Court No. 5, near the Liverpool docks, is one of the worst slums in Europe but, for the dozen families who live there, the warmth of friends and neighbours is a constant, as they share in the hardships and small triumphs of their relentless fight for survival. For women like Martha Connolly, each day is a struggle, and Martha must use all her ingenuity to feed and clothe her nine children in the face of the constant threat of hunger and disease.
In 1938 rumours of war reach the court and soon it's clear that the coming hostilities will change things for ever. Hard though this is this is the only life Martha has ever known -- can she prevent it being swept away?