Leah Phillips, now 25, has turned her experience of homelessness into a mission to help others. After losing her mother at age 10 and being raised by a family friend, she secured a place at Leeds Beckett University but faced mental health struggles and ultimately homelessness when she could not find affordable housing. Today, she works with Stepping Stone Projects, a charity supporting people at risk of homelessness, and is calling for rent controls to address the crisis.
From Grief to University
Leah's mother died when she was just 10 years old. She and her four siblings moved in with a family friend who was already a foster carer, joining seven other children in the household. "I probably didn't realise the effect of that until maybe in high school," Leah told the Manchester Evening News. "I have memories of playing up a bit at school, running out of class saying 'I miss my mum'."
Despite the grief, Leah managed to get into Leeds Beckett University to study media, communications and culture. She recalls "crying on the phone" to the call handler after missing the grades, but was eventually allowed onto the course. "I had never thought about going to university," she said. "But I think it was just a new city, away from life at home."
Struggles with Mental Health and Homelessness
Leah enjoyed the party life in her first year, but things turned sour when she could not move in with friends due to lacking a guarantor. She had to resit her first year during the COVID-19 pandemic and struggled with anxiety. "I got in a really bad place," she said. "I was going out drinking to escape my own issues. When it came back to class, I couldn't stomach it."
Unable to finish her dissertation, Leah left university without completing her course. With her accommodation ending, she faced homelessness. She was advised to move back to Rossendale but there was no space. She slept on friends' sofas and was offered temporary accommodation for only 56 days.
A Lifeline and a New Purpose
Stepping Stone Projects offered Leah an apprenticeship and helped her find a place to live by acting as a guarantor. Now, she sees the crisis firsthand. "Rents are just skyrocketing at the moment. It's just not affordable," she said. "Look at how many homeless people there are. Whatever we have got in place, is it working? Clearly not."
The Rental Crisis in Greater Manchester
Average monthly private rents in Oldham rose by almost 11% in the year to February 2026, with Bolton at 10.3%, compared to a UK-wide increase of 3.5%, according to ONS figures. Rents are outstripping local wages across much of Greater Manchester. Seven of the region's 10 boroughs are above the 30% rent-to-income affordability benchmark. In Manchester, average rent takes up 43.4% of median monthly pay.
Dave Smith, chief executive of Stepping Stone Projects, said: "Greater Manchester urgently needs more homes, but supply alone won't fix the crisis if the lower end of the rental market remains unaffordable for people on ordinary incomes. A Living Rent would give the city-region a clear benchmark linked to local earnings."
Political Responses
Housing and homelessness are key topics in the upcoming Greater Manchester mayoral election. Former mayor Andy Burnham, currently the sole contender, has called for further devolution of housing policy and a major social housing programme. "Britain has lost almost 1.5 million council homes since the 1980s," he said. "We will use public land to reduce costs."
Under Burnham, the Greater Manchester Combined Authority introduced an £11.7m programme to tackle reliance on temporary accommodation, the A Bed Every Night Scheme, and the Good Landlord Charter covering almost 254,000 properties.
