A FAMILY say they are being forced to go without a Christmas tree this year – because their living room is too cold to sit in.

Claire Turner and her six children say they have had no central heating in their council flat in Wakelin House, off Sebbon Street, Islington, since November 29 – and they fear it will still not be fixed in time for Christmas.

Ms Turner, whose children are aged 10 to 16, said: “We all sit in the kitchen with the cooker turned on to keep warm. My front room is so cold nobody can bear to be in there. We haven’t even been able to put up our Christmas tree because, other than the front room, there is nowhere for it to go. Without a tree it doesn’t even feel like Christmas.”

A spokesman for Homes for Islington said: “Our contractor’s engineer has confirmed that the issue with the heating was that two of the property’s radiators were not reaching maximum temperature. We are working to resolve this by Christmas.”

There has always been alternative forms of heating in Ms Turner’s home and at no time was there any disruption to the hot water during this period.”