Woman 'so grateful' mould-ridden home is fixed

A disabled pensioner says she is "so grateful" to be back home after her mould-ridden house had a £120,000 transformation by volunteers.

Pat, 70, had become chronically ill from the black mould covering walls and furniture in her Swindon bungalow and was moved out just before Christmas.

More than 150 local people and some 70 companies helped to clean and refurbish the house.

"It's absolutely amazing what they've done for me," she said.

"I'd like to thank them all from the bottom of my heart and I am so, so grateful to them all."

Pat's home was also infested with rats, which she described as "awful" and "scary".

Janet Reynolds put out an appeal for help for her friend on social media

"I would bang the radiator in the hallway and hope that they would run so I could and make a cup of tea," she said.

"It was black, smelly disgusting. You'd have to watch where you walk because there was water leaking."

She added: "It just got worse and worse and worse."

Pat's friend Janet Reynolds, 44, had been helping her with weekly shops, but she had not been inside her house since the pandemic, and so did not know how bad it had become.

Eventually, Pat decided to ask Ms Reynolds for help.

"I was absolutely mortified," Ms Reynolds said.

"I was helpless, desperate, embarrassed, scared," said Pat

"I could not believe anyone was living like that. It was the most shocking thing I've ever seen.

"The whole house from top to bottom was covered in thick black mould. I could hardly breathe.

"I was in here for barely thirty seconds and I had to get out the house because it was unbearable."

Ms Reynolds told Pat she had to get out of the house because it was not safe and put her up in her own home for two months, while a team of local volunteers and tradespeople moved in.

Ms Reynolds said she worked her day job, while looking after Pat and worked on the house until 23:00 or midnight "to try and get the work done".

"It was very tiring and testing at times, but it was worth it," she said.

"I couldn't walk away knowing that someone was living like this."

She added "the only option" was to help her friend.

Ms Reynolds said "no one should be living like this"

Brendan O'Neill, the project manager for Emerald Damp Specialists, who organised the transformation, said the work was worth about £120,000.

He remembered receiving the call from Ms Reynolds.

"I came out that evening and wow. This house was uninhabitable. It was dangerous," he said.

"She managed to live in this for two years, I couldn't come in here for 10 minutes.

"It was just mould in the air and mould on everything."

Brendan O'Neill said the house was "as bad as a house can get"

He said he could smell the mould from outside the house and "you could see the black spoors in the air" inside.

Mr O'Neill would not let Pat re-enter the house.

His boss allowed him to work on the house with no cost to Pat.

"We felt like it was something we needed to do," he said.

Mr O'Neill explained 154 people worked on the house with 70 to 80 companies helping.

"What more could you ask for? There is a community here that will actually do some real good."

"I was very concerned for her health and wellbeing," Ms Reynolds said of her friend Pat

Pat said walking back in she felt "excited, nervous".

"It was mixed emotions. I wanted to come home but was scared as well."

She said she loves "the beautiful shower" and the "lovely" working central heating.

"Hot water - that was my saddest part of life, no hot water," she added.

Pat said she was looking forward to inviting her friends round for a cup of tea.

"They can call in and see me on their way home from work, which is wonderful. Make my life normal again," she said.