Two adults, an eight-year-old boy, a six-month-old baby and a dog do not fit easily into a one-bedroom flat.

That’s why Jade Thomas, 27, is demanding to be rehoused.

Miss Thomas lives in a Hyde Housing flat in Drawbridge Close, Shepway.

Her older son, Lewis Maloney, suffers from ADHD.

She knows that she is not supposed to keep a pet in her first-floor flat, but said: “It’s not ideal, especially as most of the other people in the block are elderly, but Lewis dotes on him.”

Lewis has the bedroom and she shares the lounge with baby Aaron and partner Lee Theobald, 32. Neither Miss Thomas nor Mr Theobald are in work.

She said: “We’ve been asking for a move since 2011.”

A spokesman for Maidstone council said: “We cannot comment on individual cases, but the new allocation scheme for subsidised housing provides greater opportunity for those households who contribute to the community.

“It has also improved choice for existing tenants because they can bid on all properties advertised through Kent Homechoice, whereas previously they were only able to bid on properties let by their own housing association.”