Cornwall caravan dwellers facing homelessness due to 'appalling' living conditions
People living in caravans fear they could be left homeless for Christmas amid claims their appalling living conditions have been left unresolved.
Deborah Lendrum has been living in her static caravan in St Austell, Cornwall, for three and a half years.
She works as a cleaner for holiday rentals and pays £433 rent each month. Despite this, she says her caravan is one of 40 on the Manor Park site which have fallen into a dangerous state of disrepair.
The “appalling” living conditions include condemned gas boilers, no insulation, extreme black mould, holes in single glazed windows and collapsing floors and walls.
Deborah suffers from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Lung Disease and described how her living conditions compromise her health, as well as that of her son's, Alex, who also resides on the site and suffers from mental health problems.
She said: “In winter, I wake up with a wet mattress and sheets from the damp in my room, so I have to sleep in the living room area. You can see your own breath, it's that cold. That can’t be good for anyone's health. My son suffers from depression and he is raising his 10-year-old daughter here. His caravan is worse than mine.
“I take a lot of pride in my home, and it’s one of the better ones, but you feel like you’re fighting a losing battle when the wallpaper keeps falling down due to mould.
“Everyone is living in fear. It is a very tense and worrying time. Not only have we been living in awful conditions but we now face being made homeless before Christmas.
"People have families, pets and responsibilities. It’s our whole lives.”
The site was recently bought by Shadwell Parks Limited, which employed PLL Management in October to manage it on their behalf. The firm is due to be inspecting all units this week and any which have deteriorated beyond reasonable repair will be condemned as unfit for private residence.
As a result, the residents in condemned properties will be served a 30 days’ notice to vacate. The company which now owns the site says it is in the process of acquiring more units.
A spokesman from PLL said: “We are seeking to resolve the issues Shadwell Park has inherited from the previous site owners.
“Unfortunately, due to the current post-Brexit climate, it is proving extremely challenging to secure reliable, professional and experienced contractors for emergency call-outs. Additionally, the industry is experiencing various shortages in unit and building materials.
“Shadwell Park is in the process of acquiring new second hand units for the site which should be available in December 2021.”
When contacted, the previous site owners, Hills Brothers Residential and Leisure Parks, said: "We have nothing to comment. The issues have nothing to do with us since we no longer own the site."