Skip to content

Family facing eviction at Christmas find new home

News imageJamie Elsmore A woman in a Christmas jumper smiling outside a dark grey door. In her right hand she is holding a key, to her right is brickwork and a doorbell illustrating she is standing in front of a house.Jamie Elsmore
Hannah Teague had been given until Christmas Eve to move out of her private rented accommodation

A single mother who was facing eviction along with her two children has managed to find a home thanks to a new housing development aimed at local families.

Hannah Teague described it as a "horrendous time" with nothing available on the private market that she could afford but "feels safe" in her new social rental home.

The 17 new affordable homes in the Forest of Dean are a mix of social rent and shared ownership and are being earmarked for local people.

Two Rivers Housing CEO Hayley Selway said with 5,800 children in temporary accommodation in Gloucestershire it is "incumbent" on housing providers to address housing needs "where the market is failing".

Ms Teague, from Berry Hill, lived in a privately rented flat with her two children.

After being served notice she managed to get it extended to New Year's Eve while looking for alternative accommodation, but there was nothing available in her village.

Looking further afield she found homes in Lydney which cost £500 more then her current rent but could not find anything affordable and wanted to stay near her family.

"I know no time of the year would be great news but Christmas is a really tough time to receive that [notice of eviction]."

Ms Teague sought help from Forest of Dean District Council as well as her local councillors before applying for the Marian's Walk development.

News imageA newly paved road with brand new homes on either side. The homes are red brick detached houses apart from the back left one which is more of a brown/chalky colour. On the street is a solitary car and ahead of the houses is a field. There are a number of trees in the distance that have not got any leaves and a cloudy sky with patches of light blue.
Work to make the small Marian's Walk housing development a reality started in 2017

Labour MP for the Forest of Dean, Matt Bishop, welcomed the development.

"Housing is really important to all of us but we need more in the Forest and I'm confident that we can get good houses for the future."

'Rural England is dying'

The project has also been supported by Gloucestershire Rural Community Council as a way of getting social housing to rural communities.

"Our very way of life in rural England is dying because houses are not affordable for people," said rural housing enabler Tim Gwilliam.

"Villages are becoming not sustainable, this is why pubs close, this is why schools close and this is why sports clubs close."

Mr Gwilliam, who also sits on Forest of Dean District Council representing the Berry Hill ward, added: "Developments like this are the life blood of villages and parishes."

Follow BBC Gloucestershire on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630.

Related stories
More from the BBC