A family who had to live in a Travelodge for six months after being evicted by their landlord have finally been given their own home. Single mum Charlene Pascoe, 34, and her children Freya, 12, Kieran, 10, and one-year-old Darcy were forced out of their rented house earlier this year when their landlord decided to move back into the property.
The family are from St Blazey, Cornwall - a county where 40 per cent of properties are used as second homes in some areas, which made it difficult to find somewhere else to live. After struggling to find any affordable accommodation, Charlene and her youngsters were left with no other option but to stay in a single Travelodge hotel room while the council tried to rehome them, the Mirror reports.
Six months later, the family have now finally moved into a house of their own - with Charlene describing the property as a "dream come true". The family were helped by Ocean Housing, a social and affordable housing association based in St Austell, who were able to find them a new home in the local area.
Charlene said: "To say we were elated would be an understatement. Myself and three children sharing one room was possibly the hardest period of our lives. That was until September 8, when I received a call from Ocean Housing to say we'd been shortlisted for a newbuild house in our chosen area. It really is the most beautiful home and I still can't quite believe we are lucky enough to call it our home. It is beyond our dreams."
After six months of living in a room with just three beds, a bathroom, a kettle and a cool box - with no kitchen or living area - the family were losing hope. Charlene, a support worker for adults, couldn't find anywhere in the area that was affordable for her family, and was worried her children would have to move school.
She added at the time: "Renting privately is just too expensive so we are limited in the options we have. All I can do is keep looking for council housing in the hope that I get lucky - although at the minute it seems like there is no light at the end of the tunnel."
Their new home is within an ongoing multi-million pound social housing development known as Polgrean Place, a former council estate. A group of 60 homes in total are being built, all of which are a combination of social housing and purchasable shared ownership homes.
Mark Gardner, Ocean's group chief executive said: "We are delighted that Charlene and her family have settled into their new home and are grateful for the support of Cornwall Council and Homes England for their support in making the delivery of these new build properties possible."
Charlene, who was having to cook and clean everything at her mum's house everyday whilst living at the Travelodge, has described her move as a "dream come true".
She said: "Ocean Housing have been absolutely amazing, explaining all of my questions and giving us support when we've needed it. I just want to say thank you to Ocean for making our dreams come true."
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