A mum has spoken of her devastation, but overwhelming gratitude to friends and strangers, after her home was destroyed in an alleged arson attack.

Kayleigh Cooper, 19, was staying at her mother’s house with her son Harley, two, on Saturday night.

While she was gone, her flat in Wakefield Road, Greenhithe, was set alight. It is believed the intended target was another flat in the block.

She got a call to say her home was burning and turned up in the pouring rain to see the flames destroy everything, leaving her and Harley with only the clothes they were standing in.

About 20 firefighters spent an hour and a half tackling the blaze at the first-floor home.
Officers and a team from Kent Fire and Rescue made inquiries in the area.

A police spokesman said: “This was an isolated incident and there is no further risk to the community.”

Families say problems which have given the area a negative reputation have escalated lately.

Neighbours reported that on one occasion there was a brawl on the green, children are unable to play outside as much because cars are being driven through the little cul-de-sac erratically and at high speed, and one neighbour moved away because the constant violence caused her to have a breakdown.

"It’s just so upsetting, I’ve lost everything. My whole life has gone. Obviously I’m grateful to be alive. Me and Harley could both have been dead if we were in the flat that night, but it’s made me angry as well." - Kayleigh Cooper

Fighting back tears, Kayleigh said: “It’s just so upsetting, I’ve lost everything. My whole life has gone. Obviously I’m grateful to be alive. Me and Harley could both have been dead if we were in the flat that night, but it’s made me angry as well. I try to get on with everyone in the flats.

"All this has happened because of someone else’s drama, but it’s me that’s had everything destroyed. I can’t believe it.

“I’m still in a state of shock to be honest. My emotions keep switching all the time, I keep crying and getting angry.

“My family are really supportive, which has helped, but my mum’s had a difficult time of it lately too, with my step-dad ill in hospital. We’ve got a lot going on and I don’t want this to get her more down, too.”

Kayleigh, who works at Bluewater, has lived in the flat for a year and a half and had almost finished redecorating it.

“It was looking really lovely. I’d wallpapered everywhere. I just had the carpets left to do. Now it’s all ruined.

“There’s a lot of sentimental things I can’t get back. I had a box with my little boy’s first curl in it, and his hospital tag, photos that aren’t on Facebook. That’s what’s upset me the most.”

She has now been put into a temporary flat until everything has been sorted.

“It’s fine,” she said. “But I don’t really know what’s going on. The firefighters said there’s no chance I’ll ever be going back to that flat because it’s too badly damaged, so I don’t know what’s going to happen to us.”

The flat is owned by The Hyde Group. A spokeswoman said: “The fire in Wakefield Road is being investigated by the emergency services. We’re committed to providing every support to the investigation into the cause of the blaze at the first-floor maisonette.

“The property is managed by Family Mosaic on behalf of The Hyde Group (Hyde) and we are liaising with them to address the situation after the blaze.

“We can confirm that there were no injuries reported. However, extensive damage has been done to one flat and residents have been moved out of the property and home below, for safety.

“We will continue to work with everyone affected to make sure that they secure homes which suit their individual needs.

“The property has been fire assessed, is compliant with building regulations and does not require a fire escape.

“We are assessing the damage and will speak with loss adjusters before putting together a timetable to progress repairs.”

Immediately after the fire Kayleigh’s friend Chloe Harvey took to social media and Jodie Penfold learned of her plight.

Soon a campaign was set up between the pair to help.

People have donated items of furniture to help Kayleigh when she has a permanent home.
St Mary’s Church in Greenhithe has agreed to hold all the furniture in storage until she is ready to collect it.

She now has sofas, a bed, washing machine and a fridge, among other donations.

Kayleigh said: “People have been offering me everything. Everyone’s done so much. I can’t believe how nice people are. I’m so grateful.”

Jodie, 24, is a mum of two herself and said: “I heard about Kayleigh and it just really touched me. It’s so awful, I just wanted to do something to help her.

“People got on board with it straight away. We’ve got a microwave, wardrobes, even a £40 Nando’s voucher so she can try and have a nice evening with Harley and take her mind off things for a bit.

“The church has been amazing, and we’re hoping to get Asda on board too, as they’ve obviously also lost all their food.”

A Go Fund Me page was also set up and has collected more than £500.

It will go to helping replace some of the food as well as Harley’s toys, and their clothes, plus other bits for their new home such as carpets and curtains.