Middlesbrough has nearly 1,500 people on its social housing waiting list. Behind those statistics are families kept in limbo, in unsuitable housing or temporary accommodation. 

Our member Alwiya and her adult daughter are trapped in this situation. They are living in a house owned by North Star housing association in Middlesbrough, waiting on a move. The house is too big for them, their energy bills have skyrocketed, and it has problems with damp, mould and repairs not being dealt with.

Mould in Alwiya’s home

Both Alwiya and her daughter suffer with their physical health, which means they cannot use the stairs. They can’t even access the upstairs in their home.

Because they can’t get upstairs, both Alwiya and her daughter have to sleep together in their crowded front room, on mattresses that are too small for them. This is a strain on both their mental and physical health.

Alwiya and her daughter need a bungalow they can live in properly. Thousands of others are in need of social housing now. 

And because local housing associations aren’t building the housing we need, that means we need Middlesbrough Council to build real, genuine council housing now!

Write to your local councillor calling for them to propose building real council housing. Contact details can be found here:

https://www.middlesbrough.gov.uk/council-and-democracy/councillors/find-my-councillor/