A Fallin mum has hit out at Stirling Council chiefs after being left to wait for over two years to secure a much-needed upgrade to her current property.
Amy Reid’s current two-bedroom mid-terraced house in Fallin, where she has lived for 16 years, houses her and husband Grant as well as 15-year-old son Caleb, six-year-old daughter Callie and son Cody, who is two.
The cramped nature of the accommodation has contributed to issues linked not only to Callie, whose neurodiversity can cause challenging behaviour, but also for the impact on Caleb, who is set to take on exams this year while sharing a bedroom with his sister.
Health concerns linked to damp
She says reported damp issues throughout the property has also contributed to young Cody picking up symptoms of croup, while Amy battles with both fibromyalgia and mental health problems related to the stress of the process.
Amy believes her family have been forced to wait while others with fewer circumstances have secured changes in accommodation - and has challenged Stirling Council on the process and why they have been held up in their own hopes to move.
She said: “We know around Christmas in 2024 that we were sitting around second on the list for Fallin but it is now just being put back and back.
“We’ve been in constant dialogue over it because my daughter is being assessed by the school nursing team for possible signs of ADHD, which has issues with emotional regulation and she can go from 0-100 really quickly and that’s difficult for Caleb through no fault of his own.
“I’m worried about the impact that has on his education and my wee one is also due to start soon, so there will be an impact there.”
Support from professionals
The family have secured letters of support for their aim to move from the social work departments, their GP and Amy’s mum, for whom her daughter is the main carer after a heart attack and a struggle with liver cancer.
The need for Amy to be in the village has reduced her options and she admits she remains at her “wit’s end” as the wait goes on.
She added: “I had some mental health issues around July time and even though there is the fibromyalgia, my head is not normally so bad.
“It just all came to a head with the situation over the house - my husband and I don’t have a lot of space, my wee boy is almost three and is still living in a cot and so just having that one extra bedroom would be a total lifeline.”
Council response
In response, a Stirling Council spokesman confirmed an inspection was planned at the address for the reported damp and mould issues.
He added: “While we do not comment on individual cases, all housing applications are regularly reviewed and managed in line with Stirling Council’s Allocations Policy which takes each applicant’s circumstances and requirements into account.”
