Our family of 4 is forced to sleep on living room floor in four-year battle over terrifying home…we’ve lost everything
A SINGLE mum has revealed how she “lost everything” in a four-year battle over her "terrifying" home.
Tanya Hall, 42, says she was forced to call social services on her autistic son after their living situation became too “unsafe”.
Explaining how the family has “lost everything” due to mould and damp, the healthcare assistant said her baby "doesn’t have a voice”.
Her son, nine-year-old Haiden, is non-verbal and experiences “difficult behavioural problems” - making the family’s turbulent living situation even more difficult.
Last year, the family moved in with Tanya’s mum Lilian, 58, in Acton, as their own home went under repair work following a flood leaving the property exposed to damp.
Tanya claims she has lost over £14,000 worth of household items from clothes, bedding, mattresses and more.
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Despite replacing her destroyed belongings in 2021, the “mould returned aggressively”.
She is now stuck in a battle with A2dominion, based in Ealing, West London, for support
Tanya told the Sun: “It’s been hard, I thought I would lose everything, I even thought I would lose me.
“The damp was very very bad, I can’t even explain, like moth balls, fur balls growing on clothing in green.
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“At one point, I called social services to intervene.”
Being forced to take refuge in her mother’s home over an hour and a half away, Tanya feared the repair work would affect Haiden who “does not like change at all”.
While having the kitchen painted, she removed Haiden from school for two weeks as he could not stay in the property during the changes.
She contacted social services and the school to ensure they were informed.
The mum continued: “I know sometimes, children can be taken away when the school complains on them.
“It was hard but I had to push them as I was so worried his behaviour would change.
“I couldn’t have him around for the painting and changes, he had to endure some of it but it was too much to see my baby with no kitchen.
“He likes cooked food but I couldn’t explain to him why he couldn’t have it.”
Originally told they would only need to vacate the property for eight weeks for repair work in May 2023, the family is “at a loss” after being offered no alternative or way to return.
Tanya said: “We don’t even have a front room anymore in my Mum’s house as it’s become a storage.
“I started buying things to replace the old stuff we threw away but now all the houses where we used to live are affected by mould.
“They refuse to fix it so I cannot go back, they owe it to me to put me somewhere else.
“Most of my other stuff has been in storage this whole time, so I don’t know how damaged that is either.
“It’s too much, I begged them, I said we are an asset to your society, we are not a liability.”
“It’s not down to me, they’ve taken me out of my home and if they cannot fix the property to live in, we cannot fix it, that is not my problem, that is their problem.”
Tanya spoke of the limitations the family face in finding another property, with Haiden’s difficult behaviour meaning they cannot live above the second floor due to her son having no hazard-awareness.
She added: “It’s especially hard for my eldest son.
“You have to show him when life knocks you down, you get back up, you don’t stay down and have excuses for why you’re down.
Despite “fighting” for years, Tanya now fears for her and her family’s future.
Living in a three bedroom property with her mother, who lives under a different council's remit, means there is no room for her boys to play and the property has also begun to accumulate mould.
She explained: “He can’t do anything.
“I am on a single bed but because Hayden is so attached, he won’t go with my mum at night.
“It means we are sleeping in a room with mould again, my room is affected the most.
“Haiden didn’t settle until September, that’s how long it has taken for him to adapt to being here, he doesn’t have his garden, the things he used to have.
“I made the garden at my previous home for my son, everything out there was for him, he’s an outdoor child but he doesn’t have that anymore.
Back in 2014 when the family moved into the A2dominion property, Tanya had no idea how difficult her life would become.
At first, the mum felt she was being overcharged for her electricity but could not figure out why.
Then, six years on, her mother noticed the tiles in her garden had changed colour and quickly came to understand a “rotten valve” was causing “boiling hot water” to leak outside.
Ever since then, the battle to have the property returned to a safe home has never-ended.
Tanya has since set up a GoFundMe page explaining how she had been left “without a home” for nearly two years and that “at this point” she has been “left with no choice.
Dawn Wightman Director of Homes and Communities for A2 Dominion said: “We would firstly like to apologise to Ms Hall for the ongoing housing problems she has faced. In 2023 we moved Ms Hall out of her property and offered her temporary accommodation and she chose to stay with friends and family with a payment for each week she has been out of her home. We also agreed an insurance payment, to Ms Hall, this year of just over £8000 for damaged belongings.
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“Surveyors have visited Ms Hall’s home to assess the cause of the damp and mould issues, and this is ongoing. We have agreed that Ms Hall will be put on the highest priority for a new home.
“We have been trying to locate a new property for Ms Hall’s household but the shortage of properties suitable for her needs in the area has meant this process has taken a lot longer than we would have liked. We will continue to work with Ms Hall to try and find a suitable home for her family.”
