I know this a bit of an older post but thought I would add my pennys-worth anyway as I am in a similar situation. I have a viewing tomorrow on a property that the Home-Link site bid on on my behalf as they seem to think it is suitable when it is not. This means that if I accept it I will be stuck in a place that is detrimental to my mental health or if I refuse I will be evicted from my temporary accommodation and put on the street. I wish there was a simple solution but there is not. All you can do is ask your local council to make a re-assessment review of your situation or explain things to the Lettings Agent at the viewing.
As for the town you mentioned, personally I would not bother there. I have lived in Haverhill almost my entire life and over the last 20 it has gone downhill. Which is why I am trying so hard to get out of there.
The noise is bad, especially with all the younger people racing there cars and motorbikes up and down the bypass road at all hours. The lights on the estates are often switched off to save money, leaving a lot of pitch dark alleyways that cannot be navigated without a torch. The number of assaults this causes, especially on single women, has increased since this policy was put in place. Because of the Covid Lockdown many pubs were forced to close which was a big help as it reduced the number of drunken fights and groups of football hooligans on the streets late at night. Since the lifting of the Lockdown these are on the rise again.
The roads are in terrible condition and the council is incompetent as far as even ordinary maintenance is concerned. Some paths are little more that loose pebbles now as they have not been resurfaced in decades. As for the people.....The younger ones spend their time getting drunk and causing family arguments in the streets at all hours of the night. The place is full of litter and broken bottles as nobody seems to know what bins are for. Drug use is generally out-of-site but is still widespread. Finding needles just thrown into the bushes is common.
The people are rude, generally discourteous and load. Violence is not uncommon. There are a lot of ex-cons living there so theft and burglary are commonplace. The police station closes at night so any patrol cars have to come from other towns to do a quick drive-trough, where they often ignore problems that they have not been specifically asked to investigate. Dangerous driving and traffic offenses are often givien a pass resulting in increased danger to innocent bystanders. There are a lot of youngsters who don't even have licenses and even those that do, shouldn't.
By day the place seems okay, but at night it can be hit or miss as to whether it is okay or a nightmare. There are no real good parts of town anymore. They are all mediocre-to-bad. If we could just get rid of the people, clean it up, repair it and repopulate with decently educated residents, it could be a nice place. Alas, the councillors are greedy hippocrites who care nothing for anyone or anything unless they can skim it for added cash.
For a single mother I would say avoid it at all costs. Once you are here, it can take decades to leave as other places will see where you have lived an d deny you the chance to move away.