'I slept rough in a forest - life's different now'

Patti Bialczak said she was "a completely different person" to when she was sleeping rough

A woman who slept rough in a forest after a family breakdown said her life had been transformed by a charity that helps young people find accommodation.

Patti Bialczak, 21, said she lived in a tent in Thetford Forest on the Norfolk/Suffolk border before receiving support from The Benjamin Foundation.

"It's quite scary for a girl to be all over the place, sleeping out in the woods," she said.

"From then to now, I am a completely different person. I'm not who I used to be."

Miss Bialczak described her home as "not a very nice place" and said she left aged 18.

But The Benjamin Foundation found her a place in supported accommodation, where she has lived for the past four years.

She has now found alternative accommodation and is in the process of moving out.

She said she was rebuilding her relationship with her family and had gained qualifications and a job as a gardener.

Matt Garrod of The Benjamin Foundation said there was a "bottleneck" caused by the lack of affordable housing

The Norwich-based charity helps young people with housing and support, and last year provided 60,564 safe nights and 42,915 hours of housing support, preventing 350 young people from being homeless.

Service manager Paul Faulkner said the charity worked with homeless young people to prepare them for moving on with their lives.

"What success looks like for us is people being able to maintain a tenancy and manage their bills," he said.

But Matt Garrod, director of operations, said there was a "bottleneck" caused by the lack of affordable housing and is calling on the government to intervene.

"Usually, people stay in our supported accommodation for around two years, but it's now harder for them to find somewhere to move on to," he said.

"We're seeing people stay with us for three, sometimes even four years — and that's really unacceptable."

According to figures from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), the proportion of housing for affordable or social rent in England has fallen from about 20% in 2000 to 16% in 2023.

The MHCLG has been asked for comment.