Ruislip & Eastcote & Northwood Gazette
Woman hits out after mum, 91, died in damp flat
FAMILY MADE TO LIVE IN BLOCK DURING HOME REPAIRS
A MUM is having to sleep with damp next to her pillow six months after her mother died of cancer in a rotten flat.
Sue Roberts, 67, lived with Winifred ‘Winnie’ Wilson, 91, in a damp-ridden Fulham council block while the local authority tried to fix her leaky, crumbling home.
Sue and her family have been waiting for four years for work to be completed on their home, and they have had to move between unsuitable properties in the borough in the meantime.
Speaking from her third damp home in a year, Sue told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “We can’t put my bed anywhere else. I’m sleeping with my head next to damp.
“I should be back in my own house. I don’t have a home.”
The family was first moved into a cramped two-bedroom flat last year as Hammersmith & Fulham Council promised to fix multiple leaks and cracked ceilings at their house, which she now shares with her son and three granddaughters.
However, Winnie, who suffered from cancer and dementia, spent her final days on a hospital bed in the living room of the temporary accommodation, where Sue said she was confused and uncomfortable. She added she was heartbroken that her mum died away from home while the council, which owns the building, has still not fixed it.
Speaking after the death of her mum, Sue said: “It’s three-and-ahalf years too late and five months too late for mum. They go around saying things but doing nothing. It’s like groundhog day.
“The whole process of having to try and look after mum and keep her calm knowing there’s chaos all over was difficult. It took my time away from mum.
“I’m quite bitter now that mum passed away. I think moving her like that helped her on her way. She hated that flat.”
Winnie died on February 26, and Sue moved back into her original home in March, following her mother’s death, as it was so hard being in the room where she died.
However, in July the council had to do more work on the property and Sue and her family were moved to their most recent flat, but the family is struggling to stay there as there is damp in one of the rooms and no living room at all.
Pictures of the room show damp patches on the wall and mould spores beginning to grow. The borough council said it has visited the property and is arranging a time to fix the damp.
The authority added it has tried to offer Sue a dehumidifier, but she has refused to use one.
A spokesman said: “The works to renovate and refurbish Ms Roberts’ comfortable four-bedroom home are well under way and should be completed early next year. The property has complex issues that require major repairs.
“We have been updating Ms Roberts at least once a week in addition to personal visits to ensure the repairs are progressing.
“We apologise again for the inconvenience. We have provided Ms Roberts with compensation and are working with her to fix a small patch of damp in her temporary home. This was the home in Fulham she personally selected that is also close to her family. We’ve visited her today and will carry out the works as soon as the weather improves.”