An addict lying slumped on the stairwell of a block of flats shows the grim reality of drug abuse.
A mum last night told how her six-year-old son Jaymes found the comatose man near the entrance to their home on the 14th floor of a block of flats in Milton, Glasgow.
Natasha Brown, 31, said the family, which includes her four-year-old daughter Jessica, have had to deal with urine soaked lifts and walls and drug paraphernalia on the ground.
The staff nurse said problems with drug users living in the same building came to a head when fire crews had to burst into a flat where an addict had started a kitchen fire.
Desperate to get out of what she calls a “dumping ground for drug addicts”, Natasha fears for her family’s safety.
She told the Record: “My children are too scared to sleep in their own bedrooms. They will never walk ahead of me, they don’t leave my side any more.
“The addicts shout through my letter box. They say, ‘You better let me in’ or, ‘Let me f*****g in’ and the kids witness it.”
Natasha added: “I’ve heard my youngest say to my six-year-old, ‘We better be good or the junkies might hear us’, which is heartbreaking.
“My eldest has become really withdrawn at school. That’s so unlike him. No child should have to go through this.”
Natasha, who works at Glasgow Royal Infirmary, said problems only started this year.
She added: “I first moved here four years ago, with just one baby at the time.
“It was supposed to be a stop-over while I was studying to become a nurse. There were lots of elderly neighbours and it was known for being quiet.
“Now it’s just a dumping ground for drug addicts.”
Exhausted from nightshifts and dealing with the problem, Natasha has pleaded with Glasgow Housing Association for a move.
She claimed GHA’s only offer is a property in a block of flats known for housing paedophiles and addicts.
She said: “Moving there would be like jumping from the fire into the frying pan.
"I feel trapped and don’t know what to do.” She’s enlisted the help of her local MP Paul Sweeney after the drug incident last month.
He has written to GHA to try to source help for Natasha.
A spokesman from GHA last night apologised to Natasha.
She said: “We’re very sorry Natasha is having these problems. We’ve offered her new homes and we’re also working intensively with other agencies to tackle the anti-social behaviour in this block.”
GHA added that the fire was a “very small cooker-top fire”.
