‘My son is sleeping on the sofa’: Islington mother fears for her children’s health because of mould and damp inside her council flat

Kaara Benstead points out mould in the bathroom. Photograph: Julia Gregory

A mother is calling for landlords to tackle mould and damp urgently after revealing her concerns about the impact on her family’s health.

Kaara Benstead said the problems in her Barnsbury flat are affecting her three children and fears her teenage son could faces a winter sleeping on the sofa because of damp in his bedroom.

She said her family is not alone in suffering from the impact of mould and damp because of poor housing conditions.

It comes in the wake of a coroner’s ruling that found mould played a part in the death of a two-year-old in Rochdale from a respiratory illness.

Benstead’s council home is in what estate agents describe as “one of the most private and desirable residential roads”.

However, she said the 19th-century flat is beset by mould and damp and thinks it is exacerbated by a hole in the roof that needs fixing urgently.

The family GP wrote a letter highlighting concerns about the impact of the “significant disrepair” at the flat on the family’s heath.

He said the family would like to be rehomed because of the impact of work and a move to a temporary home “would be very stressful and triggering for their health”.

Benstead said: “My son has been sleeping on the sofa since September as it gets too damp in his bedroom in the winter.

“His asthma gets really bad in the winter.”

The living room has mould on the window sills and Benstead pointed out problems in other rooms, including mould in the bathroom and a hole in the wall in her son’s old bedroom.

“The hole is so big you could put your hand in,” she said.

The doctor said the 17-year-old student’s asthma has worsened since moving into the flat and he needed hospital treatment for the condition.

The teenager, who also has autism, is sitting GCSEs this year.

Management for the property was brought in-house by Islington Council this year.

However, Benstead said she has given up decorating the flat “becauses it’s pointless” when mould reappears.

She said water comes into the bathroom when it rains and the room has been redecorated three times since the family moved in.

The family has also abandoned a back bedroom because of problems with damp.

Water was also “running down the wall” by the stairs.

Housing Ombudsman Richard Ottway has renewed calls for landlords to take a zero-tolerance approach to damp and mould and give it a higher priority following the death in Rochdale.

Cllr Una O’Halloran, executive member for homes and communities, said: “We’re committed to ensuring everyone has a place to call home which is secure, decent and genuinely affordable. We take all issues of mould, damp and disrepair very seriously.

“We’re sorry that Ms Benstead and her family have endured damp and mould at the property and have been working with her and her legal team to progress repairs since responsibility was transferred to us earlier this year.”

She said council workers have now “identified the problem” and will start work to repair the roof.

Cllr O’Halloran added:“We have offered Ms Benstead’s family the option of a temporary move to another property while these works take place, and any other remedial works required inside the property as a result of the leak.

“We are also liaising with our Tenancy Team about the possibility of a permanent move.”