I live in a council house with 2 spare bedrooms – trolls say we’re ‘scummy’ & to give it up for a family, but I refuse

A MUM has faced criticism for continuing to live in a council house with two spare rooms, as she and her husband refuse to give up their home. Shaz has lived in the property with her husband for 50 years, but she now finds herself having to defend their decision to stay.

This comes after claims that some people believe older tenants should vacate council houses once they reach a certain age or after their children move out. Taking to her TikTok page, ‘mylovelycouncilhouse’, Shaz posted a video explaining her stance on the matter.

Speaking directly to the camera, she admitted that her views might "annoy a lot of people.". Shaz explained: “My husband has lived here all his life – so he's been here for 50 years, basically. "I've seen some people say, ‘Oh, you shouldn't stay in a council house when you get to a certain age, or when your children leave home, you should move out.’.

“But it's our home. It's not just a council house; it's our home. “We've got two spare bedrooms – well, technically one, because we sleep in separate bedrooms. That's the way we like it. “I intend to stay in this house until I am either physically unable to or am carried out the door in a box.

“I'm not moving out of my home just because somebody on the internet says I should move and give it up for a family. “We are a family of two. "And when the grandchildren come to stay, etc., etc., where are they going to sleep if we're living in a one-bedroom flat? On the sofa? No. No.

“We've been here fifty years. We've put a lot of money into this house, and there's no way I am leaving unless I'm dead or physically unable to get through the door again. “So, yes, we've paid, we've done a lot to this house, and we're staying. We're not moving.”.

The video has since garnered over 67,700 views and 673 comments, with many people rushing to the comments section to share their opinions. There are kids that will never have a garden because of this. One commenter said: “Why should you move? Do those people who own their home just up and move when the kids leave? I hate the fact people look down on council tenants.”.

Shaz responded: “Scummy, aren’t we? Me too, lovely. And also, people think we don’t work too.”. However, not everyone agreed with her position. One person wrote: “It’s not right that couples stay in family homes when families need them. "I think the council should offer one-bedroom places, but unfortunately there are not many.”.

Another added: “I'm on the fence because I get it's people's homes and no one wants to be told to move out, especially when you've put money into it, but there are kids that will never have a garden because of this.”. A council house swap, also known as a mutual exchange, is a scheme for people who live in a council or housing association property who would like to swap their home with another tenant.

People often swap to get a larger or smaller home or to move to a different area. When you mutually exchange your home, you are swapping tenancies with someone else. Anyone with a full secure or fixed-term social housing tenancy in their name with a clear rent account can do a mutual exchange.