A single mother from Longheath Gardens is still battling with Croydon Council over her housing nightmare despite issuing her first complaint in 2016.
Gemma Parker, 43, has claimed Croydon Council have been avoiding helping her with the decaying council home despite numerous complaints and a court case which involved disrepair solicitors from Clarke Barnes.
Parker and her seven-year-old son Max have been living in the council flat, which is now ridden with mould and damp, since 2014.
Despite speaking with journalists from MyLondon in 2021, Parker maintains her home is still in an environmentally unsafe condition – this includes mould growing inside and outside of the building as well as under the walkway.
She said: “All they have done is left me with a load of botch jobs and have placed fake ceiling and walls to cover up the real issues.”
Parker has said there are defects in the brickwork and outdoor walkway so when it rains water comes through the ingression holes into her home – she alleges the Council have filled the holes with temporary measures which does nothing to permanently solve the problem.
She said the Children’s Commissioner’s senior child rights adviser wrote to Croydon Council urging both her and Max to be moved from the residence.
Parker added: “Max also has asthma, and his respiratory health is at risk due to his environment.”
She alleges the council asked her to lie to a prospective tenant in order for them to switch with her, and aside from this no other action was taken.
On top of this, the Conservative Mayor of Croydon – Jason Perry – allegedly sent workers to “hose down” the walkways in August 2025 to hide stains and prevent residents photographing water ingress.
Due to the state of her flat Parker has said Max is depressed, and has to sleep in the living room as it has the least amounts of mould.
This is especially difficult for the family as the seven-year-old has been diagnosed with a form of autism.
Parker feels as though she has lost her sense of identity due to the treatment from the council in this matter.
She said: “They have ripped us apart.”
Parker is pessimistic change will occur due to a meeting with the Resident’s Association and Council representatives on 20 September 2025 which she described as terrible.
The crisis has also caused her to abandon doing the things she once enjoyed, including her kindness rocks art which she began over a decade ago.
The kindness rocks project – where people adorn stones with positive messages and images – was pioneered by Parker in Croydon to give back to community and spread kindness.
Parker’s love for the project had once inspired her to open up a garage for disabled children and adults who felt low in the community with hope they would craft kindness rocks together.
The art provided her with a distraction from her housing nightmare and was the only thing helping her to cope – now she has decided there “is no point painting”.
A Croydon spokesperson said: “We are aware of the resident and her experience and allegations. We can confirm that we’ve been in contact with the resident’s advocate and are continuing to work with them to find a way forward.
“Not all works have been completed because we have not always been granted access to the property. We’ve also been made aware of concerns about the quality of earlier works, which we haven’t been able to investigate for the same reason. Given how long the case has been ongoing, we’ve reviewed the situation and believe a further expert report may be helpful. This was communicated to the resident’s advocate in July 2025.
“A specialist structural report completed in 2023, after the concern was raised, found no structural defects at the property. However, we continue to review all the issues raised as part of the ongoing case.
“Concerns about antisocial behaviour were followed up using our usual complaints procedures. We always look into legitimate concerns when they are raised, including by this resident, and take action where appropriate, however this residents’ previous allegations have not been substantiated.
“If any health-related information has not yet been shared with us, we would encourage the resident or their advocate to do so, so we can consider this as part of the ongoing case.
“We remain focused on finding a way forward and supporting the resident.”
You can also follow Parker’s story on her Change page linked here
Featured image courtesy of Gemma Parker
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