A pregnant mother is afraid she will have to live on the streets with her toddler son after the local government ordered her to vacate their temporary residence.
A week before she is scheduled to be induced with the birth of her second child, Stacey Davies, 36, received notice to vacate the Birmingham apartment.
Ms. Davies, who struggles with her mobility and mental health, declined to transfer to another house since it was in a “disgusting” state and had just a bunk bed for sleeping arrangements.
Also, she turned down the house since it was too far from her support system and she would find it difficult to ascend the stairs.
The single mum says she was sent an email yesterday giving her 35 days to leave the two-bedroom flat upstairs in a converted house, where she says she had no central heating for three months.
She is due to be induced with her second child next Friday and fears that she will be left on the streets with her newborn and 15-month-old son.
Ms Davies said: ‘This will leave me, my child and my newborn out on the streets because of the fact I won’t accept a property that’s not in a suitable state to move my children into. I am stressed out and desperate. The council have left me in a dire situation.’
Ms Davies, who is registered disabled and is on medication for her mental health issues, has been in the accommodation, in Edgbaston, since December last year. She asked the council for a review of the housing as she struggles to get up the three flights of stairs with her pram and has deep vein thrombosis which causes her legs to swell up.
The homeless mum also says there was a fault with the boiler at her current address which took three months to fix.
‘The boiler was broken and it affected me and my son very badly, we had no heating even when it was snowing,’ she said.
‘My child has been to the hospital three times because he’s been sick with a chest infection because the house is so draughty.
‘I’ve also been to hospital several times and we’ve had to ring up the doctors with terrible colds. We couldn’t even move out of the bedroom because it was that cold.’
The boiler was fixed this week and she was offered another property four miles away in Weoley Castle but rejected it after a viewing.
Ms Davies said: ‘There was only one bedroom and no carpet, it was disgusting, the place was a disgrace. I don’t know how they expected a 15-month-old to sleep in the top or even the bottom of a bunk bed.
‘I’m 36 weeks pregnant and due to be induced next Friday, I would have been isolated in the middle of nowhere where I’d have no support for my mental health or anything else.
‘After I refused that property they’ve taken my housing status off me and they say they are coming out today to terminate my tenancy.’
The mum has been given a Notice to Quit by Birmingham City Council which states that the local authority has ‘discharged its duty’ to provide accommodation under the Homeless Act 1996.
She is now living with boxes of possession piled high as she packed in anticipation of a move before the viewing.
Her granddad, Malcom Davies, from Dudley, said: ‘Her situation is dire, they keep trying to put her in places that are not suitable for her.
‘Neither the place she is living in now or the one she has been offered with a bunk bed and stairs is suitable for a mum with a small child and a baby on the way. They have messed her about for years.’
More than 4,000 families were living in temporary accommodation across the city as of January this year, according to a report by BirminghamLive.
A spokesperson for Birmingham City Council said: ‘We understand Ms Davies had concerns about her temporary accommodation and worked hard to ensure appropriate accommodation was found, however the alternative accommodation offered was refused.
‘She is of course entitled to a review and this process is currently underway.
‘Unfortunately due to the number of people needing emergency housing we have to use a range of temporary accommodation.
‘We try to minimize the disruption to households but recognise that at times the only available options are outside of a household’s local community.
‘We would urge anybody who thinks they are at risk of being homeless to get in touch with us as soon as possible so our Housing Solutions Officers can work with them to prevent homelessness wherever possible.’