In Rennes, a photographer captures the overwhelming daily life of 69 homeless schoolchildren

Impossible to miss them. At Square de la Touche, in Rennes (Ille-et-Vilaine), around twenty tents, visible from the street, stand on the central reservation. Beyond the gate, others appear, huddled under the fir trees.

It’s been nine months since the first sardine was planted here. In mid-September, 230 people lived there, including 69 children. In the morning, almost all of them join a classroom. Then returns to camp, without electricity or clean showers or toilets. The health situation there is deplorable, and promiscuity is the norm. The noise of neighboring trains and nighttime fights penetrate the tents, like the rain and the cold. The schoolchildren’s dark circles or the smell of humidity permeating their clothes sometimes betray their silence. “We want our four children to be educated. But to study, you need good sleep. Here, it’s impossible,” laments Jan Said Said, an Afghan who worked as a surgeon in his country.

Since 2019 and the appearance of this type of camps in the metropolis, the number of homeless people who settle there has remained stable. On the other hand, the volunteers taking turns on site are worried about seeing an increasing number of people arriving in a regular situation. In possession of a residence permit, a visa, refugee status or French nationality, they represent half of the La Touche bivouac. The reasons? Around four years of waiting for social housing in Rennes, saturation of 115 and the reception center for asylum seekers. The means are lacking. Mobilized, the local community and the town hall are trying to improve and brighten up the daily lives of these children, while calling on the State to take its responsibilities in terms of emergency accommodation.