A three-year-old boy is believed to have got lead poisoning from his garden. And his mum is now desperate for the family to move out of the council flat as she feels the property is 'toxic' for her child.
Mum-of-two Layla Carter is trying to get the city council to re-house them, but she claims her request has been refused because some work has been done to the property to try and fix this. But she feels more tests need to be done as her son Vinnie's lead levels kept going up until he started staying elsewhere.
Ms Carter said that Vinnie has Pica, an eating disorder which causes him to eat things that are not typically thought of as food such as mud, sand or walls. He is also has additional needs and is being assessed for autism.
She said: "It is heart-breaking to know that he is going through something like this and it feels like the council and public health are not taking it seriously. I feel guilty that I can not protect him as a mother. I have no control over this which is not nice.
Read more: Criticism as council-owned home left empty for at least a year
"It has made me depressed and it is awful to live with this day to day. He is being poisoned by this property. It is not safe at all, but they are not listening to me whatsoever. They think we have done the front garden so that is sorted, but I think they should move us out of this address for the safety of my child with additional needs that is only three years old. It is not every day that a child gets lead poisoning. This property is toxic for my child."
The parent said that Vinnie started having white poos last year and that, despite taking him to A&E, they could not work out what was causing this.
The mum said that at the beginning of the year Vinnie started to eat the walls in the front room and he then had a blood test on March 23. Four days later, Ms Carter - who lives in a council flat in Hartcliffe - received a call from their GP to say he had lead poisoning, as well as being anaemic and having a low blood count.
"The GP told me they would contact public health and they contacted me within five days to have my garden and flat tested for lead," she said. "They came on April 24 and they tested the mud in the front garden, two sections of the back garden, a window sill and a door frame.
"I had to wait 10 working days for the results. I had an email and phone explaining the front garden was really high in lead and arsenic and that the council would come to dig the mud out and put concrete down. That was just for the front garden. They said the back garden was not too much of a concern and that inside the house it was okay."
Ms Carter said that the work to the front garden was done in May but that, in the following blood test, the lead levels in Vinnie's blood had doubled from 0.62 in May to 1.24 on June 23. At this point, the mum decided the property was not safe for them to live in and they are now staying at a relative's house, with the lead levels having dropped to 1.05 since.
The 27-year-old said she thinks the issue must be coming from the back garden as her property backs on to Hareclive Road, adding there used to be a petrol station by the property. "He was still eating mud from the back garden," she continued. "We try and stop him, but he gets very aggressive and he lashes out. It is awful, it is as if his body craves mud.
"It has been very stressful and I am on antidepressants now. My older son is having anxiety attacks since all this started as he gets very anxious thinking that he is going to get poisoned as well."
Ms Carter said that, in recent months, Vinnie has been having very bad stomach pains and can sometimes go ten days without eating food. She fears the lead poisoning could also be having a neurological impact and said his sleeping has been very bad, adding he only has up to four of broken sleep at night and wakes up constantly.
The mum said she has asked them to test more areas of the garden, but that her request has been declined. Ms Carter said she also asked to be moved, but the council has said no as the work has been done. She is appealing this decision.
A Bristol City Council spokesperson said: “The council is supporting the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) to investigate this case. After referral from the UKHSA, three samples were taken from the property by our Public Protection team.
"Two samples were taken from the rear garden and one from the front garden. The sample from the front garden found concentrations of lead above the nationally-recognised guideline criteria. From the findings, works were undertaken immediately by the council’s Estates Management Repair Service to dig out the affected soil and cover this area with concrete.
“Tests were also taken inside the house and the levels of lead within paint and water sources were not a health concern, and additional testing was not required by the UKHSA. The number of tests taken in the property and garden areas were as advised by the UKHSA. The nearby land, where there was once a petrol station, has also been investigated and has not been found to be a potential source of lead. The UKHSA and partners, including Bristol City Council, are keeping the situation under review while the investigation continues.”
Read next:
- Criticism as council-owned home left empty for at least a year
Empty council property left for two years to be put back into use
- Bus gate could see section of Cumberland Road closed to cars
- Major changes proposed for south Bristol shopping street
- South Bristol kids have 'never been to city centre or Suspension Bridge'
