‘We’re investing extra £45m to address issues’

EVEN two years on from Awaab’s death, other families on the same estate as well as other areas of the town had similar experiences as Awaab’s family with RBH. More cases have even cropped up in the last few months, with a slow or non-existent response from the social housing provider being a complaint.

Siobhan Mccoy, RBH director of property services, said: “We are working to ensure all our customers live in a home that is safe, warm, and dry. Our damp and mould taskforce is part of a wider improvement of our services to make sure that we provide those safe homes that meet the needs of our customers.

“When a customer reports damp and mould, our first step is treating the mould and making sure their home is free from defects which could cause problems, and is properly ventilated and heated.

“The age and type of our homes across Rochdale mean that we, like other landlords, have a continuing task to deliver the investment needed to address all underlying defects. We are investing an additional £45m, on top of our ongoing investment programme, to address these issues.

“We have also received a grant from the Social Housing Quality Fund to support this work. Our damp and mould taskforce responds quickly where damp and mould is reported to us or where we identify it through other ways.

“We aim to inspect the issue promptly and then treat and resolve the root causes as quickly as possible. We also provide advice and support to our customers.

“We are clear that addressing any issues with the property is our responsibility as a landlord. Many of our homes in the borough of Rochdale are in areas which are amongst the most deprived in the country, so some of our customers have additional needs or vulnerabilities.

“Whilst we are making progress in improving our services and the quality of our homes, we will still have vulnerable residents who need wider support from other agencies to live safe and healthy lives.”