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UK homelessness charity St Mungo’s has commissioned Stay! (Together), a free digital children’s book by Jeanne Willis, illustrated by Alice Larsson. Told through the experiences of two people and their dogs, it is intended to help families discuss homelessness and the barriers people can face when accommodation does not accept pets.
UK homelessness charity St Mungo’s has commissioned a free illustrated children’s book, Stay! (Together), to help families talk about homelessness with young children. Written by Jeanne Willis and illustrated by Alice Larsson, it draws on the experiences of two people who faced homelessness with their dogs and explores how difficulty finding pet-friendly accommodation can affect access to support.
The digital book follows Arwa and her dog Jacko, and Benny and his dogs Brandy and Casper. St Mungo’s says the stories are based on real experiences and are told through the dogs’ perspectives. The charity says the approach is intended to help children encounter the subject through animal stories and consider the experiences of people who are homeless.
According to the account in the supplied report, Arwa was reunited with Jacko three years after leaving him behind when she fled to London in 2018. In 2022, after losing her flat and struggling to find accommodation that accepted pets, she slept rough with Jacko. St Mungo’s outreach team later helped her move into a pet-friendly women’s service; she subsequently found her own home through the Housing First scheme.
Benny experienced homelessness in 2006 and later faced challenges with substance use. The report says Brandy offered stability and helped him stay substance-free for 13 years. After Brandy died in 2019, Benny struggled with grief and his mental health. He later had a dog named Casper, and St Mungo’s supported the pair in finding a stable home. The book is available as a free download on the charity’s website, with a narrated version voiced by St Mungo’s ambassador Kerry Godliman and alt-J musician Gus Unger-Hamilton.
How Pets Affect Access to Housing
The stories draw attention to a practical barrier: people may have difficulty accepting homelessness support if the accommodation available does not allow them to bring a pet. For someone who sees an animal as family, leaving it behind can be a serious obstacle to moving into temporary housing or other services. The book presents this issue for children while keeping the focus on individual experiences rather than treating homelessness as an abstract topic.
St Mungo’s cites sector estimates that 10% to 25% of people experiencing homelessness have a pet, while stressing that there is no official UK-wide count. The charity also points to the Homeless England database: of the 960 accommodation services listed, 21% reportedly said they accept dogs. Those figures indicate a potential gap in provision, but they are not a complete national measure of pet ownership among people experiencing homelessness or of all accommodation options.
The book’s immediate value is educational: it gives parents a story they can use to start a conversation and gives children a route into an unfamiliar issue. The charity says the wider aim is to encourage empathy and challenge assumptions about people without homes. That intention is not evidence that the book will change children’s attitudes or housing policy, and the source material does not report an evaluation of its effects.
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The Stories Behind the Book
St Mungo’s commissioned the book as a family-facing resource about homelessness. The supplied report says research commissioned by the charity and conducted among 1,363 UK adults in October 2026 found that 24% of parents surveyed found it difficult to discuss homelessness with children in an age-appropriate way. The same research reported that 92% of parents considered books useful for introducing social issues, 87% said animal stories could help children process unfamiliar experiences, and 85% found stories from an animal’s perspective particularly engaging.
These are survey findings reported by St Mungo’s, not independent measures of how children respond to this particular title. The report does not provide details about the survey’s sampling method or margin of error. The book’s authors are children’s writer Jeanne Willis and illustrator Alice Larsson; it combines the two people’s accounts with a format aimed at younger readers.
In Arwa’s account, she said she would not give up Jacko in exchange for accommodation. Benny described his dogs as a source of purpose and safety during periods of hardship. St Mungo’s project manager Lula Main said the charity provides pet-friendly accommodation “wherever possible,” linking the book’s subject to the support it says it offers.
“I had the option to give up Jacko for accommodation, but I refused. I would rather be homeless with my dog than without him.”
— Arwa, whose story with Jacko appears in the book
animal stories for kids about social issues
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What the Report Does Not Establish
The supplied report does not state the book’s exact publication date, how long it will remain available, or whether printed copies can be obtained. It directs families to download the digital title from St Mungo’s website and says a narrated version is available, but gives no details about access requirements or whether the audio has a separate download.
The reported survey figures are attributed to research commissioned by St Mungo’s, but the source material does not describe the survey’s methodology. The pet-related housing figures are also limited: the estimate that 10% to 25% of people experiencing homelessness have pets is not based on an official UK-wide count, and the 21% figure reflects services listed in a database, not every accommodation provider. The report does not say how many people have used the book or whether its use has been assessed.
children's book about pets and housing
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Where Families Can Find It
Families can download Stay! (Together) for free from the St Mungo’s website. The charity also offers a narrated version voiced by Kerry Godliman and Gus Unger-Hamilton. The report provides no further launch events, distribution plans or evaluation timetable. Any later information about how widely the book is used, or whether it changes access to pet-friendly accommodation, has not been specified in the source material.
free illustrated children's book homelessness
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Key Questions
What is Stay! (Together)?
It is a free illustrated children’s book commissioned by St Mungo’s, written by Jeanne Willis and illustrated by Alice Larsson. It follows the experiences of Arwa and Benny, and their dogs, during periods of homelessness.
Where can families get the book?
The digital book can be downloaded for free from the St Mungo’s website. The supplied report also says there is a narrated version, but does not give further details about access.
What stories does the book tell?
It features Arwa and Jacko, and Benny and Brandy and Casper. The accounts show how the dogs provided companionship and support, and how finding accommodation that accepts pets affected their circumstances.
Why does the book focus on pets?
St Mungo’s says pets can provide comfort and companionship, while accommodation that does not accept animals may make it harder for someone to take up support. The book uses the dogs’ perspectives to introduce homelessness to young readers.
Are the housing and survey figures official UK-wide statistics?
No. The report says there is no official UK-wide count of people experiencing homelessness who have pets. Its survey findings are attributed to research commissioned by St Mungo’s, and the supplied material does not include the survey methodology.
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