Little Huton mum says landlord has tried to ‘cover up’ mould problems

Louise Moore lives in a ForHousing property on Newgate Drive in Little Hulton, with her 11-year-old son and 6-year-old daughter.

The family have lived there for more than ten years, but since last summer they’ve been battling problems with damp and mould.

The 31-year-old reported the issue to her landlord in August, but it took until November for an inspection to take place.

In the same month she had to take her son Jayden to A&E after he started to suffer from breathing difficulties.

The situation became so bad a nurse wrote to the housing company urging them to fix the damp and mould issues.

The nurse from Salford Primary Care Together told the housing firm to do an ‘assessment and resolution of the significant damp and mould in the property.’

The letter urged the issues to be tackled ‘as a matter of urgency.’

Repairs took place to clean and repaint some of the affected areas, but despite this the problems continued, Ms Moore said, explaining that the treatment work and new paint caused her son to have more chest problems.

She’s been offered more repairs, but is worried it could make things worse for the 11-year-old.

The tenant added that other issues, such as a leaking gutter outside the house, meant mould and damp kept coming back.

She raised a formal complaint in February and has been offered compensation, but she’s still waiting for the outcome of an investigation by ForHousing.

Since the problems started, she’s seen mould damage to clothes, shoes, curtains, and even a mirror.

Ms Moore said: “I felt like they were trying to cover the problem up rather than deal with it. What’s money going to do if anything happens to my son if he can’t breathe? It’s not going to give him a better life.

“I’m extremely worried about his health, some nights he can’t even be in his room. But I don’t get listened to, they know about the problem but do nothing about it, it’s humiliating.”

She wants to move to a new home, but this has been difficult, with rental prices being unaffordable despite her working long hours at a hospital.

ForHousing has apologised to the family and said more work is being planned to improve the situation at the property.

Nigel Sedman, executive director of homes at ForHousing, said: “We are very sorry that Louise is unhappy with her home, as the health and wellbeing of our tenants is our absolute priority.

“Following a damp inspection in November, treatment to remove mould in Louise’s home was carried out in January, and we have since offered to carry out additional treatments, which Louise decided not to accept.

“Works to repair an extractor fan has been carried out and guttering repairs are planned for today.

“We will do all we can to support Lousie and her family as they look for a new home and will continue to work closely with the family and carry out any repairs that are needed so they feel safe and comfortable where they live.”