A MUM of twelve has hit back at haters and their stereotypes of living in a council house.
Zoe, 46, and Ben Sullivan, 48, are parents to Scotland’s biggest family and recently moved into a council house with six bedrooms.
The pair are parents to Elizabeth, 19, Olivia, 18, Noah, 15, Evangeline, 13, Tobias, 11, Agnes, 7, and Joseph, 6, two sets of twins, Charlotte and Isabelle, 16, and Leah and Erin, 8, and baby Flo 2.
Taking to YouTube, the family announced they were moving homes and it would be their first council property.
In the past, the couple has been supported by military accommodation as Ben worked for the Air Force.
They said it took them two years to find a suitable property to house them and their children but finally got offered a house.
Typically, when you move into a council property it is an empty shell, but Zoe said they were lucky as the previous tenants left a few bits behind.
She said: “They were kind enough to leave us with the flooring so we made sure that we said to the council don’t take up the flooring because if you don’t ask them, they’ll come in, and they’ll rip up everything from the previous tenants.”
The mum also added that the local council was great for fixing any issues and assumed her comments would get a lot of hate.
“I know that this video is going to bring a whole load of hate but equally, I know that there are many people in the same position as us,” she continued.
“And they are also fed up with this stigma that is attached to living in a council house because it’s ridiculous.”
The pair said the new house was much smaller in size than the previous house despite having six bedrooms.
[bc_video account_id=”5067014667001″ application_id=”” aspect_ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”” caption=”I’m mum-shamed for putting my four girls in ‘small’ bedroom – people say there’s no room to play & I should swap” embed=”in-page” experience_id=”” height=”100%” language_detection=”” max_height=”360px” max_width=”640px” min_width=”0px” mute=”” padding_top=”56%” picture_in_picture=”” player_id=”default” playlist_id=”” playsinline=”” sizing=”responsive” video_id=”6346077164112″ video_ids=”” width=”640px”]While there were more rooms, they were a lot smaller and the living space was also tiny but Zoe vowed to make it work.
The garden attached to the property was massive, giving the children enough space to run and play, and even get a trampoline.
Despite being happy in their new home, Zoe was eager to squash the claims that they don’t pay their way.
She continued: “There seems to be this stigma that if you live in a council house you have a free house and you get loads of benefit money.
“Maybe that’s the case for some people but for the majority of us we pay our rent we pay our council tax.”
The house, located in Burghead, Moray, has come as a relief for the family, and while they were adamant about dismissing hate in the video, people commenting were upbeat about the family’s housing situation.
One person wrote: “Thanks for sharing guys, I applaud your honesty.
“There is absolutely no shame at all in staying in a council house and you have a lovely house and garden.”
Another commented: “Great video, I didn’t even realise it was a council house you live in, and it’s really no one else’s business.
“As you said, it’s not a free house, you still pay rent and bills etc. I’m very jealous of where your house is located.”
“Ben and Zoe, you shouldn’t have to justify yourselves to anyone; I live in a council house and don’t care what anyone thinks,” penned a third.
Meanwhile, a fourth said: “As long as a house is a home it doesn’t matter if it’s rented or mortgaged – your home is filled with love and memories – in life that’s what it’s all about.”
“You guys have nothing to be ashamed about,” claimed a fifth.
Someone else added: “Thousands of people live in social housing, whats wrong with that.”
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