Mother claims housing condition is making her children ill

Colleen Clear, 31, says she has been living in a property – owned by Affinity Sutton – in Washington Road for five years. However, Ms Clear – who lives in the property with her three children – claims she is living amongst mould, damp and a broken boiler. She said: “My children are all under 12. One suffers from asthma, another from autism and my eldest suffers with hyper-mobility. “The conditions within the property are impacting on my children and making them ill. “We have reported these issues to Affinity Sutton but nothing is being done quickly enough to help us.” Ms Clear also claims the house has two very unsafe gardens which her children cannot go out and play in. “The gardens are so unsafe that I myself have tried to sort them out so that my children have somewhere to go in the summer. “The boiler is very bad and desperately needs replacing. We are often left without heating or hot water and that is dangerous during the winter, especially with small children in the house.” The owner of the property Affinity Sutton has confirmed the issues surrounding Ms Clear’s property and say claims it is ‘providing support’ to her family. A spokesman for Affinity Sutton said: “We have been working with Ms Clear and her family to provide support in sustaining the tenancy and keeping the property safe. “As part of this, we have assisted with a clear up of Ms Clear’s garden - it is always the tenant’s responsibility , however, to ensure that their garden is maintained. In addition, we have provided advice on reducing mould growth in her home, having previously identified that condensation is the cause of the mould. “Mould is a common problem, particularly at colder times of the year, but there are some simple measures that can help to reduce it and any mould that appears can be safely removed with an anti-fungal solution. “We are also aware of ongoing issues with heating at the property. We of course understand the inconvenience this will have caused and upon each report we have acted swiftly to resolve the problem. “We are pleased that the heating and hot water is working in the property however because the resident has reported pressure changes in the boiler, we are attending the property this afternoon (January 12) to check that this is the usual changes we see during the colder months and nothing that will cause problems to the heating and hot water.” Don’t miss out on all the latest breaking news where you live. Here are four ways you can be sure you’ll be amongst the first to know what’s going on. 1) Make our website your homepage at www.midsussextimes.co.uk 2) Like our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/midsussextimes 3) Follow us on Twitter @midsussex_times 4) Register with us by clicking on ‘sign in’ (top right corner). You can then receive our daily newsletter AND add your point of view to stories that you read here. And do share with your family and friends - so they don’t miss out! The Mid Sussex Times - always the first with your local news. Be part of it.