Seaford mum's winter fears as girl allergic to cold at risk

Nikki Britton has been warned her energy bills are set to double and fears this could put her daughter’s health risk.

The 36-year-old told how little Summer-Angel breaks out in hives when the temperature drops below 20C.

This means that Nikki usually keeps the heating on at their home, in Seaford, throughout the winter.

She explained how the 10-year-old suffers from a rare condition called cold urticaria.

Summer was diagnosed when she was aged one

Nikki, a full-time carer, said: "It doesn't even have to be that cold for her rashes to come up - so in winter the heating is on all the time without question.

"I'm expecting my energy bills to double in winter, and we just won't be able to have the heating on, full stop.”

The family already owes £700 to the energy company despite not having the heating on recently.

"I'm petrified what will happen to Summer. I feel so helpless,” said Nikki.

"What am I supposed to tell her when she says she is cold? All I can do is give her a coat and hot water bottle, but it might not be enough.

"It's just really, really worrying."

Summer and mum Nikki Britton

Nikki has three other children, aged seven, two, and 11 months, with partner James Broadway, a full-time service engineer.

As well as hives, Summer’s throat can also swell up when she drinks cold liquids, and her parents believe her condition is getting gradually worse – despite being prescribed antihistamines.

"Parents snigger when you say your daughter is allergic to the cold, until you explain it's actually really serious,” said Nikki.

"It's quite a rare thing, not a lot of people know what the condition is.

"Summer asks me 'why do I have this? Why am I different from all my friends?' and gets quite upset.

"People stare at her when her allergies are up because her rash comes out so much."

Summer's hands covered in the rash

Nikki said the family already relies on food banks and Universal Credit, but she fears their energy costs will rise from £6 to £12 a day.

"£6 a day covers my washing machine and the fans at night,” she said.

"In winter, we won't use the fans, but we'll need the heating on 24/7. I'll also have to use the tumble dryer.

"We just can't afford it to get any higher.

"We have no extra money to pay for it, so we can't have it on."

Nikki fears Summer will frequently experience the rash during the colder months

Summer-Angel was diagnosed with cold urticaria when she was one, and the condition has now become “near impossible” to manage.

Cold urticaria is a reaction that can appear after only a few minutes of exposure to the cold.

It usually appears on the skin as hives, but in severe cases can cause anaphylaxis or closing over of the throat and tongue swelling.

The cause is still unknown.