A family of 11 say they have been split up because a council doesn’t have a six-bedroom home to give them after they were illegally evicted.

The Hussains have been moved around several times and are now living apart after their local council struggled to find a new home for them all.

For the last two months, Simone and Ansar have been living in hotels while they wait for a house in Birmingham.

The Hussain family have been moved around multiple times while a big enough house is found for them (Picture: SWNS)

They want a six-bedroom home in Birmingham, but the local council doesn’t have any available (Picture: SWNS)

They said they were illegally evicted from their home after it developed severe leaks and electrical faults.


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Birmingham City Council has confirmed that the family are on the housing register at the highest priority banding, but ‘there are very few six-bedroom properties available.’



Simone, 39, who receives £430-a-week in child tax credit, said: ‘I’m crying almost all the time now.

‘We’ve got our nine kids with us which is hard and my 17-month-old is struggling to sleep.

As a result, the family is currently divided into three groups in different flats across Bristol (Picture: SWNS)

‘My other kids are four, six, eight, 11, 12, 13, 15 and 19. I’ve got a 21-year-old daughter back home too in Coleshill who I haven’t seen since this all started in June and that upsets me.

‘Travelodges were horrible. You don’t have a kitchen so we couldn’t cook.

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‘Eating out is extortionate. I kept having to borrow and borrow money – not only that but we were just stuck in a room all day and we still are.

‘The kids are away from their friends all of the time. It’s just depressing and not fair on them.

‘The council paid for our taxis. They sent us three black cabs and the meter at the end was £208 – that’s 600 quid in black cabs alone.

Simone and Ansar Hussain at one of the flats where they are currently living in Bristol (Picture: SWNS)

The council said that they were evicted from their home illegally (Picture: SWNS)

‘The apartments down here are better because I can cook now and get some shopping in and stuff but, as a family, we’re spread across three apartments. It’s far from ideal.

‘I think it’s about £150-a-night to stay here because my mum was going to come down. It’s scary.

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‘I feel my kids are missing out on stuff, too. There’s not a lot to do – there’s no parks close by and we’re spending a fortune on petrol and parking.

‘We’re sweating now as well because the new school year is around the corner and I’ve got to get school uniforms. How am I meant to do that?

‘Apparently there’s just nowhere for us to go. I had a letter come through the post the other day asking for £165 rent for the house in Great Barr – I’ve been homeless now for nearly three months and [the council] is saying our house isn’t done.

They said they were forced out of their home as a result of severe leaks and electrical faults (Picture: SWNS)

They had hoped to be back in Birmingham by the end of August, but it’s looking more likely to be the end of September (Picture: SWNS)

‘It needed a lot of work but we’re just waiting and waiting. I suffer bad with depression and anxiety, my kids are ill and we’ve just got no social life. We’ve been left with nothing.’

After moving out on June 13, the Hussains were sent to a Travelodge in Burton-upon-Trent as their three-bed property was deemed unsafe to live in.

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For nearly a month, they continued with the school run, completing a 42-mile trip.



The family’s month-long stay ended in Burton and the Hussains went to another Travelodge, this time in Rugeley, Staffordshire.

Another month later and they were taken Bristol where they were separated and put into three different flats.

They’d hoped to be back in Birmingham by the end of August, but have now been told it’s more likely to be near the end of September.

Simone, 39, who receives £430-a-week in child tax credit, said: ‘I’m crying almost all the time now’ (Picture: SWNS)

A spokesman for Birmingham City Council said: ‘When the Hussain family were illegally evicted from their privately-rented flat, their homeless application was accepted.

‘Emergency accommodation for the family of 11 was found by the council on the same day.

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‘They are currently on the housing register at the highest priority banding however, there are very few six-bedroom properties available and they have been advised that they will need to bid both pro-actively and realistically.

‘The council will continue to support the Hussain family until permanent accommodation can be found.’

Birmingham City Council said previously that hotels were only used ‘when all other housing options have been exhausted’.

Robert James, housing director for Birmingham City Council, said: ‘We recognise the need to reduce the use of bed and breakfasts and as such have developed a comprehensive plan to put an end to this.

‘In the meantime, we are working to deliver new ideas that will make more council-owned accommodation available, as well as working with partners across the city to unlock further housing options.

‘We are also implementing a new approach to homelessness that looks at prevention first.’