DEAR DEIDRE: I LIVE in a flat covered in black mould.
It is not fit for purpose but the council is doing nothing to help me and my children, even though they told me the necessary work would be carried out.
I am a 45-year-old single mum with four children who are 16, 14, 12 and six. My house has only two bedrooms, so we are overcrowded too.
I have sacrificed having a living room to give my kids an extra bedroom, but it isn’t a long-term solution. We have also had an infestation of rats.
My youngest was born fit and healthy but his health has quickly deteriorated.
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The doctors believe the mould and rising damp have led to this.
My 12-year-old uses inhalers and allergy medication which, again, the doctors believe is due to the conditions we are living in.
This situation is making me depressed, anxious and physically sick. We feel unsafe and I worry for all our lives.
I don’t know what else to do.
DEIDRE SAYS: This is appalling.
Your living conditions are completely unacceptable. Long-term exposure to mould can be deadly.
Write again to your council to complain.
Contact your local MP and the Housing Ombudsman too (housing-ombudsman. org.uk/).
Mention Awaab’s Law, a campaign for new laws after the mould-related death of two-year-old Awaab Ishak in Rochdale. And call Shelter for free.
It can advise you on your housing rights (0808 800 4444, shelter.org.uk).
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