This community initiative aims to raise awareness about homelessness and mental health inspired by Amber’s personal connection after witnessing her sister, Hannah, experience homelessness.

To bring this vision to life, Amber partnered with Samantha, founder of the creative business Hartist, to design and deliver educational art workshops on homelessness and mental health.

A key feature of the workshops was Hannah’s Story, brought to life by Samantha. ‘This is Hannah’s story about never giving up and step by step, believing that tomorrow could be a better day’.

It is a short story designed to gently teach children about people experiencing homelessness with a small look into how that may feel.

The book has been based on Hannahs experiences of homelessness and her dream of one day living in a cottage with roses around the door and sharing that home with a Labrador.

In 2025, selected Oxfordshire primary schools were invited to take part in an Arty Hanns workshop with Hannah’s story as the focal point. This sparked important conversations about homelessness, mental health, and kindness from the children before they were encouraged to explore their hopes and dreams through art.

The success of the workshops meant the children’s artwork was used to design toiletry donation stations. These boxes would then collect toiletries to be distributed to homeless charities in Oxfordshire.

The Arty Hanns workshops and Hannahs Story were a huge success. To quote one child – ‘I learnt homelessness is not forever, there is always hope’.

This project has helped in the education of homelessness and mental health and has given children a better understanding of these subjects.

What next?

By self publishing Hannah’s Story, the book can be formally registered and made available online and in stores, allowing it to reach a much wider audience. Once published, copies can be distributed to primary schools across Oxfordshire and beyond, supporting teachers in delivering sensitive, age appropriate education on homelessness and mental health.

To make this possible, support from local businesses would be invaluable. Funding the self‑publication costs would directly enable the book to be printed, shared, and used as a powerful educational tool.

Businesses that contribute will not only be investing in a meaningful community initiative, but also helping to spark early conversations about homelessness, tackle stigma, and encourage empathy in children.

Hannah’s Story offers a rare opportunity to humanise a difficult topic through creativity and lived experience.