A mother has had to carry her baby on the school run after a housing association confiscated her pram.

Sammy-Jo Kennedy, from Sheerness, has been leaving her buggy in the hallway of her Cedar House flat for the last nine years and claims it was suddenly removed by Optivo without warning.

But the company said a notice was fixed to the buggy 17 days earlier when housing teams visited – something Sammy-Jo denied seeing and says when she contacted Optivo she was told she would have to pay £150 or the item would be sold at auction.

The 33-year-old admitted she had breached guidelines saying: “There is a rule here that nothing is allowed to be stored in the property’s hallways and I completely get that.

“However, since I moved here I have always left my pushchair by the door at the bottom of the stairs during the day for a couple of hours between the school run.

“There has never been an issue with that and I’ve never any complaints from Optivo as it isn’t stored there overnight or anything.”

Sammy-Jo has three children, 10-year-old Vini, three-year-old Tyler and five-month-old Tommie.

As there is no lift in her block Sammy-Jo, who lives on the top floor, leaves her buggy by the door in order to safely get her children up and down the stairs.

She said: “I don’t want to leave the youngest upstairs alone while I go back down and get the pushchair when my eldest is at school.

“Because of that I just leave it by the bottom of the stairs until the day’s school run is over.”

On Tuesday, Sammy-Jo returned to her pushchair to see it was gone.

The full-time mum said: “There was no note, no warning, nothing.

“I rung Optivo and they said that as nothing is allowed to be kept in the hall it has been taken.

“I don’t know how they can justify taking a little baby’s belongings.

“It’s disgusting, I had to carry my youngest during the school run since because I had no pram.

“I just didn’t need this added cost on top of Christmas and the cost of living crisis.

“My neighbours have never had a problem with it either so I just don’t understand.”

In a statement to KentOnline, the housing association said Sammy-Jo would be able to collect the pushchair from their offices without charge.

A spokesman said a notice was fixed to the buggy on Saturday, November 12 when housing teams visited telling her to remove the item within 14 days.

But when they returned this week – 17 days later – it was in the communal area again.

Sammy-Jo says there is no suitable buggy storage or bike park at the property. However there is an outdoor shed area that tenants are told to use for storage.

The mum said: “I have stored a pram in the shed before, but because the sheds aren’t protected from the elements it was ruined.

“The buggy was covered in mould and unusable, that is another reason why I leave the pushchair at the bottom of the stairs.

“I just don’t understand why there is a problem now all of a sudden, especially after I’ve been living here for almost 10 years.

“They shouldn’t take my baby’s stuff.

“There was also my toddler’s buggy board attached to the back of it which is also gone.”

She said after being told about the fee to collect the item, Sammy-Jo bought a new buggy from a charity shop for £50 as it was probably cheaper to buy a new one than barter with Optivo.

An Optivo spokesman added: “The safety of all our residents is our number one priority. That’s why we have robust procedures in place to ensure all communal areas are kept clear of obstructions.

‘I just don’t understand why there is a problem now all of a sudden, especially after I’ve been living here for almost 10 years’

“This ensures there are no safety risks for residents or visitors, and there is a clear route for escape in the event of a fire.

“Cedar House has regular fire risk assessments and we have previously highlighted to residents that personal belongings should not be left in communal areas.

“After seeing Ms Kennedy’s pushchair in the communal area on Saturday, November 12, our Housing Team served a tort notice. This was fixed to the pushchair and notified Ms Kennedy she had 14 days to remove the item.

“When the team returned after 17 days, it was still there and there had been no contact.

“She is now able to retrieve the pushchair from our offices at Kent Science Park – there is no charge for this.

“We understand it must be incredibly difficult for Ms Kennedy to carry the pushchair to her home. That’s why we have invested in storage sheds for items to be kept securely.

“To date, we’ve not received any reports of weather-proofing issues. However, we are happy to investigate and carry out any repair work needed.”