A woman forced to live in a one bedroom flat above a derelict pub in Croydon with her partner and two young children, one suffering from leukemia, is terrified her family will end up on the streets.

Stacey Kearns, 37, and her family were evicted from their privately rented home in Tadworth last year shortly after her partner, Dean Fidel, 43, was made redundant and their three-year-old son Riley was diagnosed with the disease.

She said: "I was a bit naive. There were court letters that came to the house but I didn’t understand them so I ignored them, so it is my own fault there."

Unable to raise a deposit for another rented property and now a full time carer to her son, Reigate and Banstead Council moved the family into temporary accomodation in Croydon.

The couple’s contract to remain at the flat ended in January and they are living in fear that they could be kicked out at any time. Ms Kearns is desperate to move back to the Tadworth area as her youngest son is being treated at Epsom Hospital and The Royal Marsden and her other son Jake, 5, goes to at Epsom Downs Primary.

She said: "My entire support network is in Tadworth and all my friends.

"Our eldest has lost a lot of school because if the youngest is ill I physically cannot get out over there.

"It’s not fair for him to be travelling 45 minutes when he’s ill. He’s got no immune system and he can catch anything."

She said herself and her partner were being forced to sleep in the living, with the children upstairs.

"None of our belongings are with us as it’s all in storage and we are on blow-up beds."

To make matters worse, the family has been living with no heating or hot water for nearly two weeks after their boiler broke down on March 3.

She said: "They (the council) know my situation because and they know that I have a sick child.

"I can’t live without hot water or heating. They have said they would get someone out as soon as possible but no one has come over.

"I don’t want to push it. I’m scared in case they do say that’s it, move out. Then we would have no where at all.

"I would have to be put on the council list and would be waiting. I saw on the news the other day that one particular council have seven thousand people on the council list and that’s just one council.

"I think I’m close to a breakdown but I can’t because I have two children to look after."

There are currently 2,543 people on the waiting list for social housing in the borough with a further 710 people waiting to be moved to an alternative location.

Of those, 2,739 have been waiting longer than six months.

A spokesman for Reigate and Banstead Council, who said arrangements are being made to fix Miss Kearn’s boiler, said: "The council has worked to take the family’s circumstances into account so far as we are able.

"For example, we have placed the family in self contained accommodation rather than B&B due to their son’s condition.

"The council has continued to fund this accommodation with public money.

"As in all cases where housing support is sought, a full investigation of the family’s accommodation history has been carried out.

"This determined that Miss Kearns became intentionally homeless after being evicted through the courts from her previous property."

He added: "The council has been in regular contact with the family since that date and referred them to other sources of support to find alternative accommodation.

"Any family that we are unable to assist, where dependent children are involved that could be at risk, is referred to social services who have a legal role to protect such children in these types of cases."