'Desperate' Newham mum and daughter, 10, trapped in flat so small they have to eat on bed
| Published date | 10 April 2024 |
| Publication title | MyLondon (England) |
Ms Deus has measured the room as being less than 10 metres squared -something the council disputes, measuring it at 12.5sqm
Ms Deus said: "The flat only has one small room, with a separate bathroom. This small room is a kitchen, bedroom and living room all in one. My daughter doesn't have space to study, to do her school activities, and she doesn't have space to move around or play. She does not even have anywhere to sit properly, we sit on the bed to eat and we sit on the bed to watch TV."
Aurora told the Local Democracy Reporting Service LDRS: "I'd like a room of my own one day. It would be nice for my mum to have her own space and to study or work in her own room so I don't have to keep interrupting her or asking her for stuff and what we're having for dinner.
She added: "I would personally like to have a garden so I can actually go outside and play maybe a little bit of football and to have some fresh air as well." Ms Deus and Aurora have to store some of their belongings outside on the patio because there is nowhere else to put them.
Liz Wyatt, a campaigner from Housing Action Southwark and Lambeth HASL called the accommodation 'hazardous' and said Ms Deus has also been battling with damp and mould. Ms Deus applied to be on the Newham Council's housing waiting list in June 2023 but was awarded the lowest priority band and was put at the bottom of the housing waiting list alongside people with no additional needs.
Since threatening legal action, Newham Council has accepted that Ms Deus is overcrowded and is short of two bedrooms, but says she can't be awarded Severe Overcrowded Priority Plus because she needs to have one more 'reasonable preference'. A Newham resident can only qualify for the council's Severe Overcrowded Priority Plus band if they are severely overcrowded and have one other reasonable preference as defined in statute:
They are homeless They need to move on medical or welfare grounds They live in insanitary or overcrowded housing or unsatisfactory housing conditions They are owed a duty by the council They need to move to...
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