I didn’t know flat was not suitable for kids
Mum calls for council to be clearer on housing policy
A Cambuslang social club for people who have a learning disability is opening its doors to the community this evening (Wednesday) as part of Disability Awareness Week activities.
The Wednesday Legends group, which brings together people from across Lanarkshire and parts of Glasgow every week, is holding a free tea party in Cathkin Primary School from 6.30pm until 7.30pm.
Volunteer organisers are encouraging local residents to come along and meet the club’s adults to share tea, coffee, cakes and a chat and to find out more about the club.
The event is being supported by Robert Birrell from Birrell Corrance Funeral Directors, of Johnson Drive, Cambuslang.
All are welcome to come along tonight. EDEL KENEALY
A young mum has called on landlords to be more open about how suitable their properties are to house young families.
Karrena Rodger spoke out after learning that her Kyle Court home was deemed unsuitable to house families with young children by the local authority.
The 21-year-old secured a private rent of a two-bed flat in the Main Street high rise, only to learn that South Lanarkshire Council – which owns 90 of the 96 flats there – will not allocate those flats to households with children aged 16 and under.
Karrena will move into another home in the coming weeks after her Kyle Court tenancy turned into a nightmare.
The Reformer revealed two weeks ago that her two-year-old son found what she believed to be heroin just feet from the front door of her flat.
Then, two days later, she spotted a used needle in the common close of the ground floor.
Karrena told the Reformer that she learned the hard way that Kyle Court is not a suitable place to bring up children, stating that the effects of drug addiction and anti-social behaviour are unavoidable.
She said: “I had not been told that [about the council’s housing policy]. I did not have any contact with the landlord himself as it was a letting agent that I was dealing with.
“I’m not sure if he, or the letting agent, knew that about the housing policy, but I think that they do have a responsibility to be honest with families looking for flats that the places they are looking at might not be suitable for children.”
Karrena – who says Kyle Court would be a good place to live if problems with drug use were resolved – is moving to Wishaw in the coming weeks to a home she is confident will be safe for toddler Harrison.
She added: “I have always rented and this is the first time there has been a problem.
“I had no idea what I was letting myself in for.
“I’m really looking forward to a fresh start after a tough couple of months.”
A spokeswoman for the local authority said: “South Lanarkshire Council’s current and previous housing allocation policy generally restricts allocations to all council owned multi-storey properties, including Kyle Court, to households with no children under the age of 16.
“This policy was implemented in May 2011 and remains in place in the current housing allocation policy approved at executive committee on May 1, 2019.
“This aspect of the policy is in place as the council does not consider this type of property to be suitable for children in terms of their wellbeing, given that there is no separate or secure outdoor space, and given the potential for conflicts in lifestyle including noise, to be exacerbated by higher density living.” However, the spokeswoman added: “The council does not regulate letting arrangements of private landlords, including within multi-storey blocks.”