Record numbers of UK renters crowdfunding to cover bills | Social exclusion

Record numbers of people in the UK are turning to crowdfunding to cover rent and household bills; GoFundMe reported that more rent-related fundraisers were created in April than any other month on record.

The platform said donations towards rental support have increased by 60% since 2022, with more than 100,000 people a month contributing to help others cover housing costs.

“We have seen a notable increase in the number of people turning to GoFundMe to keep a roof over their heads,” a spokesperson said. “Every donation is a sign that when someone finds the courage to ask for help, their community helps them.”

Andrew Foster, 51, turned to GoFundMe after his Derby landlord increased his rent by 50%; this was an increase he could not afford, forcing him to move.

Foster makes and sells miniature figurines but her income has fallen by 40% after Brexit restricted her ability to sell overseas. He is also the full-time carer for his wife, who has complex mental health issues and has had to stop working.

“The only way I could find money to pay for the move was to apply for GoFundMe, but I also had to take out a loan,” she said. “I just felt I had no choice. I couldn’t borrow the amount I needed from friends or family.

“It was very difficult to throw everything at the wall and see what would stick. I really didn’t expect anything to come of it.”

He said the fundraiser was “extraordinarily successful” and he was overwhelmed by the donations he received, with the largest amount being £300. Foster has since maintained the occasional fundraising page to help cover large one-off costs, including car maintenance or loan repayments.

“Sometimes it’s the difference between going overdraft and not going overdraft,” he said. “It’s demoralizing and humiliating; the first thing you have to swallow is your pride and get out there and ask.

“I’d rather be on GoFundMe to give money to others. “If I won the lottery, I would track down some of these people and give them their money back.”

While the number of children living in homeless temporary accommodation in England has reached a record level, sleep disorders have also increased. Housing charities say an increasing number of people are struggling to pay their rent.

Data obtained through a freedom of information request showed that more than 300,000 families a year in England and Wales formally applied to their local council for discretionary housing payments (emergency grants to help with rent and deposits) between 2021-22 and 2023-24.

The number of rejected applications has increased by 40% over three years, from around 96,000 in 2021-22 to more than 134,000 in 2023-24.

Nick Jardine, 56, took to the GoFundMe after he, his mother and brother were given a section 21 “no fault” eviction notice at their home in Cornwall last year, shortly after Jardine was left disabled by a tumor in his spine.

With a shortage of social housing in the area, it looked likely that if they could not find the money for private rented accommodation, Jardine’s mother would be placed in temporary accommodation and Jardine in a care facility due to his physical disabilities.

“That was the final straw. I’ve had other people fund it on GoFundMe, from helping local bars stay open to flying toddlers, so I thought let’s give it a try and see what happens,” he said.

“It was an honest enough campaign. I don’t work so I can’t make any money; then we get evicted and it just snowballs. It was really a last-ditch effort.”

The family raised more than £5,500, which they will use to pay back the rent deposit and debts after the eviction notice reached the courts.

Jardine said: “It was incredible. Some of the donations came from people we didn’t even know, so that was quite impressive. But it’s not really what it should be, because what you end up with is the community having to pay for itself. It makes you think: What is the government actually doing to help us?”

Tayla Hopkins, 33, used GoFundMe to pay the service charge for their shared ownership flat in Birmingham, which rose from £800 to £4,600 a year, as she struggled with her physical and mental health.

They raised £2,421 in just a few weeks and were inundated with messages from friends and strangers offering support.

“I was questioning myself, whether I should ask for help, whether it was valid or not. I feel so ashamed of the debt I’m in,” they said. “I’ve never found it easy to ask for help. I don’t think we live in a world where things get done.”

“But going through this process of having to swallow your pride and ask for help, and then realize how loved and supported you are, is overwhelming.”

Hopkins hoped the fundraiser would also raise awareness of the problems faced by people stuck in shared ownership schemes where rising costs are leaving many people facing financial difficulties.

“It was only after going through the process that I was able to fully appreciate, they said, wait a minute, I bought it under the government’s affordable housing scheme and now it’s a joke to be in this position.”