‘How is Santa going to find me if we are homeless?’ Eight-year-old boy fears he’ll be left without presents this year after he and his mother were evicted from their home and went to live in a hotel

A mother told how her eight-year-old son asked her: “How will Santa find us if we are homeless?” after they were evicted and forced to move to a hotel.

Widowed Sarah, whose son Marcel has learning difficulties, told the BBC how they were kicked out of their rented flat because the landlord decided to sell it.

They are now waiting for Cardiff Council to find them a permanent place to live.

The council said it had a “good supply” of temporary housing for 1,700 families.

But due to “unprecedented demand” for housing, more than 200 people had to be housed in five hotels across the city.

Sarah and Marcel, 8, are just one of many families who will be spending Christmas in a hotel room.

The hotel room where Marcel and mother Sarah stayed.

Speaking to BBCSarah said: “No child should ever have to say that, they shouldn’t have to worry about Christmas and whether they get presents or not.”

The video shows the hotel room where Sarah and Marcel are currently staying, showing a shared bed and items cluttering the shelves.

Sarah went on to say that Marcel has global developmental delay and learning difficulties, and without a routine, he “goes crazy,” with “meltdown after meltdown.”

She told the BBC: “He doesn’t actually sleep that much because he wakes up scared at night because of the noise and other people moving around the hotel.”

Marcel doesn’t like the dark and wakes up screaming at night.

Marcel sat on the double bed in the hotel room he shares with his mother.

Marcel is pictured in the hotel room he shares with his mother.

Cardiff Council said it was giving priority to those in hotels to rehouse them.

The council recently said it was facing a housing emergency, with “extraordinary pressure” and “unrelenting” demand for homeless services.

Cabinet member for Housing and Communities, Councilor Linda Thorne, told a recent full council meeting that the city was going through an “incredibly challenging” time.

But she said the Welsh capital was not alone, with other major cities such as Glasgow and Edinburgh also declaring a housing emergency.

Sarah told the BBC no child should have to worry about whether they will get Christmas presents.

Social media users reacted to Marcel’s heartbreaking story, telling him: “Don’t worry baby, he’ll find you.”

“Cardiff is at the epicenter of this problem in Wales,” Councilor Thorne said. “This is the most challenging time for housing construction in decades.

“We are doing everything in our power to find a solution and a number of actions are being proposed to ease this pressure.”

According to Welsh Government data, as of September 2023, there were 1,602 recorded cases of homeless people being placed in temporary accommodation.

Of these, 397 were dependent children under 16 years of age.

In August 2023, 648 homeless people were transferred to long-term housing, which is 39 fewer than in July 2023.

Of these, 241 were dependent children under 16 years of age.