified professionals. Tony came to the UK in 1976 after qualifying as a Paediatrician in the former Soviet Union, starting his career at the old St Bart’s Hospital, Rochester, and working at various hospitals in the UK. We met him early in 2016 when he arrived at Caring Hands having spent four nights sleeping rough. He had been evicted without warning, and we spent the day trying to find him somewhere safe to sleep.
“My career was terminated in 2005 following the Harold Shipman scandal, when I was asked
to produce my ILR (indefinite leave to remain in the UK—he is Nigerian). I had obtained this through a London solicitor some years earlier. Without it, I would never have been able to obtain my National Insurance number or medical registration. Unfortunately I’d lost my Nigerian passport and this document, so I lost my job and subsequently my lovely home.
I rented a flat in Chatham for a while, but eventually became homeless last winter.
“I contacted Caring Hands soon after. This organisation has given me enormous support
morally and otherwise—almost lifesaving. I am currently in my own accommodation, but I can’t bear to be there all the time. With rent of £415 to pay from my NHS pension, without the generous breakfast and lunch I get at Caring Hands I would not be able to cope.
“Please support this organisation as generously as you can. God bless and thank you.”