A family has been forced to live in a hotel after their housing association blamed a leak that caused their ceiling to collapse - on CATS.<br /><br />Stacey Sell has been staying at a Premier Inn with her partner Mark Thwaites and her two children for a fortnight after the leak damaged their home in Maidstone, Kent.<br /><br />The 39-year-old first noticed an issue back in December last year after spotting water dripping from the ceiling above her front door and wet patches on her bedroom floor above.<br /><br />She reported the leak to Golding Homes who inspected it but said it may just be her cats using the bedroom as a bathroom causing the ceiling to leak.<br /><br />The mistake allowed the leak to continue, finally causing the ceiling of their home to collapse, with a chunk narrowly missing one of the kids.<br /><br />No work was carried out and the leak continued, she says. Then in February Stacey followed up the issue with the housing association as a small crack appeared above the door.<br /><br />It wasn’t long until that crevice became a hole and by March 6 the ceiling collapsed altogether.<br /><br />Stacey said: “The hole appeared then over the next couple of days it got bigger.<br /><br />“When some of the ceiling in the front room fell down there was a nail in it. My son was standing underneath and almost got hit in the head.”<br /><br />Stacey added: “It’s all been very stressful. On the day we were told to move out I phoned my boss to say I was needing to take the day off from the stress.<br /><br />“My partner had to take time off work too.”<br /><br />Stacey and her family will continue to stay at the Premier Inn until their home is repaired.<br /><br />Sian Humphreys, Assistant Director of Repairs & Maintenance at Golding Homes, said: "We’re very sorry for the inconvenience caused to this family.<br /><br />“We acted promptly to make the ceiling safe when the issue was first reported to us and further investigation this week has found a hole in a heating pipe.<br /><br />“We remain focused on making sure the family can return to the comfort of their home as soon as possible.<br /><br />“Their safety and wellbeing are our primary concerns and we’ve arranged for them to stay in hotel accommodation while repairs are ongoing.”
