EXCLUSIVE: Survivor of Fred & Rose West rebuilt her life with "the help from her loving family"
Jayne Hamer lived at 25 Cromwell street for a year when she was 16-years-old
Last updated 16th Jul 2021
A former lodger and survivor of Fred & Rose West says she rebuilt her life with "the help of her loving family".
Jayne Hamer moved into 25 Cromwell Street in Gloucester when she was 16-year-old after running away from home.
Warning - some readers may find some of the content of this article and documentary upsetting
The house was known as 'The House of Horrors' and was the epicentre of the the couple's spree of murder, torture and rape - which span over two decades.
Fred and Rose were collectively charged with the murders of 12 young women in Gloucestershire and buried them under the floor of the cellar and the patio in the garden.
Fred killed himself in prison before he faced trial and Rose was sentenced to life imprisonment for her involvement.
Watch the full documentary with Jayne:
"I feel lucky to be alive"
Grieving the loss of her father, Jayne left home when she was 16-years-old and moved into a room where Fred & Rose lived in Gloucester - which became to be known as the House of Horrors.
She would often look after the couple's children Stephen, Heather and Mae and would sometimes see gentleman callers turning up to see Rose, who was known to engage in prostitution.
She decided to move out after hearing Fred rape his 8-year-old daughter Heather over the period of a few nights.
Jayne said: "Hearing what I heard could have put me in a vulnerable position.
"I always say to myself if you would have told them you were moving out you would not have moved out of that front door.
"You would have moved in with the rest of them, under the patio - or the cellar."
It was two decades later when Jayne realised she had been living amongst the bodies of the murdered women.
Police began excavating 25 Cromwell Street in the 1990s after concerns were raised by social services about the welfare of the children.
They told investigators about the family joke that "Heather was buried beneath the patio".
Overcoming the past
Jayne's whole life was turned upside down after she became a key witness in the trial of Rose West.
In the years following Rose's sentencing, Jayne explained how she buried the memories of living with the West family deep away.
She eventually moved to Plymouth in Devon, got married and had children over her own.
Jayne said: "I've rebuilt my life with the help of my loving family.
"I also do absolute stacks of voluntary work which gets me through just about everything. I've also had some crazy hobbies over the years like scuba diving. My latest one is RC Racing.
"Even though my children are now grown-up and I have grandchildren, we're still a family and each and every one of them knows what's happened and have stood by me and that's how we have a positive outlook.
"We've had a lot of obstacles in our lives, illnesses with my son, but they've all pulled my through and I've had them to focus on so I can build my life back up again.
Jayne volunteers with the Stroke Association after her son suffered one when he was younger.
To donate to the charity visit their website here.
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