An 85-year-old woman has been told she must leave her home in Saundersfoot, Pembrokeshire, after living there for over 27 years. In June, Anne Allsop was told by the Presbyterian Church of Wales, who own her property, that she would be facing a 'no fault' eviction from the cottage a month later.
The church's decision has left both her and her son Stephen angry and frustrated. Speaking to WalesOnline, Anne said that over the years she had turned the house into a home. "I've decorated and I've made it my own," she said. "They told me this was my home and I've got it until I die."
According to Anne, the announcement about her eviction came as a "complete shock", while her son Stephen said he felt the move by the church was "immoral". He claimed: "I think it’s appalling. It’s legal - I understand that, but I feel it’s completely immoral, especially when it’s coming from a Church that talks about love and looking after people on a daily basis. It’s mind blowing what they are doing, I can’t believe it." You can get more local news and other story updates straight to your inbox by subscribing to our newsletters here.
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He added: "How we found out was kind of bizarre. My wife runs a hair salon in the village. She was there one day, she got a message that said - you need to ring this number at 8 o’clock tonight. It was quite intriguing, there was no hint whether it was good news or bad news or whatever.
"And so at 8, we phoned and were told that my mother was going to be evicted and that she had six months to get out. Firstly, they should have never done it through my wife - my mother is fully competent and they fully breached her privacy," he claimed.
"She might not have wanted people to know that she was being evicted, she might’ve wanted to tell people she didn’t want to live there anymore. But no, she wasn’t given that option. We asked if there was a chance we could buy the property to be told that yes we could once it was sold on the open market. So basically, they want it empty to sell it."
Anne added: "What makes it worse is that I haven't heard anything from them. Not one person from the church has come to see me or see how I am doing. For all the years that I paid the rent on the dot every month, I kept the garden tidy and then nothing."
Anne is currently staying put at the house as Pembrokeshire County Council work to find her a property. Stephen and his niece have also been busy looking for a property, which has proven to be difficult.
Anne said: "My son and granddaughter are working hard to find something for me, but they can’t. A lot of houses here are holiday lets, and when they do hear of somewhere for me and look at it they find that it is a flat two storeys up or it's a house with stairs in it - I can’t do stairs. I have no place to go. I said to the letting agent, the next time you drive past here, do drive carefully because you might see me out on the road with all my goods and chattels. I am 85 years old, this is no joke.
"I feel bloody mad. I’m very angry. I’m mostly angry by the fact they haven’t told me themselves and they still haven’t told me. I was given a two month notice and I couldn't believe it - think about all the things I have accumulated over the last 27 years, two months is nothing."
According to Stephen, although he feared the news might have "broken" Anne initially, he believed his mother would remain resilient during her difficult time. He added: "The actual notice period ran out on Friday, the agent called her and asked when she would be handing in her keys - she said she wasn't going to.
"She’s a very strong woman, she’s been through a lot health wise, but her mental strength is stronger than ever. The news absolutely broke her to start with, but she’s got through that and now she’s just angry."
In response, a spokesperson for Presbyterian Church of Wales said: "It is of great concern to us that the current housing situation in Wales is in crisis. In this particular situation, unfortunately, the church needed to sell the two houses and notice was served in accordance with the law. As a church we are delighted that we are from time to time able to sell property to housing associations to provide affordable homes."
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