A pregnant woman was forced to sleep on friends’ sofas over Christmas despite being weeks away from qualifying for a council-funded home.

Kristina Hodgkinson approached Kingston Council for help after she was made redundant and found out she was pregnant in the space of three weeks in May last year.

The council helped extend the 20-year-old’s tenancy but told her because of her age she was limited to sharing or renting a single room.

The single mum-to-be felt her shared house was inappropriate as she was suffering complications with her pregnancy so looked for a property as the council said it could advance her money.

The former retail manager said the council then u-turned on the offer of part funding her rent and, having left her accommodation in Tolworth, she was left homeless over Christmas.

She said: “I am gobsmacked to why they have done it to me. Being pregnant is stressful enough, you don’t want anything on top of that.”

A council spokesman said Miss Hodgkinson left her accommodation against the council’s advice and funds could not be provided at the time because it was awaiting Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates for January.

The spokesman said single parents under 25 with one child qualified for a two-bedroom LHA housing benefit but this would only apply when the baby was born.

Miss Hodgkinson is now living above a Surbiton pub, but will not be able to return there after her baby boy arrives on his expected due date of January 22.

The council spokesman said the council was willing to continue providing Miss Hodgkinson with advice and support.