Family of seven living in single room plea for help

A FAMILY of seven who have been living in just one room for the past eight months are desperate to find alternative accommodation.

The mother of the family has made a heartfelt appeal to anyone who may have a place to rent to come forward as she said they are becoming increasing desperate.

“We have no cooking facilities, no fridge, no laundry facilities, we have no privacy and we are eating junk food in the street.

The family, consisting of the mother, father and five children, have been on the council housing list for the past year.

“We had been living in Kells but the landlord wanted the house back for his family, so we had to leave, we couldn't find anywhere else and they put us in emergency accommodation.

“It is just awful. The eldest is in college and has nowhere to study, there is no privacy, the children have no space to play.”

“We spend all out time looking for somewhere to rent, but it is nearly impossible. We are on HAP and we find that some landlords don't want to deal with HAP tenants.

“It is affecting our physical and mental health. We are eating junk food all the time, we have no cooking facility or fridge. The lack of space and privacy is affecting our mental health.

“It is also very expensive, having to live on takeaway and we have to bring our clothes to a laundry, which is another expense.”

“We don't want to live like this,” she said.

The Mayor of Navan, Cllr Eddie Fennessy said: “Seven people living in one room with no access to cooking or laundry facilities is horrendous. Unfortunately, their situation is not unique.

“I’ve worked with them for eight months trying to find a solution. Their difficulty is the housing list they’re on. There are very few four beds coming into circulation in the social housing sector in Navan. Those that do come into the system, are given to families who’ve been on the housing list for up to ten years in most cases. This family have been on that list for one year only.

“I really don’t know how they’re coping. They might as well be living in a prison cell. Their eldest daughter recently completed her Leaving Cert. How she managed to study in such cramped conditions is beyond me.

“I would like to take this opportunity to make an appeal, anyone that has a private rental property, can you please offer it to this family. It doesn’t have to be a four-bed property. They’ll get by in a three bed. Please end their suffering, they’ve been through enough,” he said.

A spokesperson for Meath County Council said: “We cannot comment on individual cases, but we advise all of our homeless clients to register with local estate agents to assist them with their search for a rental property. We would encourage this family to do that and to link back in with our Settlement Officers if they require further assistance.”