HAP tenants in Offaly living for months in damp and the cold with no hot water
Damp, cold and no hot water are three of the problems which the tenants say they have been living with for several months
DAMP, cold and no hot water are three of the problems which tenants in Kinnitty say they have been living with for several months.
Anita Phillips, Riain Lane-Hutchinson and their baby Valentina Marie Lane are living in HAP accommodation in Kinnitty.
Both Anita and Riain have family in Birr. They were homeless for eleven months in Newbridge, Kildare, after which they were living in a tent for seven months near Bridge Street, Birr. They told me that Anita was pregnant while they were living in the tent.
Five months ago the Council arranged Housing Assistance Paymnent housing accommodation for them in Kinnitty.
“We were glad at first to get the accommodation,” said Anita, “but it's only one room and I don't think anyone would be happy in it for too long. The room is often very cold. When you touch the bed you'd think the bed had been outside in the frost all night! We often don't have hot water.”
“We are often on the phone to the Council about the living conditions,” said Riain, “begging them for somewhere different. They say we can go into a Halting Site but Anita is not a traveller and we are worried she won't be made feel very welcome in the Halting Site.”
The parents said that Valentina Marie fell ill with a high temperature and had to be taken to the hospital.
“We think the damp, the mould and cold in our room were the reason that Valentina got sick,” said Anita. “The hospital thinks there is some infection.”
“We are on the housing list for a year,” commented Riain. “We pay 91.50 Euros for the HAP accommodation and everyone else pays 50 Euros, because we weren't told that we should be paying contributions. There is no electric heating and the oil heating is only on for an hour a day.”