Mum's house of horrors with 'sewage in bath as bugs crawl from walls'
A mum has shared her living nightmare, claiming that her council flat is infested with bugs crawling out of the walls and sewage seeping into her bath and sinks. Sarah-Jane Thomson, a widow and former nurse, says she's been enduring these horrific conditions for two years.
The state of disrepair in Sarah-Jane's home is so bad that her neighbour's landlord has publicly shamed the local council by putting up a sign. When council officers visited the ground floor property, they blamed the mite infestation on her pets.
Sarah-Jane, 37, moved into the flat in Pathhead, Midlothian with her daughter Holly after living in temporary accommodation. They were told this would be their 'permanent home'. However, the conditions are so appalling that Holly, now 18, refuses to live in the two-bedroom flat and stays with relatives instead.
The interior of the property reveals exposed walls, concrete floors, and unsealed pipes. "When I run a bath or the taps sewage and black bugs come through the pipes, I am obsessively cleaning and can't sleep." said Sarah-Jane.
"I even ended up in hospital and need an inhaler it was so bad. But council officers blamed my dog and cats, even though the vet confirmed it has nothing to do with them. I can't even put carpets down in the flat because of the infestations of bugs. It is in a shocking state and making me ill."
London flat for rent for £1,400 a month with bed tucked away in kitchen cupboard
Outside the flat the paint is peeling and there are cracks in the walls with one pipe outside the kitchen covered in rust and corroding. The outside condition has become such a problem the unidentified owner of at least one of the neighbouring flats in the block of four, which have been maintained has pinned a large sign on their fence which reads "Midlothian Council is responsible for this property Landlord of the Year HaHa"
The sign is the first thing people see driving into Patthead as the flats are on the corner of Crighton Avenue, off the main street. Sarah-Jane said: "I am grateful to the landlord for getting involved but it seems Midlothian Council are shameless. I don't know how they expect anyone to live in these condition."
A Midlothian Council spokesman said: "Housing officers and maintenance teams have attempted to work closely with the tenant on numerous occasions to remedy these issues with the property, including organising regular visits and scheduled appointments with little success. A housing officer was on site on Thursday and has arranged for some items to be uplifted from the garden. We will continue to work closely with our tenant to find a solution to these matters. We take all matters regarding repairs and issues with properties seriously."
* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can report any errors to [email protected]
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