Families living in properties 'unfit for human habitation'

"I just need enough space for my family." Nestere Yehdego, 31, his wife and their two daughters aged four and one are squashed together in a one-bedroom flat in Slough. He says the cramped conditions have made life extremely difficult for his family. "My first child can't sleep well, as the younger one normally wakes her up three or four times a night by crying or making noise. "She is going to school next year and I'm worried because if she doesn't sleep enough she will be tired," Yehdego says. They are one of about 135,000 families, including just under 176,000 children, who are currently living in temporary housing across England, the highest number on record. Some of these families are living in properties "unfit for human habitation", a cross-party Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee report has found. It also called for overcrowding laws to be updated, and wants councils to be forced to carry out inspections ensuring properties are free from hazards and in a decent condition. The flat, where the family has lived for two years after being moved from east London by Newham Council, has had problems with mould and damp, which Yehdego says has caused skin problems f