I would really appreciate some thoughts on my problem. My husband died nearly three years ago and I have tow adult step children. My step-daughter is an alcoholic with two children. She was living in France but her brother brought her back to England because she was not with the children's father and they were in a house that had no heat, no water and no electricity and she had no money. After a while when she got back here he put her into a cottage that actually belongs to him, but it is my responsibility for my lifetime (I get the rent but have to maintain it). My stepdaughter has now had the children taken away from her (court ordered) and they are with a foster family. This is an interim order, but as she has made no efforts to stop drinking it is likely to be permanent. The children's uncle doesn't want to know and I am too old to have full care of them, but I do stay in touch. At 5.00 am this morning the stepdaughter was arrested for screaming and shouting and disturbing the whole village. Now everyone is getting at me - this is not by any means the first time this has happened, it seems to be a weekly occurrence. My problem is that I have been very reluctant to evict her as I don't think I could sleep at night if she was on a park bench somewhere but on the other hand the other people in the village are entitled to some peace and quiet. So sorry for this long message - I have tried to precis it!
