ALL IPSWICH mum Sabina Cooper wanted was to get the house she had moved to ready in time for Christmas.But today the 36-year-old council tenant, who suffers from a lung condition, is facing the prospect of having to stay with a friend until the new year.

ALL IPSWICH mum Sabina Cooper wanted was to get the house she had moved to ready in time for Christmas.

But today the 36-year-old council tenant, who suffers from a lung condition, is facing the prospect of having to stay with a friend until the new year.

She claims that there are gaping holes in the walls of the house which are stuffed with newspaper and she will not return until they are fixed as she fears her health is being affected.

Ipswich Borough Council has assured Miss Cooper the internal walls of the house are due to be improved in scheduled works in January and February and for her the work cannot come soon enough.

Miss Cooper exchanged her Morgan Drive flat for the three-bedroom house in Bramford Lane last month as there was more space and also a bath as Stuart's problems make it difficult for him to stand in a shower.

Stuart, 16 has epilepsy and haemoplegia, a form of cerebral palsy, and often has leg aches.

Miss Cooper suffers from bronchiectasis, a condition where tubes in the lungs are damaged, as well as common variable immunodeficiency, which means she needs regular infusions to top up her immune system.

But the excitement of moving into the Bramford Lane house was short-lived.

Miss Cooper said: "I thought we would get the living room and the hallway done before Christmas so we could have one nice room and a decent Christmas.

"We started taking off the wallpaper and realised there wasn't any plaster on the walls, just what looks like plasterboard.

"Then we started finding holes in the plasterboard, in which was newspaper dating back from 1985, 1991 and 1997.

"We also realised that most of the chimney breast wasn't a wall at all, but was built up out of cardboard and sheets of chipboard."

Miss Cooper claims the condition of the house has aggravated her health and that she claims she finds it difficult to breathe when she goes in there so she and her son are now staying with a friend in Lovetofts Drive, Ipswich.

A spokesman for Ipswich Borough Council said: "We would be happy to talk to Miss Cooper about any immediate anxieties she has.

"This particular Bramford Lane property is due to be included in the scheduled improvement works in January or February, to improve the condition of the internal walls.

"Miss Cooper was advised of this by the tenant of property she swapped with at the time. Since then the housing manager has visited her and agreed the works that are needed."

The spokesman said that when the tenants exchanged they advised them that they needed to come to an agreement regarding the fittings that would be left and the condition of the properties.

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