A DAD says he and his young family have been left sleeping on the floor in one small room after a dispute between a developer and a council left them without the home they believed they were promised.

Charles Clapham, his pregnant wife, and 20-month-old son, expected to move into a new home in January but have now been told they’ll have to wait until at least September.

The family have been left camped, indefinitely, in Mr Clapham's parents' spare bedroom.

Their problems started after Mr Clapham applied for a two-bed home to accommodate his new arrival and received a formal offer from Fortis Living for a home in Pulley Lane, Droitwich.

He was initially told the house would be theirs in January and, despite being told the date could change, he gave up the family's previous home and moved them in with his parents.

Mr Clapham, 31, says he feared otherwise he would be paying rent for two homes which he can't afford.

But a planning dispute with Wychavon District Council over work to a junction near the family's new home saw developer Taylor Wimpey banned from allowing anyone else to move into the new homes.

The housing developer was told they must first complete work on the junction - a condition of the permission for the development - and a formal legal agreement was put in place stating no more than 90 properties could be occupied until Pulley Lane was widened and the A38 junction was improved.

Mr Clapham's baby is due in July and there appears to be no hope of them being moved into their new home before September.

Mr Clapham, a transport planner, said: “The address we are at is not appropriate for my family.

“My wife is allergic to animals and I am asthmatic and our health is suffering as there are animals kept here.

“The room we are in is needed for equipment for my parents' own ill health.”

Iain Harkess, head of allocations at Fortis Living said, “Unfortunately, the delay is out of our control as the Pulley Lane site has had an order placed on it, preventing any more homes being occupied until further works to access roads are complete; as this Order affects the whole site, some homes that Fortis Living were expecting to handover this spring have been delayed until September 2019.”

Mr Clapham's housing application has given priority - or 'Gold Plus banding' - by Wychavon District Council but the family do not know whether they will be able to find another home.