A disabled single mum has been forced to send her children to live elsewhere after asbestos and dampness were found in their council house.
Mum-of-two Cheryl Kerr has slammed North Lanarkshire Council (NLC) after they homed her and her two children in a property on Uig Way, Shotts, which she claims is 'unsafe' for them to live in.
The 41-year-old, who suffers from fibromyalgia, was homeless for two-and-a-half years before NLC housed her and her children in the 'asbestos-ridden' property.
Cheryl told our sister paper, the Daily Record, she was horrified when she discovered the 'catalogue of issues' she found in their two-bedroom new home after she hired workmen to decorate.
She claims asbestos was found underneath the cracked floor tiles in their living room and kitchen on November 15 after a workman for Mears, a company contracted by NLC, took a sample from the flooring when he was out assessing the house following her complaints about dampness.
Cheryl's 16-year-old son and her eight-year-old daughter are currently living with their grandparents for their own safety.
Cheryl said: "It's not safe for my children to live here. It's also dangerous for me because of my illness.
"Why would I have my children staying in a house where asbestos has been discovered.
"The council have said they will remove the asbestos but why were we given this house in the first place.
"It should have been checked before a family were given the keys.
"The place also stinks of dampness, but the council haven't said what they are going to do about the problem.
"I just want us all to be together in a safe, liveable house. We've been through enough as it is."
She added: "I've had the keys for a few months now, but I didn't have enough money to decorate right away.
"When I booked decorators, we discovered the serious issues in the house.
"Two weeks ago a council contractor came out to access the property. He took a sample from our tiles and this is when they realised there was asbestos. The electrician and joiner also told me the walls were full of moisture and couldn't do anything with them.
"There are also holes in our bath so we can't use that either."
Cheryl said she was forced to give up her private let in 2020 after finding the bills too expensive to afford on her own following a divorce.
She added: "We were declared homeless and had to live with family as well as in a homeless unit, which we didn't feel safe in for the last two and half years.
"I accepted this house from the council because I felt like I had no other option.
"I was desperate for us to get out of the unit. I never imagined they would put us up in a house with this many problems. I feel so disappointed and let down."
An NLC spokesman told us: “We have instructed urgent works to be carried out in our tenant’s property to remove floor tiles, to treat damp found behind wallpaper and to replace items in the bathroom including the sink and bath.
“We have also instructed a survey to be carried out to identify the cause of damp and this will carried out in the coming days.
"We are working with Ms Kerr to remedy all the issues identified as a priority.”
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