By Lauren Chaloner
A pregnant mum says she fears for her daughter and unborn baby after being left without heating and hot water for THREE MONTHS.
Chloe Welsh is forced to boil pans of water on the stove and in the kettle to make baths for her two-year-old daughter Harlow.
The 25-year-old says the boiler in her two-bedroom flat in Redditch, Worcs., broke in January and has yet to be fixed.
Chloe, who is 12 weeks pregnant, uses a small fan heater to keep one room warm but says Harlow still suffers constant coughs and colds.
She says she has repeatedly told Sanctuary Housing, which manages the flat, about the issue but nothing has been done.
Chloe, who works at a garden centre, said: “This has been going since January 15 which is almost three months now and it is just getting out of hand.
“If I want to give Harlow a bath I either have to spend ages boiling up water on the cooker and kettle or drive an hour to my mum’s house.
“It isn’t just about the hot water not working, but it’s the petrol money, the time off work waiting for repairs and the electricity costs on the heater and kettle.
“I am under so much stress both emotionally and financially and nothing is being done.
“It is not acceptable and my daughter has had colds and been ill as it is freezing in the flat especially in the morning.
“I bought us both thick hoodies to wear at night but it’s so cold we wear them all the time inside the flat.”
Chloe, who moved into the property in 2021, says she feels as if she is being ignored by the housing provider.
She said: “I’m just exhausted and drained. It’s a joke. I just have no words for them even though I’ve argued this is an emergency repair.
“They haven’t even offered to put us up in a hotel.
“I’ve asked them to reimburse my costs as bills soon mount up and they’ve said we are all in a crisis.
“Three months is long enough and I just want my flat fixed. It’s really stressful and I don’t know what else to do.”
Sanctuary Housing manages 125,000 properties making it one of the largest housing associations in the UK.
A spokesperson said: “We are committed to completing the required repairs as soon as possible and are sorry that it has taken longer than it should have done to resolve this issue.
“We have offered the family the option of a temporary move until the repairs are completed and having also provided portable heaters for them to use, we have reassured them we will cover the cost of any extra energy used.”
The housing provider said it has also issued an apology directly to Chloe.
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