Hi my name is Sarah,

On 20/12/25, around dinner time, my sister left her house. Within 10 minutes she got a call asking her to come back because a parcel had been delivered. When she opened her front door, she couldn’t see a thing, the house was full of thick black smoke.

The fire service later confirmed the cause of the fire was her shower that was fitted by the council.

As you can imagine, her life has been turned upside down. She’s now homeless with her two children aged 9 & 2, just five days before Christmas. The council have said the house is unsafe to live in, and there’s no clear timeframe for when the damage will be repaired.

She was offered two hotels, both completely out of her hometown. My sister is young and suffers with PTSD and anxiety, and she didn’t feel safe staying in those areas, so she declined. She was then told that because she refused, she would need to find her own accommodation and wouldn’t be reimbursed.

She’s paid for two nights in a local hotel, right before Christmas, which has already left her in debt.

my sister was told to grab what she could and leave immediately. Most of their clothes are now covered in soot, and there is fire damage throughout the whole house. We don’t yet know the condition of the children’s Christmas presents, which were stored in the loft above the bathroom where the fire started.

I’m setting this up to try and take a little bit of the financial weight off her shoulders. Anything donated would go towards travel and accommodation, laundrette, and as there’s no cooking facility’s or fridge/freezer in hotel rooms, managing meals on a day to day basis, and helping them get back on their feet until they’re able to return home and start restoring what’s been damaged.

As her sister I’ve done everything I can to try and help her but it’s nowhere near enough help as what she needs to support her family.

I know this time of year is hard for so many people. Any help at all, no matter how small, would mean so much, and if donating isn’t possible, even a share would be truly appreciated.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read.