‘Frail’ curtain maker ordered to move out of home she has lived in for 30 years

A ‘frail’ 79-year-old woman has been ordered to leave the house she has lived in for more than 30 years after her son died.

Maureen Brum, who runs her own net curtain business, has been told to leave her flat in Feltham, east London, by Notting Hill Genesis, leaving her ‘terrified and confused’.

Her daughter Lisa said her mum was told to leave because the flat is still in her son Jay’s name, who died in 2021 after contracting sepsis.

Despite the family trying to move the flat under Maureen’s name in the weeks following Jay’s death, they received little communication from the housing association – and she was handed her notice to quit in December.

Lisa told Metro: ‘This has taken a toll on my mother both physically and mentally. She is a frail mess.

‘She told me if she is made to leave it will be the end of her. I am having to console and convince her no one is about to rip her out of her home.’

Maureen first moved into the house in 1993, but it was recommended the tenancy be put under her late son Jay’s name in case anything were to happen to her.

But in 2021 Jay contracted sepsis, and died suddenly leaving the family completely devastated.

To move the tenancy under Maureen’s name, Lisa contacted the housing association and told them of the situation and asked whatthey needed to provide.

She said despite giving them everything they asked for, Notting Hill Genesis said there is ‘not enough proof’ Maureen was living there in the year before Jay’s death.

Lisa said: ‘The information they now want is really hard to get because most companies don’t keep accessible records which go back further than two years.

‘We have had to rely on Freedom of Information requests and help from utility companies to try and solve this, but the association aren’t budging.

‘Of course they have not complained about my mum paying rent for the last three years even though they have said she shouldn’t be living there all along.’

Nearly 50,000 people have since signed a Change.org petition to stop the eviction.

Notting Hill Genesis have said they have offered Maureen a new flat, but Lisa said the change would still be ‘devastating’.

‘They weren’t taking into consideration anything I had told them about her health, her memory problems, or how devastating a move would be for her,’ Lisa said.

‘It felt like they were just ticking a box, not actually thinking about what this would mean for a vulnerable 79-year-old woman.’

A Notting Hill Genesis spokesperson said: ‘We apologise to Maureen and her family for the time it has taken to reach a resolution on this matter.

‘There are strong regulations around the succession of social homes to ensure the right home goes to the right household. In this case the tenancy only allowed for one succession, which took place in 2008 when Maureen’s son took over the property.

‘We understand Maureen’s preference to remain in the home she already occupies, however we also need to take into consideration other families across London, many of whom are currently living in overcrowded conditions or temporary housing. For these families, the chance to move into a three-bedroom home would be life-changing.

‘We want to support Maureen and have taken the discretionary decision to offer her a new tenancy. We are now working with her and her family to find a suitable alternative home that is an appropriate size and meets her needs.

‘Once that is found, we will fund a professional service to pack up her belongings safely and securely and move them to the new home.’

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