Daniella Westbrook has had to visit food banks.
The former ‘EastEnders’ actress confessed yesterday (08.12.14) that she’s been living in sheltered housing after losing her home and she’s now revealed she’s had to collect food from volunteer organisations to feed her and her children.
She said: "I get a small amount of money from my daughter’s dad for her … and that’s it really. I’ve been really very lucky with friends of mine that supply me with a food delivery to the house to help us out.
"And I have been to food banks this year because we haven’t had any money. It’s been difficult. Friends have pulled together and of them has lent me a little car to drive so I can get the kids to school."
The 41-year-old star – who has 18-year-old son Kai with former partner Robert Fernandez and 13-year-old daughter Jody with ex-husband Kevin Jenkins – insists that although this year has been the worst of her life, she’s thankful to her local council for putting a roof over her head.
Speaking on ‘This Morning’, she admitted: "They got us in somewhere within two weeks, in sheltered accommodation which is like a bedsit, which is where we are now."
Danniella – who has famously struggled with drug addiction in the past – admitted to relapsing earlier this year and claims she’s now lost a number of jobs because of it.
She explained: "I’ve lost all my work. I was supposed to be in Torquay this Christmas in panto [pantomime] and as soon as I got exposed they called and said, ‘We can’t possibly have her at our theatre’, and other work I had lined up, I’ve lost because I’ve relapsed."
However, she refuses to place the blame for her current situation entirely on herself, adding: "Being a drug addict, you do bring a lot of stuff on yourself … I did relapse earlier this year, and I completely admit that. But I was clean for 13 years before that. I messed up. I’m a human being."
Danniella Westbrook forced to visit food banks
