article: A family of four are lucky to be alive after a bedroom ceiling collapsed in their home. The damage was just part of the destruction caused by cowboy builders who had been called in to fix a leak in the Beckle-Raymond's three bedroom property in North London. Instead, they left Phillip, his wife Gaby and their two young children, Orion and Aurielle, in an unsafe building with no roof while they ran off with £17,000 of their money. Scroll down for video . Phillip and Gaby outside their London home which was left a wreck thanks to cowboy builders . 'When the builders walked out, we only had tarpaulin protecting the house throughout winter,' Gaby explains on Channel 5 show Britain's Horror Homes. 'When it rained, water started coming in, it was raining inside our house. The box room caved in, the bathroom became bowed, the ceiling will fall in the children's room. 'The most terrifying experience was the ceiling falling in the bedroom where we used to sleep. It collapsed where our bed used to be. We weren't in room at time thankfully.' For six months, the family were forced to live in one room of the house as they couldn't afford to get the problems fixed straight away, having already shelled out to the cowboy builders who left them in the lurch. Phillip, a civil servant, said: 'The house was crumbling around us, we had to turn off the lights as water was getting into electricity, it was that time of year when it was getting dark at 4pm, it was miserable. I hated leaving Gaby and the children like that when I had to go to work.' Phillip and Gaby had used all their savings to buy the property five years before for £325,000. The builders left the family with no roof and just tarpaulin protecting the house from the winter elements. As a result, rain got into the property causing ceilings to collapse . The parents say they are devastated at being 'taken for a ride'. It will cost £35,000 to repair their home . As they started a family, they worked hard to turn the house into a happy and comfortable place to raise their children. When they sprung a small leak in part of the roof, they called in a builder who recommended they re-tile the roof at a cost of about £3,000. But after removing all the tiles, he then told them that the roof structure was unsound so he wouldn't be able to re-tile. He suggested they use the opportunity to expand their home and add value to the property by adding a loft conversion. The couple thought it was great idea and decided to use a sub contractor their builder recommended and pay a £7,000 deposit for the work. Gaby said: 'The first builder appeared to be trustyworthy and was very professional, very likable. 'We didn't have time to check out the sub contractor he recommended as we were without a roof which we needed to be fixed.' A back view of the property shows how the garden was left looking like a rubbish tip while the house had no roof. The family had to live in one room for six months as they couldn't afford the repairs . So far the couple had paid the first builder £10,000 in total - and had a home with no roof to show for it. After the sub contractor began to work on their home, the first builder then disappeared. Phillip said: 'We heard from sub contractor that the builder's uncle was sick in Ireland so he was going there - we never hard from him again.' Meanwhile, the sub contractor began work on their loft conversion after asking for £7,000 for materials and labour. But as the sub contractor got to work, the couple became suspicious about his competency. Gaby said: 'He was trying to build a loft conversion without steel supports - which we had paid for. 'That's when we realised he was trying to take us for a ride like the first guy.' Phillip added: 'When we told him it wasn't acceptable, he walked off the job. We were left with a roof no longer salvageable.' Shocking: The collapse of the roof left their home filled with rubble . Daylight: With the tiles gone, the family were left with bare rafters and no protection from the elements . The couple were unable to contact the first builder and have reported the sub contractor to Trading Standards. They have been left devastated by the state of their home - as well as £17,000 out of pocket. 'We have lost the home we have been building over the last few years, our whole house has been destroyed, it's been a living nightmare. We wish they have never knocked on our door,' Gabby wept. 'I just want it fixed. I still can't believe someone would leave me my husband and our two children in so much danger. They didn't need to leave us in such an unsafe way.' But the family's trust in humanity has been partly restored thanks to the friends, family and strangers who rallied round to help them. A friend set up a fundraising page so people can donate money to help the couple reach the £35,000 they will need to repair their home. Unsafe: The family are devastated that they have been left to live in an unsafe home . Damage: A local builder Darren Louis has been helping the family to clear up the mess left behind . A local builder, Darren Louis, has been working on the property at weekends - so far without payment - so the family have a roof over their heads again. He said: I wanted to help as this is my trade and they are a lovely family. They didn't need to do the work in the first place, they were scaremongered into it and then left with a house that's unsafe.' Gaby said: 'I feel terrible he's coming here and we haven't paid him. He's coming in trust that we will come through with money in the end.' Phillip said it's thanks to their friends, family and neighbours they have got through their ordeal. He said: 'We were left thinking "can we trust anyone anymore?" and now we know we can.'
highlights: Parents Phillip and Gaby Beckle-Raymond discovered a leak in roof .
  Hired builder to fix problem at their three bed London home .
  He took roof off and then disappeared with £10k of their money .
  Sub contractor botched efforts to give them loft conversion .
  He charged £7,000 for parts and labour but left them with unsafe building .
  Family had to live in one room for six months as home had no roof .
  Rain water got in causing ceilings to collapse .
  Britain's Horror Homes is on Channel 5 Tuesdays at 8pm .
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