The chief executive of the housing association that failed Awaab Ishak has confirmed that he will not resign over the toddler's death. Awaab died following prolonged exposure to mould at his home in the Freehold estate - managed by Rochdale Borough Housing (RBH).
In the days since a coroner ruled that the disgusting conditions in the one-bedroom flat contributed to Awaab's death, RBH boss Gareth Swarbrick has faced mounting calls to quit, including from Housing Secretary Michael Gove, who questioned why he was still in post following the conclusion of the inquest on Tuesday (November 15).
Mr Swarbrick, who 'politely declined' Manchester Evening News' request for an interview, has finally apologised to Awaab's family but said that he will not be resigning. "I want to start by saying how sorry I am to Awaab’s family for their loss - no apology will ever be enough," he said in a statement on the RBH website. The conversation around my position has begun to overshadow the most important part of all of this, which is that a family has lost their child.
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"Having spoken to the board, I can confirm that I will not be resigning. They have given me their full backing and trust to continue to oversee the improvements and changes needed within RBH.
"I have spoken to the Secretary of State for Levelling Up and Housing, Michael Gove, to discuss Awaab and the issues we face in social housing. We back the government’s commitment to strengthen the Decent Homes Standard and the importance of the tenant's voice, which will be reinforced by the Social Housing Regulation Bill.
"We have made a raft of changes following the death of Awaab, which have been noted by the coroner. We have made a fundamental change to our disrepair policy, so that work to tenants’ homes will not be held up by a legal process.
"Other improvements include better connected IT systems and mandatory training on damp and mould for all colleagues. We are also rolling out real-time video interpreting technology for employees, enhancing communication with tenants where English is not the first language.
"We all have a duty to call out prejudice, wherever we see it. Equity is at the heart of what we do as a mutual housing society and we will continue to strive for greater inclusion and equality.
"We agree with the coroner that the tragic death of Awaab will be, and should be, a defining moment for the whole housing sector. I will continue our work in Rochdale and collaborate with the social housing sector and beyond to make sure this can never happen again."
Work to implement the 'improvements' and 'changes' referenced by Mr Swarbrick only started after the M.E.N exposed conditions families were suffering in over the summer, more than 18 months on from the tot's death. Despite the public backlash Mr Swarbrick and RBH has faced, the chair of the board, Alison Tumilty said that they have "full confidence" in his leadership.
In a statement, she wrote: "As an organisation, we would again like to extend our deepest sympathies and say sorry to Faisal and Aisha. We let them down.
"This is a tragedy of the highest order, and we are devastated that it happened in one of our homes. We have made mistakes and we are endeavouring to correct them.
"Having spoken to the board, I can confirm that we have full confidence in Gareth’s leadership. He has the trust of the board. He has extensive knowledge of the sector and the communities of Rochdale.
"Together, we will work to restore the trust of the people of Rochdale and demonstrate that we are a mutual landlord that cares, and cares deeply about our tenants. We will continue conversations with Michael Gove and the Housing Ombudsman to discuss what happened to Awaab, and the issues we face in social housing across the sector that need to be dealt with to prevent future deaths.
"In her report, the coroner acknowledged the changes we have made and our commitment to share with others. She makes recommendations across housing and health - at a local and national level.
"We take our responsibilities extremely seriously and are committed to working with others to bring about change. Rochdale Boroughwide Housing is committed to do better and we will do better."
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