A mum who was made homeless earlier this year claims she's received "disgusting" treatment in her search for a council house.
Natalie Pinch, 30, from Wallasey, was issued a section 21 notice by her private landlord in March this year. The mum-of-one claims she contacted Wirral Council's housing options team straight away, but was told she would have to wait unil she was served an eviction notice before the council could act.
When she received the notice in June, Natalie alleges she passed the information on to the council, but was simply told "someone would be in touch". Natalie, who lives with her mum and eight-year-old daugter, says she wasn't contacted by a housing officer until a week before she was due to be evicted.
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Natalie said the housing officer assigned to her case made her feel "like an inconvenience" and claims the officer even said: "When I saw your number come up, I wasn’t going to answer”.
On September 27, bailiffs arrived at Natalie's property and the family were taken to a bed and breakfast in Liverpool. The 30-year-old told the ECHO : "They put us into temporary accommodation in Liverpool, bearing in mind my daughter’s school is in Wallasey.
"There was me, my mum and my daughter in a tiny bedroom but we stuck it out for three nights before I got in touch and said it wasn't suitable. My mum has incontinence problems and it's not fair that I was made to share a bed with her . It was degrading for both of us."
Natalie claims there were no cooking facilities in the B&B, and the upstairs shower wasn't accessible for her mum, who had to wash in the sink for the duration of her stay. The family were then moved to a second B&B, however the owner refused to allow them to bring medical equipment, such as a CPAP machine, into the building and, when challenged on this, told Natalie "f*** off you're not coming in."
Natalie and her family are currently living with a friend after allegedly being told there was no other temporary accomodation available. She said: "My friend and her parents told us that we were able to stay with them temporarily as they wouldn’t see me, my mum and my daughter on the streets, even though this means the house is overcrowded.
"We are still waiting on help from housing options to be put into permanent accommodation. The treatment we have received from Wirral housing over the past few months has been disgusting.
"We feel as though they have not wanted to help us and made us feel like we are an inconvenience."
A Council spokesperson said: “Wirral Council’s housing options team is continuing to support Natalie as she seeks longer-term accommodation that suits her needs. There is currently a high demand for housing at the moment and a limited supply, but having been assessed as a high priority she is in a strong position to bid for available accommodation through the Property Pool Plus system. In the meantime, we would also be able to support her with appropriate temporary accommodation.”
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