A woman who became a mum of quadruplets at the age of 50 has finally moved into a new home after the family became homeless last year and spent months living in a Travelodge.
Tracey Britten and her four children Francesca, Fredrica, Grace and George, all aged five, were forced to live in two rooms at the budget hotel after being left homeless in 2022 by no fault of their own.
Talking about their living situation, Ms Britten, who hit the headlines in 2018 when she became Britain's oldest mum to quadruplets, said it was "horrendous" and added: "I wouldn't wish living there on my worst enemy."
We can now reveal that the Brittens have settled into a new home not far away from their previous address in North London.
The mum broke the record when she gave birth to quadruplets at age of 50 after seeking IVF treatment in Cyprus.
She and her husband Stephen, who works as a roofer, were shocked by the news and worried they would not be able to cope.
Three years later, they received notice that they would have to vacate their four-bedroom home because the landlord wanted to sell.
With soaring housing prices and limited time, the family had no choice but to take the two Travelodge rooms provided by Enfield council's housing department.
Tracey slept with her four children in one and the other was used as a play area while Stephen stayed at his mother's house.
Tracey said: "It was awful. There was aircon but it didn't work so it made the kids ill. The council wouldn't give us food until I sent a picture of my kids sick in bed, more or less praying.
"They then gave us breakfast and an evening meal but it was like being at an all-inclusive - after a few days you’re so sick of the food and we had that for 23 weeks."
The 55-year-old explained that she had to fork out £1,300 to store her old furniture during this time.
Overall, she estimates that her costs of relocating amounted to around £10,000 during this time because she was unprepared to stay as long as they did.
Tracey explained: "I had to buy summer clothes from Primark and a new uniform from Asda because I was only prepared for the winter – I'd literally only packed 2 of everything for each kid.
"I never would have guessed I’d still be there for summer."
Stephen works as a roofer to support the family while Tracey – who is trained as an advanced aesthetics practitioner - is now studying to go into property because of her family's struggles.
Now the pair have secured a home near their old address with a garden, three upstairs bedrooms, and a loft conversion.
She said: "I feel so much more comfortable now. I did initially think it was a four-bedroom house, but I think they're saying the utility room is the fourth - you can’t put a kid in a room with an electric box - but anyway, it's a lovely house.
"The kids are really happy; we're still a bit upside down but they love it because they’ve got somewhere to play now other than a tiny room."
