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.

Do you open the bathroom window after showering?

I understand how awful it is to live with damp. When I left my ex-husband I privately rented for years and the damp was something else. Landlord did nothing about it (except blame me, of course). The issue was inadequate ventilation. I scrubbed and scrubbed but of course eventually the mould came back. Eventually moved when I could afford to. Never had a mould problem since. Still rented.

It’s always open cos it gets like a steam room, plus the smell coming from the bathroom is like somethings decomposing, I have all windows open

Thats what I don’t get with this, I’ve never ever had mould before and I haven’t changed the way I live

I was about to post the same thing myself Funny how some posters are ok with social housing tenants breaking tenancy agreements when it suits their side of the argument

Does your HA have a Facebook page? My HA does and people post photos of their houses, mould, damage etc…

Do speak to shelter and seek legal advice, they shouldn’t be renting out a property that’s not fit to live in.

For those saying that OP should be grateful for having cheap housing/HA house. She’s not lucky, she’s stuck in a situation where her living conditions are so poor and she can’t afford to move anywhere else? How can thins be lucky?

I honestly mean this with the best of intentions, but have you been to the gp to discuss your mental health and getting some help?

Your mood seems really low, and that will make everything else seem exhausting and unbearable.

I don't think you have a choice about where you live right now, but if your mood wasn't so low, things might seem more achievable.

Just my thoughts and I really hope things improve for you soon.

@CoconutSky Excuse the non-technical language, but do you have one of those wall fans thingies in your bathroom? The ones that come on when you put the light on? We never had any in our mouldy place. One in each bathroom here.

So your kitchen is wheelchair friendly but so small that you have no storage or worktops? So there is actual space for queries and units but you can't fit them permanent? Just get a 8 box Kalax IKEA unit and an attaching desk. Sure tubs on the shelves and a keeper and toaster on the desk and use it as a quality. And get a large square bamboo chopping board to cover the top of your cooker. My kitchen is tiny and I just use a chopping board on top of my hob 🤷🏼‍♀️.

For the smoke smell get a decent air purifier with a hepa filter or a few ionisers/ salt lamps. You can replace the bathroom door with a budget one from Wickes. Tiles don't rot, if the grout isn't the best then just regrout.

Do you have any family that could take you in?

Believe it or not I’m actually fine when I’m not in this house but thank you, it probably will get to the point where I am physically drained and depressed by it all haha

No in the kitchen there isn’t any room for anything. I don’t actually know how anyone would cope in a wheelchair. So it was a normal functioning kitchen before the last tenant. In the block the gas and electric meters were outside the front doors. The ones in here have been rerouted to eye level, put in cupboards in the kitchen with doors on, but have no room for any shelving to go in.

The tiles have come off, they’re falling off the wall because the room just seems to be one giant ball of water that doesn’t ever dry up.

The “top” cupboards in the kitchen are eye level, it’s like it’s been configured for someone who needs one of those stools for cooking etc. my nan had one

You may need another dehumidifier or a bigger one. Do you know what size yours is? Can you squeegie the floor after showering so the water isn't sitting? One of those rubber brushes would work.

I’ve got my big squeegee! It takes the top layer off but everything in there is just piss wet through it’s unbelievable

Dehumidifier is a 20 litre, it’s got laundry mode on it and even that’s just not shifting the mould

OP, may be useless to you or someone’s already suggested it, but as you have a couple
of cupboards could an attachment like this work for you?
https://amzn.eu/d/4yyXHei

I don’t have any bottom cupboards to hang them on 😂😂😂 Honestly this is beyond embarrassing, I’m not a tramp who lives in a slum through choice I promise

I had a nice home before I fled, a new build. It had a patio set outside. I miss my old house. Rented old house but still

Think of how much a private rental would cost compared to what you have.
You are better off even spending some money to solve the problem you have- like change the wet room to a proper shower-whatever it costs is still less that say 12 months in a private rental.
Housing association rentals are like gold dust so even with these issues it is worth hanging onto- you have to find a way to solve the problems that are there I think. Industrial dehumidifier-can you pay to borrow one and see how it works out?

I think in your position I would stay there and do what you can (realistically if you did fit a shower cubicle nothing would happen, if anyone did try to kick up a fuss just explain about the damp) and then save as much money as possible/ retrain so you can work on moving out. Quite simply because you don’t seem to have a plan B and if you walk out you won’t get another chance via the council or possibly not another HA.

I’d also keep on at the housing association and perhaps speak to citizens advice about a letter before action which might galvanise them a bit.

And once more with feeling! It. Is. A.Breach.of.the.tenancy.agreement

Don't compare with what you used to have- compare the money you save on rent now. You can spend money to improve the situation and still be better off than if in a private rental. Write a list of all the things you can still do that might improve the situation you are in- you have done many already but what else can you do to overcome this frustrating problem you face.

I had a HA place for 5 years and it enabled me to save up for a housing deposit, once back in private rentals saving money was impossible.

I've lived in places where the walls are wet, black mould, limited space etc, you probably do this already, but this will help.
Shower-short and sweet-then wipe down walls/ windows/screen/shower curtain and anything that's wet/damp and mop the floor until it feels dry when you touch it.
Have heat in the bathroom, keep window open a little every day (close at night if unsafe to leave open) .Short showers or even doing a DIY strip wash in the shower with a bucket of water will reduce the condensation.
Don't allow any furniture/objects to touch any wall - have a few inches of clear space to allow the air to circulate
Dehumidifier every day
Use the same approach to the kitchen to ensure moisture isn't building up on any surface
Wipe off mould as soon as it appears-I use fairy liquid-if it gets to the stage where you need HG spray. paint will come off, and its quite toxic
Open cupboard and wardrobe doors, use dessicant pouches to absorb moisture
Keep windows sparkling clean to allow natural night in
I used to use a wooden chopping board across the sink as a work surface
Keep surfaces clear, or use stacking racks to allow air to circulate

Strip wash bucket 2024 in UK housing!!!

Industrial dehumidifier(s) would work - but a) they are large, b) they are expensive, c) they are very noisy, and d) they gobble up electricity.

(When my property was badly flooded, the dehumidifiers saved the property's ceilings and internal walls from having to be reconstructed).

it all sounds pretty shit, compounded by the huge and brave change you've made by fleeing DV. Which change and trauma you've gone through may be making things seem worse than they actually are

If you can get the local paper interested in running a story about it you might embarrass them into acting, councils hate bad publicity (I used to work in the sector). But if you don't want to go public after experiencing DV then get your MP onto it, especially as you have children. I remember last year a child died because of a damp flat in Rochdale and Michael Gove announced the government would implement Awaab's Law which said that landlords had to fix complaints about damp and mould in a certain timeframe. I just looked it up for you and it says this "This regulation requires landlords to guarantee properties are mould-free and provide adequate ventilation. If there are any health or safety concerns that are ignored within the property, landlords may face severe penalties under Awaab's Law." Don't walk out of your house though - you might find private rentals are just as bad and more expensive. Best of luck xxx