A Clackmannanshire woman who was forced to leave her home earlier this year says she is terrified she may never be allowed back.
Naiomi Stevenson has been displaced from her property in Coalsnaughton since May, when her home was slapped with a Dangerous Building Notice. Months on, she is still waiting for answers and says the uncertainty is taking a serious toll on her.
Coalsnaughton is a small village in Clackmannanshire, one of Scotland’s smallest council areas, and Naiomi’s situation has highlighted how residents can find themselves in limbo when a building is deemed unsafe, with no clear timeline and no guarantee of ever returning.
A Dangerous Building Notice is issued by a local authority when a property is considered to pose a risk, either to the people living in it or to the surrounding area. Once that notice goes up, residents have little choice but to leave and wait while the situation is assessed and any required work is identified.
For Naiomi, that wait has stretched on far longer than she ever expected. What began as what she may have hoped would be a short-term disruption has turned into months away from her own home, her own belongings, and the life she had built in the village.
She has spoken out about the fear and frustration that comes with not knowing when, or even if, she will ever get to go back. The longer the situation drags on, the more that uncertainty grows, and Naiomi says the prospect of permanently losing her home is now something she has to genuinely consider.
Situations like this can leave residents in an incredibly difficult position. They are often still tied to their property financially, whether through a mortgage or other obligations, while also having to fund alternative accommodation. At the same time, they have little control over the process and are largely dependent on the council and any relevant surveyors or contractors to move things forward.
Clackmannanshire Council has not yet provided a clear public update on the timeline for Naiomi’s property or what steps are being taken to resolve the situation.
For a small community like Coalsnaughton, stories like Naiomi’s resonate. These are tight-knit villages where people know their neighbours and where home means more than just four walls. Being cut off from that, with no end date in sight, is something that goes well beyond mere inconvenience.
Naiomi’s case raises broader questions about how councils support residents who are displaced by Dangerous Building Notices, what communication they receive throughout the process, and what help is available to people who are essentially stuck in limbo through no fault of their own.
For now, she continues to wait and hope that she will eventually get the call to say she can go home.