Kate Gosselin's former housekeeper claims she witnessed Collin's alleged abuse, describes strict household rules, and says she even reported concerns to child welfare authorities.
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Add BollywoodShaadis on GoogleKate Gosselin is facing fresh allegations about her controversial parenting style behind the scenes amid son Collin's scathing new memoir. Days after the memoir was released, the house's former housekeeper and fill-in nanny claimed she witnessed the reality star physically mistreating her children, and especially Collin, whom she says Kate had a 'specific hate' for.
Ashley H., who worked for the family for six months in 2013, says she reported her concerns to child welfare authorities and is now speaking out in support of Collin's account of his childhood in his memoir, In the Shadow of Eight: Surviving the Reality of My Childhood.
In an interview with PEOPLE, Ashley, now 42, recalled joining the Gosselin household after seeing Kate and her eight children on TLC's Kate Plus 8. At the time, Ashley was studying for a master's degree in social work and working as a nanny. She initially applied for a nanny position but took a job as a house cleaner and fill-in caregiver because her class schedule conflicted with the family's needs.
While the family looked ideal on the outside, Ashley says her experience in the family's Pennsylvania home differed sharply from the image viewers saw on television. She alleged that Kate maintained strict household rules and treated Collin differently from his seven siblings. Ashley said:
"She very much outwardly treated Collin different. She 110 percent abused Collin. It's hard to almost put into words the specific hate that she had towards Collin. You could just feel it."
Ashley claimed she repeatedly saw Kate grab Collin and described incidents in which the boy was pulled out of his chair in the kitchen. She alleged that the way Kate treated him made the difference between him and his siblings difficult to ignore.
The former nanny also described what she called a 'highly controlled' household, where children were rarely allowed to leave toys or belongings out. According to Ashley, Kate even had a detailed 'house manual' for staff that included rules against taking photographs of the children and instructions to keep the family dog out of most of the house, except for the basement. Ashley recalled:
"The house was to look unlived-in at all times. She would have weekly chores, biweekly chores, and they would include having a toothpick and going around the edges of the fridge. She wouldn't let the kids do anything. There was never toys out... They couldn't live."
She also claimed the children were allowed only one or two school outfits per week because of concerns about laundry. She described interactions between Kate and the children as 'robotic' rather than affectionate. Kate allegedly made it clear with her actions which children she favored and which she found annoying. In her words:
"It was not loving. She very much made it known who was a favorite, who wasn't, who's annoying. Someone would come and pick the dog up for grooming, but she treated her kids basically worse than animals."
In her six months of working for the Gosselins, one particular incident disturbed her significantly. Ashley recalled finding a large red plastic spoon in a drawer containing school supplies. When she asked the children about it, one allegedly told her it was the spoon their mother used when she got angry.
The discovery, she says, largely contributed to her decision to leave the job after six months. She also said she contacted Berks County Children and Youth Services because she was concerned about how the children were being treated. She told PEOPLE:
"I want to use this opportunity to not only back Collin that his mom was psychologically abusive to him, not to mention the physical."
Ashley's account comes as Collin's memoir has renewed public attention on his relationship with his mother. Collin describes what he alleges was a childhood marked by physical and emotional abuse, including a disturbing account of being isolated and punished in a locked basement room where he claims he spent much of his time.
Collin previously told ABC News that the life presented on television didn't reflect his experience away from the cameras. Ashley said she hopes speaking publicly will help Collin feel that his experiences are being taken seriously. Now a social worker, mental health advocate, and mother of twins, she said she hopes others who witnessed events inside the Gosselin home will consider sharing their accounts. She told PEOPLE.
"I am so incredibly proud of Collin and hope he feels validated."
Collin's father, Jon Gosselin, is seeking legal action and criminal charges for Kate's years of abuse of their son.
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