South London mum worries her asthmatic children will get sick spending school holidays in moldy flat

A south London mum who lives in a flat with floor-to-ceiling mold is dreading the school holidays because she doesn’t want her asthmatic children inside the property. Angela Jones claims she has been trying to get Lambeth Council to tackle the serious mold problem in her local authority flat for seven years without success.

The 45-year-old says the problem began in 2017 following catastrophic flooding caused by a burst water tank in her building and led to mold in every room of the two-bedroom flat. She said: “Come the school holidays I try to keep the kids out of the flat because of the mould.

“It’s ridiculous. They should be able to stay in their home safely. I try to stay at friends’ houses and family houses as much as I can. Come winter, I have to leave the windows open.

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“I’m exhausted right now. When the apartment first flooded we had no electricity and the mold was so bad. It was black from floor to ceiling. (…) My children are getting sick because of this house. We’re all asthmatic as it is.”

Mrs Jones spent 12 months pushing the council to tackle the mold before turning to housing solicitors SJS Legal for her case. The latest claim against the council was settled in early June, with Lambeth Council agreeing to pay her compensation and complete repairs to her flat. But Ms Jones said the council had so far made limited progress on the work and did not expect to carry out all the repairs before the August deadline.

She added: “Mold is everywhere: bathroom, kitchen, bedrooms. They redecorated a year ago and the mold is already back. (…) We are afraid to return here sometimes. We can’t visit our family – it’s not a nice place to be.”

According to SJS Legal, the council has now dealt with Ms Jones’ claim seven times. On the last six occasions SJS Legal claims Lambeth has failed to carry out the work it had agreed to do. Ms Jones has so far received £8,000 in compensation from the council.

Stephen Weston, senior solicitor at SJS Legal, said: “Angela’s case is heartbreaking. A family left to live in such humid conditions for so long is shocking. We were determined not to give up on helping Angela. She deserves a safe home to raise her children in.”

Lambeth Council apologized to Mrs Jones and admitted the service she received was not up to the standard expected. A council spokesman added: “The council has carried out extensive works to this property in the past, including repairs and mould-washing treatments and decorative works to a number of rooms. Unfortunately, some of the issues have resurfaced and we have rescheduled new work to start next week and finish within two weeks.

“We have invested hundreds of millions of pounds in maintaining and improving our homes and estates over recent years. But proactively tackling damp and mold in partnership with our residents is a particular priority as it has affected a number of properties and we know the trouble it can cause.”

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