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The health of some of Newcastle’s most vulnerable children is being harmed due to poor living conditions, according to residents and campaigners.

ChronicleLive was invited inside a large shared house in the West End of Newcastle which is used to house single mothers seeking asylum in the UK and their children.

The property, which is split into three different houses, is managed by Jomast on behalf of G4S, which provides asylum housing for the Home Office.

A council licence permits 55 people to be housed over 23 rooms but babies under the age of one are not counted and children younger than 10 count as half.

(Image: Newcastle Chronicle)

Parents and up to two young children aged three or younger sleep in the same room and share communal bathrooms and kitchens.

Campaigners have warned this is harming the health of the children and putting huge pressure on some of society’s most vulnerable families.

Newcastle City Council said it is looking at ways to improve the situation after hearing reports of the wellbeing of children and babies suffering due to their living conditions.

One mother who lives at the property said: “The children are sick every day because one gets a virus and it spreads round the building so quickly.

“But everyone is too scared to complain to the authorities because people are scared they’ll lose their homes.

(Image: Newcastle Chronicle)

Another said: “Our children have no freedom, they can’t develop or enjoy themselves because there’s no where to play so they’re more unhealthy than they should be.

“I don’t feel like I can let my son leave the room by himself because there are people coming and going all the time so it isn’t secure.

“The older they get, the harder it is because there’s no space or privacy.”

Sam McGill, 34, an activist for the Migration and Asylum Justice Forum, has been liaising with the council on behalf of the women living in the property.

(Image: Newcastle Chronicle)

She said: “It’s not suitable for kids to be living like they do here.

“Parents and children are crammed together sharing the same couple of kitchens and few bathrooms, living on top of each other - that means when one child gets sick, they all do.

“It isn’t a good place for young children physically, especially since there’s no play area which makes it hard for them to enjoy themselves or exercise.

“We’re not asking for much and nobody expects three bedroom houses - we just want to see single mothers get self-contained bedsits so they have the proper space and facilities needed to raise very young children.”

(Image: Newcastle Chronicle)

The living conditions are also having a serious impact on the parents.

She said: “The women living in these circumstance have come from very traumatic backgrounds, fleeing war and abuse with the threat of deportation looming over them.

“As a result, many of them are already suffering from depression and anxiety.

“On top of that, they’re being made to raise their young children in cramped circumstances where they’re terrified of one child coming home with chicken pox or flu.”

(Image: Newcastle Chronicle)

Councillor Jane Streather, cabinet member for housing and public health at Newcastle City Council, said the local authority is actively looking at ways to improve the situation.

She said: “We are listening to the concerns being voiced about the housing conditions of some asylum seekers in the city, in particular effecting the health and wellbeing of women and their children including single parent mothers.

“The local authority takes these issues very seriously, whether it is for existing residents or for people we are welcoming to Newcastle from other countries.

(Image: Newcastle Chronicle)

“It’s essential for the positive development of young people and the family unit to have an environment where people can play, interact and live securely together.

“As the long term consequences can impact on mental and physical health problems and create increased tensions with individuals, families and the local community.”

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Coun Streather said the council is pushing for greater involvement in how asylum housing standards are set.

At present, the Home Office awards contracts, known as ‘Compass’ contracts, to private sector providers who provide the housing on their behalf.

John Whitwam, G4S head of immigration and borders, said: “The Compass contract is heavily monitored by the Home Office, which together with local authorities conducts several hundred inspections of our properties every year, in addition to the 4,000 inspections we perform ourselves on a monthly basis.

“The standard of accommodation provided to asylum seekers is subject to the Housing Act 2004 as well as more prescriptive criteria set by the Home Office, and any failure to meet these results in a contract penalty. Since November 2013, we have not been subject to any performance penalties for providing unsuitable housing.”