Woman says belongings destroyed by mould in flat

7 hours ago

Harry ParkhillLincoln

News image — Deborah Britton, 48, says mould in her council flat has destroyed family photos

BBC A woman with long auburn hair looks at the camera while standing inside a home, with the background out of focus. She is not smiling — Deborah Britton, 48, says mould in her council flat has destroyed family photos

A woman says damp and mould have destroyed family photos, clothes and furniture in her council flat.

Deborah Britton said she had been hospitalised with pneumonia since the damp problems began last year and had slept on a mattress in her living room to avoid the mould.

Despite work by the council, Deborah said the mould had "come back with a vengeance".

City of Lincoln Council said "specialist staff" had carried out a first stage of treatment inside the home and "further preventative works are scheduled over the coming week".

Deborah said the loss of her photos was upsetting: "It's really quite sad to be honest, they're photos I've had for 30 years. That kind of thing, of my kids."

She added she had not yet replaced items which had been contaminated by spores: "I have a few bags with bits of bedding I have left, a couple of sets of curtains and some clothes.

"It's not good, I shouldn't have to replace them, obviously I have to, but it's not fair. It's not fair the first time, never mind the second time."

on the left of the image we can see a bare concrete floor with stains on it - presumably from mould.
To the right we can see a the base of a bed, with grey and white mouldy patches covering most of the black material — Deborah's mouldy carpet was removed by council workers, but a mouldy bed divan was left in her flat

The authority had provided a hotel for Deborah to stay in temporarily while a damp-proof course was installed to help prevent rising damp.

"I've had to chuck my furniture out," she said, "it's disgusting."

"I'd been in and out of hospital, also facing the consequences of this."

Amy Larder, housing maintenance manager at the council, said the prevention of mould was a priority and the authority took the wellbeing of tenants seriously.

She added: "We are committed to ensuring the home is safe, dry and free from mould, and will continue to take the necessary steps required to resolve the issue."

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