Somerset woman diagnosed with cancer appeals for financial support as she faces deportation and loses the animal sanctuary she runs with her partner.
Jeannie Judd, 76, and Paul Kennedy, 65, live in Coat, near Yeovil, and have been ordered to vacate the premises following a civil case with their landlord which has been heard virtually by the court County of Yeovil last month.
After 18 months of legal work and negotiations, the judge ruled that ground 6 of the 1988 Housing Act had been formulated by the couple’s landlord.
Plot 6 is where the owner wants to do significant work on the property that is not feasible or achievable with the tenant on site.
The judge awarded Ms Judd and Mr Kennedy a lump sum of £ 1,950 for “dilapidation” and said the owner had to pay the couple’s moving expenses.
Ms Judd said they will have to leave in the next month, but is not sure on the exact date.
This means that they must also remove the Phoenix Paws Pet and Wildlife Sanctuary, where they are home to at least 50 pigeons as well as rabbits, guinea pigs, doves and goats, among other domestic animals.
Ms Judd was diagnosed with cancer in April and is due to undergo surgery at Yeovil District Hospital in mid-June.
Mrs Judd’s partner Paul Kennedy, 65, and one of their rabbits
She called her prognosis “serious” as her tumor was at risk of metastasizing. During consultations, Ms Judd was told that she would need six weeks of rest after surgery to recover.
She said: “This is an absolutely impossible situation. I can’t believe it – it’s like a nightmare.
“Somehow I’m supposed to face the fight against cancer and get kicked out at the same time. I don’t think you could have a much worse scenario.
The couple have an enclosure a short walk from their sanctuary, where they intend to move once evicted.
Ms Judd said the South Somerset District Council Planning Department had confirmed that it could set up a mobile home on its land without planning permission, as a temporary measure.
And while they are currently trying to relocate most of the animals in the sanctuary, they hope they can keep some on the plot of land they own.
She said, “It would give us time, so that I can recover from what I have to go through and that we can be with the animals.
“If I have only a little time left, I want to spend it in the paddock with the animals.
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Ms Judd and Mr Kennedy are appealing to Somerset residents for a mobile home or static caravan, allowing them to continue operating their sanctuary.
They set up a GoFundMe page for this purpose, which raised almost £ 2,000.
Ms Judd said: “There is a huge housing problem in Somerset. For us, it makes more sense that since we have the land, we can put something in it while I am fighting my cancer.
Ms Judd and Mr Kennedy have been contacted by South Somerset District Council regarding temporary accommodation in Chard or Yeovil.
However, neither Ms Judd nor Mr Kennedy can drive, and so Ms Judd called such an arrangement “hopeless” if they are to continue caring for the animals at Coat Sanctuary.
She said: “My only wish is to live in peace on our enclosure with our animals, for all the chances that I have to recover.
“We really need this. My partner and I both have very long term mental health issues. This is really the only answer.
“I just hope there might be someone who has a mobile home that they no longer want, that they might be willing to give or sell to us very reasonably.”
The couple are cutting back on the number of animals in their care, having established foster homes for some, but Ms Judd noted that there are many animals that are “as much our family as anything else. “.
She said: “We are desperately concerned about these animals. There are a number that we would like to keep with us.
“Animals and nature are so important when you experience something like this. If you are to overcome something like cancer, you need what you know. “
The couple’s current owner has been contacted but declined to comment.
Ms. Judd and Mr. Kennedy’s GoFundMe page can be found here.
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Source: www.somersetlive.co.uk
This notice was published: 2021-06-10 08:26:14
