Penge mother and son, 5, forced to go a month without hot water (From This Is Local London)

Penge mother and son, 5, forced to go a month without hot water

11:36am Tuesday 16th October 2012 in News By Harry Kemble

A SINGLE mum from Penge says she will be without hot water for a month - just as winter starts to bite.

Letoyah Hellis, of Avenue Road, who lives with her five year-old son Jazarni, says she boils a kettle 16 times every time she wants to wash and has been offered a measly £20 in compensation.

The 22-year-old claims housing provider Affinity Sutton has told her she must wait until October 26 before the storage heater can be fixed - exactly a month since it was told about the issue.

She told News Shopper: "It is embarrassing because when my son goes to school and says there is no hot water at home it reflects badly on me - especially as I am a young mum.

"It all makes me feel upset and angry. I feel like I am going crazy."

The full-time mother suffers from severe eczema - made worse by the fact she cannot wash her skin.

Ms Hellis, who takes antibiotics for her condition, says her son cannot hold her hand on the walk to and from school because her eczema makes it too painful.

She added: "Because my skin is not rehydrated I wake up some mornings with a cracked skin and blisters, Jazarni has to hold onto my coat.

"I know there is something wrong because all my neighbours are saying the same thing.

"There are so many faults in this house and it is hard to live in. I would like to move out."

Neighbour Gemma Baker, 25, of Avenue Road, says she was forced to visit family and friends each time she wanted a shower in May of this year.

She says Affinity Sutton eventually sent plumbers a month after the issue was first reported.

Ms Baker added: "The boiler was wired back to front so unless I was going for a shower at friends I just wouldn’t leave the house out of embarrassment.

"I know what Letoyah is going through, it is not nice at all."

Affinity Sutton, which provides more than 57,000 homes across the country, says it is looking into the problem.

Property services director Sue Cooper said: "We are sorry for the inconvenience and disruption this has caused. 

"We are working closely with our contractors to find out exactly what went wrong and to rectify it as soon as possible."