To just walk out my council house.

[CoconutSky]

I hate despise this flat.
I’ve ended up in an adapted property with a wet room.
It’s riddled with damp because of the wet room, I’ve spent thousands on painting and decorating, carpeting when I moved in to make it nice. I fled DV, after less than 2 years it’s all had to come up and be replaced.
Wet room is being “repaired” but I don’t hold much hope.
I’ve no worktops, 4 kitchen cupboards and no space whatsoever and I’ve just had enough. I only realised the further adaptations when comparing my flat to my neighbours and I just feel like walking out. Communal hallway also stinks of cigarettes which comes into my home, HA are aware and have done nothing but send letters out. Despite it being a communal hallway an inspectors also said that the other tenants are okay to smoke cigarettes as it’s not illegal. It might not be illegal but I can’t open my windows cos it comes in all the bedrooms. DD’s stinks so bad of fags she’s in with me and that’s with the window closed.

Im so miserable, the wet room stinks, my shoes and bags have always got mould in. Im on the mutual exchange but no one wants flats and I can’t get a managed move, property is 2 beds and I’m “adequately housed”
I even asked if the housing association had a special register for adapted properties but they don’t.
I can’t afford private rented and wouldn’t pass a credit check due to my ex getting me in debt.

I don’t know what to do, I’m sick of phoning the housing association, sick of being upset and seeing plaster and paint just fall off the wall. I’m at my wits end and I feel like I’m trapped in this place.

Ordered one of the silicones last night so hopefully that can contain it.
I can’t get a wet and dry vacuum, when making the property “accessible” they took out storage cupboards, and I don’t have a loft, so I’ve got no place to store a wet and dry. I’ve literally just got a stick hoover and that lives at the side of the wardrobe.

So when I spoke to the ombudsman again, I told them it’s not worked and that the HA were fobbing me off as usual and they said they can’t do anything now as they’ve closed the complaint as it’s been “resolved”
Housing standards just basically told me that the fans should work in the time frame provided (3 months) and I have to give it a chance. Laughable.

Someone’s also been chain smoking in the hallway again as all I can smell is cigs and weed.
I’ll see what my housing officer says IF she phones me back. Other than that I’ll try Shelter

I agree.

op, you seem to be so fed up that you’re not doing anything on your own now to make this habitable. You need to accept this is your home and you can do stuff to make it better. No it will not be what you want. No, it will not be without significant issues. But it can be improved.

the officer said the fans need at least 3 months to make a difference. Run your dehumidifier continually, install the barriers linked above. Put some waterproof matting down. Buy some large chopping boards or use the ones you have, ruining your cooker doesn’t help anything. Have the door rehung. Treat any mould with mould resistant spray. Buy clever but cheap storage units for food etc,

there is a child living in the house, so you need to start doing things to help yourself.

Do things to help myself? I’ve tried everything. Absolutely everything. I’ve got a dehumidifier running constantly, I spray mould spray all the time, I squeegee the water up after the 2 showers a week. I don’t air dry washing, I heat and ventilate the property. I have tried to make this dump a home, I had nice carpets put down, had it decorated so it looked well presented, the damp has took my wallpaper off and I’ve got paint flaking off the walls, the wet room that I can’t do anything to has rotted my hallway carpet. There is no “clever but cheap storage” because there is no room. I’ve got to use my wardrobe or just have things left out.

There is a child living in this property yes and most of the time I debate whether sending her to live with my mother would be a better idea because at least she won’t be stuck in a damp, shoebox of a house that looks like I’m running an air b&b for crackheads.

So aside from just sucking up because I’ve got the golden ticket of a HA tenancy, tell me exactly what else I can do.

You've already dont a lot but you cant move so you dont really have a choice over trying to do more.

A karcher window vac will suck up some water, better than a squeegee and doesnt take much more space,

How long since the fans were put in? Go back to the Ombudsman with a new complaint on the stroke of 3 months saying the original complaint was not resolved as it didnt work. Get a builder or plumber to look at the wet room and say why it didnt work, it will have more impact than coming from you..

@CoconutSky if it's that bad shout from the rooftops. Put pictures on social media. Don't be passive.

Spoke to my housing officer. I’m still not having a damp inspection but she’s certain replacing the floor (not skirting board) will stop the damp.
Explained kitchen space issue, was told it’s adequate and I’m not being moved as it’s 2 beds. I have no housing need.

Gonna phone Shelter now as DD’s at my mums for the night, so I can chat with them properly

I do understand how difficult it is. Declaring bankruptcy, having to go to a refuge, being housed here. But things are being done.

firstlh they are replacing the flooring. That will help. The floor should be angled to the plug hole so the water drains in to it.
secondlh they have installed fans. You need to give it the min 3 months they said for them to work.
tne kitchen is the kitchen, they won’t change it, you will need to accept it. I’m sorry but there is no way round it,
you do have a two bed, for two people, you and a child, they will not rehouse. Social housing is scarce, there is a huge waiting list, and they can’t afford for one to go empty.

once the floors are in, and the fans had time, I’d paint again when it’s dried out, maybe about 6 months later, replace the carpet in the areas it is required, or put down hard flooring ie laminate.

you must also have a living room surely, a hall way. You will have wall space, space for storage boxes, even ottoman beds.

ultimately this is your home, and will be for the considerable future. So ruining your cooker, calling it a dump, saying you don’t care if it rots, etc, only hurts you and your child. As you are the people who need to live there.

Go above your housing officer. I went to the head of the service for my mate after an appalling and discriminatory decision by her to skip over her for an adapted bungalow because she was not in receipt of PIP. That we were actually awaiting a tribunal for her PIP to be reinstated (and it was) was besides the point - it was not within the policies if procedures of the council and this woman was working outside the rules. I do lots of her paperwork for her as she can't always do it herself.

In this case put it in writing in an email. List out the issues, list out what's happened and what the effects of those items of work have been so far.

Have a look at the policies around suitably housed and what that means in your HA. Look at who is entitled to an adapted property and point out that that your needs are for a home without adaptations and you are not actually entitled to a flat with these adaptations as it makes you life difficult.

Ask for a full review by a manager of your home, the damp, the mould, the unsuitable kitchen, the unsuitable bathroom, the condition of your home etc.

It might take a few days to put together, but be really factual, use their own policies and procedures against them. They hate that.

Copy in the head of service. Add photos if you can.

Also re contact your MP as well as shelter, I know they were useless last time but send a detailed email, with pictures, dates, of all the issues and how they haven't been solved, give it a week or two then try and ring and talk to one of the staff who will be working on the casework or go to one of the in person surgeries if your MP runs them.

As Janie said, its so tough living in a bad house, it just saps the life out of you, but as it doesn't look like its changing anytime soon, its also important to look for workarounds just for your own wellbeing, in my tiny tiny kitchen flat, I couldn't keep anything in, it was basically a sink, a slither of counter space and then the hob, I had a fold out table in the living room (or could go in bedroom) where I chopped everything and then used bowls to transfer through so I only did the actual heating, it sucks and its a complete pain, but its better to do that, then to ruin your cooker.

So sorry to hear of your situation, OP. It really does sound like you are doing everything you can to make it a home for your DC. I hope things turn around for you and you get some good news from Shelter / HA.

Truly sorry it is so awful, but Please don’t just walk out as they can then say you ‘made yourself homeless’ and you will go to the very end of the housing list and probably not be offered anything at all except some ghastly homeless hostel.

I've lived in similar conditions (twice) and it's very depressing.

Why don't you photograph everything and get it published in the newspaper? You've got nothing to lose by sending everything to every paper you can think of. Someone will publish it.

The HA/council are likely not keeping their side of the tenancy agreement, so they're breaking the law.

I eventually sorted out issues by keeping on and on at them day after day without relenting. It went on for about 18 months and I involved everyone I could think of. I literally phoned every day. My GP wrote a letter about depression. My anger drove me on. I've done that twice; it took ages but persevered.

I hope you get some reasonable living conditions soon OP. Shelter are good.

An extractor fan does not take 3 months to work though. This is my point. I’m not painting anything given the fact any decoration I’ve done has just gone to shit.

I am so sorry to hear this….our homes are so crucial to our well-being so it is miserable to feel like this.
i know you feel you have tried everything…..but adapted flats are in short supply so it may be worth trying a mutual exchange…..it sounds like you have given up rather but you need to try a couple of things like that and the dehumidifier that others have mentioned.
walking away will only get you into temporary accommodation which will be very difficult especially as you have a child/children.
try and keep going.
x

This is a red herring and not worth focusing on. Ignore it completely. Focus on other things and batter them with detail. Stick with facts not emotion and kick it up above the housing officer to deal.

The squeaky wheel gets the oil....

Re this:

”I can’t get a wet and dry vacuum, when making the property “accessible” they took out storage cupboards, and I don’t have a loft, so I’ve got no place to store a wet and dry”

sorry if this has been mentioned, but there are small handvacs that aren’t much bigger than a hair dryer, they’re essentially a squeegee with suction and storage chamber handle that the water goes into. I have one for my bathroom which, unfortunately, is very small and gets soaking wet post showers. The steam also travels to other upstairs rooms despite fan/window open/vented all day. I think Vileda do one, mine is Vax. They work on all surfaces, I do my walls, windows, shower screen and mirror. It fills up the chamber but I just pop it down the sink when full and then finish off whatever needs doing next, Eg windows in my bedrooms

re: the smoking, I’d be really pissed off about the 3rd hand smoke around my daughter, and their failure to stop it. Wonder if there’s any legal grounds to threaten them here? Probably not. It was just an idea for an alternative route to try.

Im sorry you have to deal with this. As others have asked - do you have the plastic tubs with beads? They do help even with a humidifier. Is your flat built in 60s? If yes the black mould can only be fully resolved by rebuilding in most cases. But it can be controlled. You need to daily outside ventilation by cracking windows open. I turn my heat off at night. I open kitchen window when cooking. Open bathroom window when i shower. If windows have condensation i wipe them down. I squeegee and wipe down condensation (which also prevents limescale). As soon as i see any spots of mould i spray anti mould on it. Bags and shoes. Get alcohol or anti bacterial wipes and wipe down insides and outsides. Wherever you store those items make sure the air is not stagnant….ie open closet doors every week to let the air circulate.

ive lived near the seaside and in different areas of london. If you are close to an area of flood risk (google the flood maps) no matter what you will have to manage damp even if you’re a millionaire! Unless you build from scratch and have air purification!! But still!

i escaped DV and luckily let from someone I know as ex killed my credit. Look up survivors of economic abuse. They may be able to help with advice on credit and more. But as many said don’t walk away. The housing market is brutal. To here was an expose done recently on BBC - maybe look up help there?

as for the smoking. Is it particular people? Could you let them know? Maybe just say i just want to let you know … im not sure how to make this better? I understand you’re not doing anything wring but I equally dont eant to smell smoke in my home. See what they say. These days people are stressed and easily offended. Just try to be understanding first and foremost.

Of course it will, if the 0lace is as damp as you say.

She will not get temp accommodation if she walks away, she’s been housed, if she makes herself intentionally homeless she will be on the streets.

Do not leave the property as you are then making yourself intentionally homeless. Councils will not help you if you do!

as some have said go down the legal route, contact ur MP, contact environmental health.

Hi op I understand the situation your in as my daughter was in the same situation as you but she was pregnant adapted flat wet room it stunk of mould all the time the wet room was contently flooded local council wouldn't do anything told her open your windows we spent loads off money on various stuff to rid the damp upstairs smoking weed her flat stunk in the end she walked out but this was 3 years ago she's only just got a new permanent home she was living out off bin bags as she was put in at least 6 hotels with a newborn baby so please think before you act

While I think this sounds awful for you and I can't believe people are made to live like this.....where would you go if you walked out? What's the plan once you've left it? It's a genuine question.

They gave you accommodation. Admittedly shit accommodation but accommodation nonetheless. So if you voluntarily give it up, you won't get different accommodation from them.

If you have family, could you, or at least your child, live with them while you save for private rent? Are you claiming absolutely everything you can in order to be able to meet a private rent?

Your only housing need eligibility would be the poor condition of the property ie disrepair.

In terms of the size of the home, yes, they're going to say you're not in need as you're adequately housed, that's irrelevant to disrepair.

Also in terms of the work top height, etc, these are set in legislation. So, you'd need to find the bits of legislation that govern dimensions of fixtures and fittings and quote chapter and verse and formally request that your kitchen surfaces are brought to standard for your physical ability.

My home is partly disability modified because all our flats were built to be wheelchair accessible. It doesn't have a wet room, it has a regular bathroom but larger and with some railings in it, our doors are wider than regular width and the light switches are lower down on the wall. However, the kitchen units are bog standard (don't know how someone in a wheelchair would reach in fact). Strange decisions they make. I assume a wheelchair user would be eligible to have adaptations.

You would be astonished at how much of a difference a dehumidifier will make. Please invest in an energy efficient one. Honestly, it will change your life.

But a cheap table to use as a worktop and buy heat proof boards for hot pans and chopping boards so not to ruin the table