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An unemployed couple who claim thousands of pounds a year in benefits have been given a new large house in Staple Hill, prompting more calls for the TaxPayers' Alliance for welfare reform.

As reported in today's papers, Gary Bateman and his partner Joanne Sheppard, who have 11 children, have been given the property by South Gloucestershire Council.

The family previously lived in a three-bed property in Yate but are now being moved to the five-bedroomed detached house in Staple Hill, with the local authority meeting the cost of the £1,200-a-month rent.

Neither of them is in work, but live off over £30,000 in benefits a year and 36-year-old Joanne is expecting her 12th baby later this year.

Fiona McEvoy from the TaxPayers' Alliance says that the news will upset many tax payers, but that the current welfare system allows it to happen: "It's obviously a lucrative option for them to stay on benefits and keep having children. But I think it's important to remember there are a lot of taxpayers who are working hard who couldn't afford a five bedroomed home and certainly won't be making this amount of money. It's important to make it more attractive for people to go out there are get a job, rather than sitting at home and taking benefits."

She added: "We need to make sure that when people do go into work they don't suffer and their benefits are stripped away immediately.

"It's important to make so that it isn't more lucrative to stay at home and sit on benefits. More value needs to be added to going out there and getting a job and making money for yourself."

But the family have hit back at claims they're benefit scroungers. Joanne Sheppard says she feels like they're been victimised: "We're having another baby, so what? People ought to just leave me alone. I don't care what people think of me.

''I did not want to move out of Yate but it's fine now - I love my new house.

''Why can't everyone just leave us alone - it's not like we are on drugs or alcohol.

''I just can't understand what all the fuss is about. It's just not fair.''

She added: ''My job is looking after my kids until they are old enough to look after themselves. Then I will go out and get a job.

''I think looking after kids - especially two with ADHD - is the hardest job. If you stayed here and looked after my kids you would want to go straight back to work.''

The 36-year-old believes her neighbours told the national press about their situation: ''My husband is fuming about this, I don't talk to my neighbours and they don't have the bottle to knock on my door and talk to my face.

''It's selfish. Do they understand what all this is putting my kids through?

''Some are old enough to understand what is going on and it gets around their school.''

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