A furniture bank in Peterborough is addressing severe housing deprivation among local families, with children sleeping on floors and piles of clothing rather than proper beds. Care Zone, operating from a warehouse on the city's edge, has committed to spending £80,000 this year on beds and mattresses for households in crisis, part of a broader effort by the local authority to tackle what officials describe as a significant welfare issue.
"Many children are sleeping on a pile of clothes, or maybe just on the hard floor,"said Ashley Wilcox from Care Zone.
"That's not good enough."
The organisation is one of several partners in Peterborough City Council's crisis resilience initiative, a network providing food parcels, advice and other emergency services. According to the council, the fund will provide £3.6m annually to Peterborough over three years to help residents with short-term crises and longer-term financial stability, running from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2029.
How widespread is bed poverty in Peterborough?
The scale of the problem is substantial. About one-third of children in Peterborough are thought to be living in poverty, according to data from 2024 and 2025 published by the Department for Work and Pensions, compared with a UK average of 26%. This represents a particularly acute challenge in the region, with Peterborough having the highest percentage of children living in poverty among Cambridgeshire and Peterborough local authority areas in 2024, at 28.2%.
Of the 1,900 people who used Care Zone last year, approximately 845 were children. The organisation's volunteers clean and repair donated furniture and household goods, distributing more than 3,500 larger items and 425 smaller items such as saucepans and tin openers annually.
What conditions are families facing?
Wilcox described the living situations encountered by families seeking assistance.
"We see families that have basically been in temporary accommodation,"he explained.
"There might be a family of five in one single room sharing a few beds, sleeping on the floor, nowhere to cook."
The charity prioritises addressing bed poverty because of its documented impact on children's educational outcomes.
"For children in particular, a good night's sleep is really essential. By giving them a bed, they have a much better chance at doing better in school."
This concern aligns with council priorities. Esther Baffa-Isaacs, from the city council's poverty prevention team, stated that
"Child bed poverty is significant, and it has an impact on educational attainment."
What action is the council taking?
Peterborough City Council has launched a direct outreach campaign to identify and support households in financial crisis. The authority recently wrote letters to 3,200 households identified as being in a
"crisis state"to check they were claiming the correct benefits and knew where to find support.
Baffa-Isaacs explained the rationale behind this approach.
"That was what it came down to, just saying, 'you have help',"she said. A recent study by Policy in Practice found people in Peterborough were missing out on £92m from unclaimed benefits, highlighting a significant gap between available support and those accessing it.
The council's crisis payment scheme offers targeted assistance. One-off awards typically range from £50 to £150, with support sometimes provided as vouchers or goods instead of cash.
What barriers exist to accessing help?
Zameer Ali, Peterborough City Council's cabinet member for communities and public safety, highlighted language as a potential obstacle to families receiving support. He emphasised the need for information to be as accessible as possible, particularly for households where a parent may rely on their child to translate.
"We don't want you to go without and we certainly do not want you or your children to fall into any form of hardship,"Ali said.
"What you need to do is reach back to us and say 'I need help'."
Baffa-Isaacs acknowledged there remained scope for greater reach.
"There was 'much more we can do' to reach people in crisis,"she said.
How can families access support?
Care Zone accepts donations and provides furniture and household goods to families referred through organisations such as the council or their GP. The furniture bank operates from Dodson House, Fengate, Peterborough PE1 5XG, and accepts donations on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, 10am to 1pm. The organisation is currently keeping its telephone line open for emergency referrals, including for children with no bed to sleep on, while usual services are suspended.
What happens next?
The Crisis Resilience Fund is scheduled to continue until 31 March 2029, providing ongoing support to families in acute financial hardship. Care Zone's bed and mattress programme will continue throughout this period, with the charity's commitment to addressing child bed poverty forming a central part of the council's broader poverty prevention strategy.
Key Facts
- Care Zone plans to spend £80,000 this year on beds and mattresses for families in Peterborough
- About one-third of children in Peterborough live in poverty, compared with a UK average of 26%
- The council's Crisis Resilience Fund will provide £3.6m annually over three years to help residents facing financial crisis
- Care Zone distributed more than 3,500 larger items and 425 smaller items to families last year
- A recent study found Peterborough residents were missing out on £92m from unclaimed benefits
