Mum, 18, 'will live on toast' after running out of money to feed baby

22 January 2024 , 14:30

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People are struggling to put food on the table due to the cost of living crisis (Image: No credit)

A town has rallied for a single teenage mum in despair who asked for help after she was left with no money for food or nappies.

Families with children in Huddersfield, Yorkshire, are struggling just to put food on the table due to the cost of living crisis.

Tanisha Bramwell, a community hero, said: "It's heartbreaking, people aren't living anymore, they're in survival mode and most of the time, their children are their only motivation". Tanisha and her team are helping more families in West Yorkshire who are in serious financial difficulty each day.

This week, a single 18 year old mum from Huddersfield had to reach out to Tanisha because she didn't have enough money to buy baby food or nappies for her daughter. The young mother is without a partner and her only support, her terminally ill mother, is unable to help.

But thankfully, Tanisha and her team were able to provide two weeks' worth of baby food and nappies for the mum. The grateful mum said she didn't want anything for herself, she just wanted to be able to provide for her daughter and that she would "live on toast" until pay day. Tanisha ensured she also had two weeks' worth of food.

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Tanisha revealed: "We had a young mother reach out in despair, she explained her situation. Her mother is her entire support system. Unfortunately she is now terminally ill. She only asked for support from our food bank to ensure her child could eat. She asked for nappies, milk, wipes, baby food, snacks, children's yogurts."

"I asked her what food she wanted for herself and she said 'oh no, just my daughter please, I can just eat toast until payday'. Me and my team decided to buy her usual shop. We completed her shop and delivered two weeks' worth of food. She had tears when we arrived." The mum sent Tanisha a heartfelt message: "Tanisha thank you from the bottom of my heart, things have been hard with my mum, I didn't want to stress her out. I have to do this on my own soon. You're a god send, when I am paid i will pay it all back."

Tanisha added poignantly: "Every person we meet, the circumstances are becoming increasingly harder to hear. People deserve better. Every door and house call we attend, is becoming harder and harder right now. Her message was hard to read, especially when she mentions that she will have to power through alone, eventually. People are really struggling."

* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can report any errors to [email protected]

Megan Shaw