A SINGLE mum who turned down an East Lothian Council flat in the same block where a man who killed her grandfather previously lived says she and her young son are now being made homeless by the local authority.

Chloe Selkirk has been living in temporary accommodation in Macmerry for nearly 11 months.

Last summer, she was offered the chance to move to Tranent’s Coronation Court.

However, she turned down the property due to its link with her grandfather’s death in 2012.

Now, Chloe is worried she and two-year-old son Curtis will be made homeless.

An eviction letter has been served, with the mother and son due to be out of the property on Brierbush Road by April 18.

Chloe said: “I’m stressing about it.

“I have been to the doctors and my depression and anxiety tablets have been put back up.”

Chloe is keen to remain in the west of the county to be close to her family.

The 23-year-old, who is originally from Tranent, told the Courier: “I was staying with my mum and dad and went to the homeless department in the council because I had just had Curtis at the time.

“My dad was going to go through a big operation.

“We were all starting to get on top of each other at my mum and dad’s house and everybody’s mental health was not very good at the time.

“Curtis came along and that was it.”

The mum was worried members of her family would not visit her at the property on Coronation Court because of its connections to her grandfather’s death.

Chloe said the family had appealed the decision that her reasons for turning down the property were not valid.

However, the appeal found in favour of East Lothian Council, with Chloe visiting Musselburgh Citizens Advice Bureau, who declined to comment when approached by the Courier, in a bid to get further assistance.

A council spokeswoman said: “Our housing teams work intensively with all households in temporary accommodation, working with them to secure a sustainable housing option, whether that is a council home, housing association property, private rented or mid-market accommodation.

“When an offer of council accommodation is made, it is always risk assessed and discussed at length with the potential tenant.

“If a household refuses an offer of permanent accommodation and it is deemed that refusal has been unreasonable, there is an appeal and complaint procedure which can then be followed if they are unhappy with that decision.

“In any situation where a prospective tenant has refused a housing offer and has been given a deadline to leave temporary accommodation, we will work with them and support them to secure a positive housing outcome.

“Since the council reviewed its rent deposit scheme last year, for example, the number of people using this to help them into a private rented tenancy has trebled.”

Chloe’s grandfather, John Auld, from Ormiston, died on March 4, 2012, after an incident at Kopas Takeaway in Tranent.

After a row over wet paint, the takeaway owner was attacked and, when Mr Auld came to his aid, the two men involved turned on him.

Mr Auld, who had a heart condition, collapsed and died at the scene after being punched and kicked.

The two men admitted culpable homicide at the High Court in Edinburgh in 2013 and were jailed for six years, and five years and three months.