Birstall couple face long wait for repairs to mouldy flat

Janice Dawson said the state of the flat was affecting her mental and physical health

A couple who have lived in a damp and mouldy flat for eight years say they feel "let down" by a management firm's failure to carry out urgent repairs.

Janice and Andy Dawson own their flat in Birstall, West Yorkshire, but Residential Management Group (RMG) is responsible for structural repairs.

Mrs Dawson was told 18 months ago that RMG would start work to stop the damp but everything "has ground to a halt".

RMG has apologised and said a contractor was about to be appointed.

The company is part of the Places for People group, which owns the freehold to the flat.

Mr and Mrs Dawson, the leaseholders, pay the group £1,800 a year in management fees but it is RMG who would carry out the work.

The flat has mould on the walls and underneath the carpets

Mrs Dawson said the flat was worthless in its current state

Mrs Dawson said: "We were given the impression that work was going to start quickly but everything has just ground to a halt. Nothing since then. I feel really let down, I feel like I've been sucker-punched.

"We got this letter from Places for People in December saying RMG have failed and we've told them to sort it, and I thought, 'ah, brilliant!'

"And then you feel like you've been sucker-punched again."

She said living in a damp flat was having a severe impact on their health and mental wellbeing, but they were unable to move because the flat was worthless in its current condition.

The freehold to the flats is owned by Places for People

She has contacted the Property Ombudsman and the Housing Ombudsman which have allocated a caseworker to her complaint.

The case has also been taken up by Kim Leadbeater, Labour MP for Batley and Spen, who said leaseholders deserved a better deal.

"We are talking about basic living conditions, no-one should be having to live with damp and mould," she said.

"Janice has had wallpaper off the walls for two years, because they were supposed to come and do the work and they never came and did it, and it's just not acceptable."

Places for People said wall cleaning and dehumidifiers would be available alongside the works recommended in its 2022 survey.

A spokesperson for RMG said it was working with the homeowner to complete the work in the property.

They said: "We are sorry for the time this has taken and for delays along the way. A contractor is about to be appointed so the work can be completed and we will offer temporary accommodation while the work is under way."

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