A Carshalton mum and her five kids have been left homeless after their house was destroyed by a fire.

On July 7, Andrea Stevens’ home was ravaged by a fire after an electrical fault with a lamp.

The entire top floor was destroyed by the blaze, including the staircase, and the floorboards have had to be lifted out.

Andrea and her five children, aged six, nine, 10, 16, and 18, have now been left homeless and traumatised by what happened to their home.

The 40-year-old healthcare worker told Your Local Guardian: “We were going about our normal day and my daughter stepped out of her room and said that the childrens' bedroom was on fire.

“Thankfully, the three little ones were downstairs at the time but by the time she said that the whole room lit up and the alarm started going.”

Andrea said she was told that the fire was caused by a study lamp’s lithium battery overheating.

Since the fire, Andrea and her five kids have been living in a hotel but she said: “I don’t know what’s going to happen on Wednesday (July 17) because the hotel is only booked till then.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do yet.”

The fire destroyed the entire top floor so nothing is retrievable.

Andrea is currently waiting for the air quality results of the ground floor.

Andrea has been in contact with Sutton Council who, she says, has been helping her as much as it can, but she was told that she and her family might not be able to move back in until January.

She added: “You’d think there was a lot to it, but, no, it was a normal Sunday.

“My daughter went to the bathroom and said ‘Oh, the kids’ bedroom is on fire’.

“So, it could’ve really ended up in a different way.”

Andrea described it as “traumatic" for her and her children, particularly because of the smoke, which was especially challenging as some of them suffer from asthma.

She added: “Being in a hotel is a bit dysregulating for them, but we’re getting by.

“At least we’ve got somewhere at the moment so we’re grateful.”

Andrea launched a GoFundMe page last Wednesday (July 10) with a £5,000 target after all her “family memories and treasured favourites had gone up in smoke in a blink of an eye.”