Family trapped in mouldy horror home for 10 years: 'This family is owed respect'

Awaab’s Law promises a new dawn for social housing residents – and later private renters – in tackling the damp and mould that plagues millions of homes in the UK.

But not everyone will be protected. Syed Alam, his wife and three children have been battling damp and mould issues in his home in Homerton in Hackney, East London, for a decade. 

Alam is a leaseholder who bought the new build Brooklime House property from Hackney Council 10 years ago, but has been having problems ever since. It means the council still holds the freehold of the property and are therefore responsible for structural repairs, such as the roof and external walls.

Big Issue visited Alam’s home alongside housing campaigner and Big Issue ambassador Kwajo Tweneboa to see the extent of the damage.

Tweneboa joined forces with Big Issue in April after making a big impact on social media through years of helping people living with housing disrepair. Now he’s helping us support people who have reached out to us for help.

During our visit, Alam peels off cardboard from a Rice Krispies’s box covering a hole in his living room wall. The damp seeping into Alam’s living room means his family don’t use the room anymore – despite paying £860 a month to cover the mortgage on the property.

He told Big Issue his children were scared of being in the living room after they were left “screaming” when a rat scampered through a hole in the wall.

Alam, who works as a kitchen porter and a taxi driver, has become frustrated with the situation and has begged the council to fix it. Hackney Council has attempted fixes five times but still the problems persist.

“I cannot sell it. I cannot move anywhere. I cannot do anything. I have been put in a limbo situation,” said Alam, who became tearful while speaking to Big Issue about the mental toll his housing issues have taken on him.

“At night I cannot sleep because I have bought this house. I cannot sell it. I cannot rent it. I don’t know, in my position, what I am going to do.”

Brooklime House is the result of one of Hackney Council’s biggest regeneration projects.

Alam and his family used to live in Bridge House, across the road from where he lives now, but moved to the new development when his previous home was demolished.

But Alam’s issues with his ground-floor flat started virtually immediately.

He showed Big Issue how his living room floor was lower than the paved garden outside, meaning that, when it rains, water rushes into his living room. A drain was installed in the garden earlier this year but it has not fixed the problem.

Alam pointed out a watermark a few inches off the ground in the living room to show how high flood water has reached. “Rain comes, water comes,” he said.

As well as the holes on the wall facing the garden, the side walls are crumbling following the exposure to water. That runs the length of the living room and there is even evidence of the water reaching the downstairs bathroom behind the living room.

There is also evidence of damp and mould and leaks in rooms upstairs too.

Holes in the brickwork outside let rats enter the property, the family added. Alam said: “We came running after hearing one of the boys scream. He saw a rat.” Now the children are afraid to enter the living room.

“I have two jobs so I haven’t got time to communicate with them [the council] so when I finish one job I have to jump into another job to maintain running my family,” said Alam.

“In that situation, I don’t have time to communicate with them every day. First I phoned the council and they told me it was a new build house and ‘we’ll sort it out, don’t worry’.

“After 10 years, can you imagine? It’s stressful. I explained my whole situation – my language barrier, my asthmatic kids, I tell them everything. But I strongly believe they are not taking it seriously.”

Visiting with Big Issue, Tweneboa said: “It is utterly shameful the way Syed and his family have been treated. Years of disrepair, shoddy repairs and outright apathy from council employees. This is not just neglect, it is a complete betrayal of duty.

“No one at Hackney Council would accept living in these conditions, so why should this family? Mr Alam should not have to beg to get repairs done, to be listened to, or to be treated with basic human decency. That is not optional, it is their job.

“After years of inaction, it is time Hackney Council stops hiding behind bureaucracy and does what they are supposed to do. Fix the home. Listen to the family. Treat them with the respect they are owed, now.”

Read more:

• Dad of boy who died due to mould in flat says he’s ‘proud’ of his son for saving lives
• I’ve worked on the frontline making social housing repairs – Awaab’s Law must bring real change
• Awaab’s Law is about more than damp and mould – it’s about what kind of country we want to be

A Hackney Council spokesperson told Big Issue that they have a plan to fix the issues with Alam’s home.

“We are well aware of the issues Mr Alam and his family are facing. We fully accept that there are building problems with their home that need to be fixed and we have put forward a plan to carry out these repairs as soon as possible,” the spokesperson said.

“We sympathise with the concerns Mr Alam has expressed about the repair works being carried out with his family in the home, but we are confident that the internal works can be completed without them needing to move out of their home. We have explained to Mr Alam that the builders would be taking special care to minimise the disruption, including working only during school hours and clearing the property fully at the end of each working day. However, despite repeated requests for access, Mr Alam has not been forthcoming with his availability for the work to be completed.”

An estimated two million people live in homes with damp and mould in England and Awaab’s Law is the government’s response to a problem affecting 4% of the country’s housing stock.  

Awaab’s Law came into force on Monday (27 October) – almost three years after the coroner’s hearing into the tragic death of toddler Awaab Ishak shocked the nation.

Ishak died in Rochdale in 2020 after complaints about damp and mould at his family’s social home went ignored. The coroner ruled that the conditions in the flat contributed to the two-year-old’s death.

Awaab’s Law will force social landlords to take action to fix health hazards to stricter timeframes. Damp and mould is the first hazard that will come under the law with others to be added over the next few years.

But leaseholders like Alam will not be included in the drive to speed up repairs on damp and mould.

Alam is exploring the possibility of taking legal action to fix his home.

The council spokesperson continued: “As Mr Alam is a leaseholder, the council cannot provide the same support as it could do if he was a council tenant. We have explained to Mr Alam that unfortunately because he is a leaseholder the council could not cover the cost of alternative accommodation whilst the repair works are done – this would be a cost that will need to be met by the tenant or their building insurance company.

“We have offered to meet with Mr Alam to discuss the ongoing situation and find a suitable way forward to allow the builders to carry out the necessary work on their home, while avoiding costly legal proceedings that would potentially further hold up the repair work.”

The Renters’ Rights Bill, which is set to be granted royal assent imminently, will introduce Awaab’s Law to the private rented market. Scotland’s Housing Bill will do the same across the country’s rented sector from March next year.

But that means that not everyone will see a change in how damp and mould is handled as the temperatures drop this winter.

That’s a point London Renters Union are also making with a protest against damp and mould’s impact on private renters planned for outside Hackney Council’s offices on Monday as the bill comes into force.

Homeowners and leaseholders – like Alam and his family – will also be left to tackle damp and mould themselves.

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