The father of an 11-month-old baby says his family home in Salford has been riddled with mould and damp for EIGHT years. Andrew Cooper says it is only now that the Pendleton Together housing association is starting to try to sort the problem out.
Andrew, 51, and his 33-year-old wife Kirsty say they have been offered lodgings at a hotel but have turned it down because they have two dogs and four cats at their two-bedroom Woolpack Green flat. The couple would like to be moved to alternative housing but Pendleton Together says there is the only other alternative is a move to a high-rise flat.
The Coopers are meeting with Salford and Eccles MP Rebecca Long-Bailey and a representative of the housing association tomorrow (Tuesday, March 28). “We’ve had this problem for eight years,” said Andrew.
“Last week, they [Pendelton Together] came out with damp-metre reader, but I was later told the readings had been lost. So went out and got my own damp-metre and all readings are well above the recommended minimum of 14RH (relative humidity).”
Andrew, who works as an events security manager, said there had been numerous visits to the home by Pendleton Together to look at the problem over the last eight years. “At one point there was team of people here, and I heard them arguing about whose responsibility it was to sort it out," he said.
Pendleton Together’s senior operation manager Julie Blagden told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “We were sorry to learn of the issues and concerns our resident has been experiencing. The resident contacted us in February with concerns around damp and mould and we immediately sent an inspector the same day.
“The inspector could see some work was needed to remove and deter mould from around some windows, but that a further more intrusive inspection was needed in order to ensure the root cause of the mould could be addressed. This inspection work is comprehensive and difficult to fully complete while the family are in the home.
“Additionally, it is likely that any follow on remedial work would be less disruptive to complete successfully if there was no one residing in the property.” Ms Blagden continued: “Initially, we offered to place the family in a hotel and to put their pets in kennels.
“We have a very limited stock of properties but also offered a move to a property in our high-rise blocks. The family were concerned about the stress of being separated from their animals and declined. We found a hotel that would accommodate the pets too however, but the family did not feel this hotel to be suitable.
“Finally, we offered to seek temporary private rental accommodation, but the resident felt this would cause them undue stress as we are unable to specify how long this arrangement would need to be in place. It will not be possible to indicate this until a full inspection is completed.”
Asked by the LDRS why it had taken eight years to sort the problem out, Ms Blagden said: “We were made aware of the damp and mould last month and have responded immediately. While the resident has not raised concerns with us for some years, we are currently investigating what work has been carried out historically.
“If our investigation indicates a failure on our part we will speak to the resident directly about this and their options. Any Pendleton Together resident with a concern about damp and mould should call us on 0300 555 557 or report it directly at www.togetherhousing.co.uk/dmc where they will receive a response within three working days.”
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