I left really bad situation with just clothes - mum

A domestic abuse survivor said she "feels safe and secure" at her new temporary housing.

The woman, who wished to remain anonymous, said both her and her children left a "really bad situation" when she turned up at the facility with "just clothes", but was grateful for the help she received settling in.

About £2.3m was spent renovating Spendells House, in Walton-on-the-Naze, Essex, from a "dated" sheltered housing building that closed in March 2018.

The conversion has space for 31 families, with 19 already moved in since it opened in December.

She said while it could feel daunting at first to leave a situation, she encouraged anyone in her position to do the same and go through the correct channels via the council.

"I'm really happy to be here, I feel so incredibly lucky... this is where your future can start," she said.

She said lots of people helped her with the process and added: "The social workers were really helpful for me... I didn't have to do all that much.

"You're not just forgotten about."

Another resident - who also wished to remain anonymous - said he was kicked out of his partner's mum's place with his son.

"Ever since we've come here... the boy's got on so much better, he sleeps a lot better," he told the BBC.

"At night-time we have security, they are here from (I think) 5pm to 9am."

"We are trying to get into either a housing property or a private rented place, we're trying to get around this sort of area (Tendring)… we don't want to have to keep moving him from school to school."

He continued: "At first you feel like you don't want to ask for help, you feel like you want to do it on your own, being a bloke myself, you never want to ask for help, you just want to go out there and do it yourself.

"I don't mind being on the streets I've been on the streets before - When I've got my missus and the boy, it's a bit harder... I've got the think of them.

"Always ask for the help, because there is help out there for every single person."

Andy Baker, cabinet member for housing and planning at Tendring District Council, said in the past some people were placed in hotels, but "obviously long term, or even short term, that's not ideal".

He added: "This isn't a permanent place for people... people may have to be here a while because obviously there is a housing crisis, we can't just magic up private rent or other places."

Baker said the £2.3m went towards making the building serviceable.

"All the rooms have been stripped, renovated, heating, you've got CCTV cameras... an adapted room (for residents with additional needs) that wasn't there before," he said.

"These literally just had a toilet, no cooking facilities in the room, so [there has been] a huge amount of investment to make sure they're fit for the purpose that it's now being used for.

"The government gave us a certain amount of money that was never going to be enough, so we've had to find that from our own budget."

Baker said the scheme saved a projected "£275,000 in our temporary accommodation budget."

He added: "If we have more of these facilities, that may reduce things even further."

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