A mother and her seven children who had to live with maggots, rats and fleas in their previous property say they are still waiting for their forever dream home.

Shari McKay, 36, had her home condemned by inspectors from East Suffolk Council back in October, after the property was deemed unsuitable for tenants.

Landlords, Lisa and Steve Davies, claimed the property was in a good condition when it was originally let out to Ms McKay.

For a time, Ms McKay and her family were moved somewhere else and are now in a three bed flat on the Witham estate in Lowestoft, waiting for their permanent dream home.

After escaping the horrors of her previous house, Ms McKay and her seven children are not out of the woods yet.

She said: "The flat we are in, it is better, but it isn't our forever dream home.

"We are currently in temporary accommodation in a three bed flat.

"It is lovely because we don't have to worry about maggots, fleas or rats anymore.

"In this new flat, we haven't even seen a fly. Me and Daisy have been spending time together cleaning the flat and it is great spending a bit of time with her again.

"We are just hoping we find our forever home very soon."

The family's lives have returned to normality slightly, after Daisy was given the all clear with her cancer treatment a few months ago.

However, over the last few weeks, Daisy has been admitted to hospital twice.

Ms McKay said: "Daisy started losing weight again because she was not getting enough nutrition.

"She was in hospital twice for a week and doctors said they have a few fears that she might relapse back again.

"She is definitely feeling a lot better than last time though, she's still got a bit of a cough and cold but it is nice to see her usual normal and chatty self back again."

The family have not yet spent a proper Christmas together for a number of years following Daisy's leukaemia diagnosis.

This year will be the same until the family find a bigger house.

Ms McKay finished: "Our flat is lovely but it isn't big enough for all of us this year.

"We've still got a long way to go as a family."