My whole life is in that flat ... I just want to go home
Gran locked out for months as repairs issue rumbles on
A gran recovering from Covid, who was removed from her council flat on Christmas Eve, has been left in limbo as to when she can return home.
South Lanarkshire Council (SLC) moved Kathleen Tierney from her East Kilbride flat to temporary accommodation on December 24 after she had been left to deal with water seeping into her home from a flat above – for at least 18 months.
A temporary board was placed on the bathroom ceiling last July, but the 57-year-old told how water continued to pour through her bathroom light and into her kitchen as well.
Now, months later, she is still out of her home and waiting for the council to finish the work.
Kathleen told us: “I absolutely hate being in this scatter flat, I’m totally miserable.”
Having tested positive for Covid just days after being moved from her flat, on December 28, Kathleen felt so unwell she left the scatter flat – which she says didn’t even have a cooker – to return to her own home.
It was then the council told Kathleen that, on removing the board from the bathroom ceiling, they discovered rotted joists and the flat was unsafe for her to stay in.
She was then moved into a second scatter flat in East Kilbride on January 10 and was told work would begin in her property the next day – but months on she says she is still is no further forward.
She added: “I feel like I have been forgotten about and my anxiety is terrible trying to deal with everything.
“The second scatter flat I was put in was absolutely filthy when I got there. It had faeces on the bedroom carpet, which I discovered after I had been sleeping in the flat for two nights.
“The cupboards in the kitchen were disgusting and the skirtings were covered in dust.
“The council swore blind a cleaner had been in, but there was no way this flat had been cleaned. I had to scrub it from top to bottom.”
Despite being told work would begin on her flat on January 11, Kathleen was contacted by the council four weeks after moving into the second scatter flat to be told work hadn’t even started.
“I only brought the minimum with me because I had to leave my flat in such a rush,” she said.
“My whole life is in that flat and I wasn’t even allowed in to get my personal belongings for weeks because it was too dangerous.
“I’ve since been allowed in very quickly to get a few more things,
but the council had to be there to let me in and lock up again with my own keys. But so much is still in there.”
Delays to repairs are due to a dispute between the council and the landlord above Kathleen’s flat over responsibility for the damage.
She added: “The water had been leaking through for a long time and I told the council time and time again before anything was done.
“I had asked for a move before
this, but I either want my own flat repaired or to be rehoused permanently. I can’t go on living like this, I’m in complete limbo.”
SLC executive director of housing and technical resources, Daniel Lowe, confirmed the “serious repair issues” affecting Kathleen’s home from the flat above.
He said the council’s legal team has been liaising with the owner of that flat and steps taken to
complete the remedial works.
Mr Lowe added: “We recognise this has taken some time to resolve.
“A contractor has now been appointed to take forward these works and we will oversee this process to ensure our tenant can return to her home as quickly as possible.
“In the interim, and to ensure the safety of Ms Tierney and her family, alternative accommodation has been provided.”
I feel like I have been forgotten about and my anxiety is terrible trying to deal with everything