This article is from page 14 of the 2014-10-21 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 14 JPG
A CLARE family expect to be homeless this Christmas as they do not expect to have a house for at least another two and a half months.
Mother of seven Caroline Sherlock who is living in a seven-foot caravan on the side of the road with her young family says she now fears the winter ahead. She said she met with off cials from Clare County Council on Friday last who said there may be a suitable house available in a couple of months. There has been no reply to a query in relation to this meeting from the local authority at time of print. Caroline and her husband John have raised their children aged two to 12 years old in the Ennistymon area and lived in private accommodation before the lease expired last June. They received a good reference from the landlady.
Prior to that, the family lived in a house in special traveller accommodation but were forced to leave as the couple feared for the safety of their children.
Since then, they have lived on the side of the road in areas such as Cregg beach, Lahinch and even in an alley way in the town of Ennistymon.
The family have been moved on and have now set up camp on the side of the road between the local mart and graveyard. Ms Sherlock said she has requested a disposable toilet and bins from the council but has also been turned down.
“We have no electricity, not toilets, no bins or running water. The children are doing their homework by candle light or battery lamp,” she said, adding that she fears her children who attend local schools every day will fall behind if they cannot complete their homework.
Ms Sherlock said the family has lived in this area for 18 years and don’t want to upset people by parking in places that are inconvenient. She said the family parked in a f eld beside the mart last week as they thought it was public ground. “Once we were told it was private property we moved,” she said. The family now live nearby on the side of the road. “I don’t want to be near the gate of the graveyard. We have dead in there ourselves. We don’t want to be impose on anyone,” she said. “We are just looking for the bare basic ways of living.” “If they can’t give me a home, and they can’t if they don’t have one, then can they give me a mobile home somewhere safe?” pleaded the mother.
“The trailer won’t be able to withstand the winter. It already has holes in it from moving it around and we can’t afford a new one,” she said.
“I am trying to protect my children and keep them from harms way. We have to go somewhere. We can’t disappear off the face of the earth.”