‘In this century, nobody should be living in this way’
COUNCILLORS CALL OUT ‘DICKENSIAN’ CONDITIONS UNDER ROGUE LANDLORDS
WARD councillors on the East Marsh have teamed up with officers from Humberside Police to tackle rogue landlords by taking themselves to residents.
As part of North East Lincolnshire Council’s ongoing commitment to fight against rogue landlords, a multi-agency team were out knocking on doors and speaking to people about issues affecting them.
East Marsh ward councillors Stephen Beasant and Kay Rudd said that some of the housing conditions they found had shocked them.
Cll Cllr Beasant said: id “O “One house we went to last night had no heating among other concerns but the occupant was worried about reporting his landlord.
“A lot of people have told us they were frightened to report anything about their landlord in case their rent was put up or they were forced out.
“In this century, nobody should be living in this way, some people are living in conditions you’d expect in Victorian times not the 21st century.”
Cllr Rudd said: “This is what we do, the information that we get from the people themselves makes all the difference.
“Some of them are living in terrible conditions and dealing with awful situations which is especially difficult when there are children involved.
“Some of the places, it is like going into Dickensian times”
The team were out talking to residents about a wide range of issues including overcrowding, housing repairs, Humber talk, antisocial behaviour and environmental issues. Both councillors said that talking to residents had only confirmed to them that action was needed to tackle the rogue landlords in the area.
Cllr Rudd said: “It is so important that everyone has a home, it doesn’t have to be a fancy home, but a good safe home with a roof over their head.
“As long as there is breath in our bodies the two of us will be going out trying to make a difference.” Both councillors will be joining the team again as they head out to gather more information and pursue those landlords that are taking advantage of their tenants.
Cllr Beasant said: “We were out last night on the roads and we’ll be out walking again tonight.
“We like to go out into the ward as councillors and it’s imperative that the council continues to do this sort of work.
“We end up hearing a lot of problems that we wouldn’t find out about otherwise and it isn’t all just about rogue landlords or housing conditions.”