A mum has slammed North Lanarkshire council after she was evicted in February 2020 and had her belongings 'thrown out' - which included scan pictures of her babies who she never got to meet.
Gillian Rooney had been living with her son in a two-bedroom flat in Bellshill for around five years when she was slapped with an eviction notice and forced to leave over three years ago.
The 43-year-old said she was evicted after the council accused her of not paying her rent arrears - which Gillian says sat at £1,500.
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But Gillian has shared documents with Glasgow Live which show around £31 had been going out of her monthly Universal Credit allowance, towards the rent arrears to the council.
She has now slammed their "heartless" decision to make her homeless at the height of the coronavirus pandemic - something North Lanarkshire Council deny.
Gillian said: "I am sofa-surfing going from friend to friend and have been doing that for the last three years now. I feel like a burden on people.
"My mental health has been through the roof and this has taken its toll on me. I’ve got stress related psoriasis which has flared up - it’s one thing after another.
"I can’t get a private let because the agency is contacting the council and they are saying I’m not good for the rent. It’s been nothing but a fight with them.
"I feel drained and my hair is falling out. I’ve not seen my son in near enough three years because he’s in Wishaw and can’t get here all the time."
Gillian says her belongings, worth over £5,000, were allegedly thrown away after the council refused to deliver it to her aunt's home in Motherwell due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Now, she is calling on the council to give her a new home and reimburse her for the belongings she lost.
She added: "There were two scan pictures amongst my stuff which I can’t replace. They were my two dead children, the kids I didn’t get to meet and I have lost them.
"They don’t realise the consequences and impact it’s had on our lives. It’s heartless.
"I’ve been complaining for the last couple of weeks and I have put in a homeless application and they said they will investigate last week.
"They called me yesterday (March 1) to say they won't investigate and I made myself intentionally homeless.
"I am actually raging and trying my hardest to fight back the tears. I am in limbo and don’t know what to do or where to do.
"I am fighting a losing battle with this council."
A spokesperson for North Lanarkshire Council said: “Our former tenant owed considerable rent arrears built up over a number of years. Despite repeated attempts to resolve this issue and numerous repayment arrangements being agreed and then unfulfilled, we were left with no alternative but to pursue legal action and a decree for eviction was granted by the Sheriff.
“Our housing officers were in regular contact with Ms Rooney over several months to arrange delivery of belongings left behind in the property. No agreement was reached, and the items were subsequently disposed of.
“Ms Rooney has been offered temporary accommodation which has been turned down. We will continue to help anyone requiring accommodation and to fulfil our statutory obligations.
“All tenants are required to pay their rent and meet the terms of their tenancy agreement. We have in place a rent assistance fund which offers support to tenants who are struggling to pay their rent during the cost-of-living crisis. Anyone struggling should contact their local housing office as soon as possible.”
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