HELP needed
 

Help needed
Hello, I am a single mum of a 3year old and newborn baby and currently.living in rented accommodation of hyndburn homes. I have chronic lung disease and the house myself and my two children are living in is riddled in damp and.continues to grow mould when I wipe it away.... this has led me to be hospitalized 12 times in the last 11 months due to incredible breathing difficulty. I have let the housing know and 15 weeks on I'm still waking up every night and every morning unable to breathe properly because of it. So I'm positing to ask if there are any 2bedroom houses to rent in the Clayton less moors area with immediate move in..NO damp houses please ... I can sort a payment plan for the deposit.... any advice welcomed x

Re: HELP needed
 

I've deleted your other post as it was in the wrong section and left this one for people to suggest help for you.

Re: HELP needed
 

hyndburn homes are still up to their old tricks then

sory to hear of your problem mybrother had teh same problem with hyndburn homes and depsite doctors letters , social services etc telling hyndburn homes how the balck mould was making their newborn baby unwell and teh cause of its hospitalisation they never lifted a damn finger to fix the problem.

in a lot of cases hyndburn homes are no better than slum landlords

i hope you get sorted soon

it could be worth giving graham jones a call he dosnt like slum landlords although the council urinates in the same pot as hyndburn homes but it could be woth a try seen as hes a MP now

also you could try shelter they dont just help the homeless and may be able to help you find better accomodation especially with your medical needs

Re: HELP needed
 

I repeat the link I gave in the deleted thread
..copy and paste

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-to-rent/find.html?locationIdentifier=REGION^6512&insId=3&g oogleAnalyticsChannel=renting

Re: HELP needed
 

forgot to say that in some cases the council will pay the deposit for you but unless you have someone acting on yuor behalf like shelter or citizens advice you wil most likely get flobbed off

Re: HELP needed
 

Yes I've heard of several people hyndburn homes are always reluctant to do anything but it's getting ridiculous now I can't breathe in my own home. I've tried letting agencies like right move but unfortunately I can't afford the application fee and deposit and rent in advance they require ... I've honestly tried everything

Re: HELP needed
 

Firstly,I am very sorry to hear about the conditions in which your forced to live.
The only thing can suggest is that you see your GP an explain your conditions (and the condition of your home) see if he/she can write you a letter supporting your concerns.
Perhaps,you could also try asking a health visitor or some sort of damp specialist to come and do an assessment on the condition of your property.....then write to the council/hyndburn homes with the findings.
Apart from this I'm unsure how to advice you further,I hope you get it sorted asap,keep us posted.

Re: HELP needed
 

I have had supporting letters from my go, respiratory doctor and respiratory nurse... health visitor has also written a supporting letter and even phoned the hyndburn homes herself but was fibbed off.

Re: HELP needed
 

Where is this damp coming from?
By that, I mean is it your fault through drying washing and not opening windows or is it structural like raising damp etc?

If the damp is due to you not opening windows etc or your housing association don't have access to the property (ie it is denied for whatever reason) is unlikely they will be liable.

It maybe worth reading the landlords and tenancy act I think it's sec12/13 (don't quote me on this).

It would also be good to have it writing from your health visitor that she personally contacted the housing association and was "fibbed off".

The next step I would suggest is taking all relevant paperwork and seeking professional legal advice.

I'm sorry if my comment sounds a little harsh but I'm just trying to establish where you stand legally.

Re: HELP needed
 

Would a dehumidifier help in these situations?

Re: HELP needed
 

It may help remove the dampness, but won't remove the mould spores....and it is probably these which are creating the breathing problems.
Contact Graham Jones(he will be wanting to be seen to be doing something for his local community).......he might be able to apply some leverage for some action, either by Hyndburn Homes or by some other agency.

Re: HELP needed
 

when my brothers hyndburn homes place had damp the ceilings that used to be white were black with mould and the walls had it also.Hyndburn homes dont like doing repairs the only way hyndburn homes has a good property is if it was looked after by the previous tenant

when the council sold of the properties hyndburn homes got one side of rothwell avenue and saint vincents got the other

saint vincents refurbed and decorated the properties they took charge of and even put new fences around the properties and dividing fences between neigbours etc

when i went to view the property hyndburn homes offered me there were chunks of plaster out of the walls , damp in various places , giant mushrooms growing under the kitchen sink and along the kitchen walls , a huge hole in the ceiling and not one bit of wallpaper intact throughout the house.Amongst many other problems the garden looked like a dumping ground with broken glass protruding from the ground , hyperdermic syringes half burried in the soil and even half a bike sticking out of the ground.

when i asked what the plans were to sort this mess out i was told i would be given a £40 voucher decorating grant and not to expect a better offer of somewhere to live as i was a male

contour housing who own hyndburn homes failed to live up to contractual agrrements on refubishment and repairs.They may have done some remedial work or used some kind of fund that they have to spend and done some properties but clearly they are still failing and have an awfull attitude towards repairs

our MP has been helping fight slum landlords in rossendale i think it was ..Personally i think he should start looking a lot closer to home and try to help victims of hyndburn homes

i would seek legal advice if their refusal to do repairs is causing health problems but im pretty sure they wont expect you to do that as you are too busy trying to survive

good luck and i hope some of the suggestions have helped or pointed you in the right direction of some sort and that you get a place fit for human habbitation soon

ps:

sorry for the long rant but i find it astonishing that all these years on the same housing association still hasnt learned from its mistakes or even adjusted its attitude towards its tennants.One thing you can guarentee despite repairs not been done is that they are still getting their damn rent especially if its housing benefit from people

Re: HELP needed
 

Hyndburn Homes are a waste of space. My 88 year old mother lives in a Hyndburn Homes Bungalow and had a yearly electrical inspection some months ago by an independant electrical contractor. He highlighted several safety problems regarding the earthing. No one from Hyndburn Homes has been round despite several phone calls.

Re: HELP needed
 

The other thing you could do is to contact the local and national press and give them your story.....but before you do this I would tell Hyndburn Homes of your intention....see if that provokes any kind of response.
If they threaten you with homelessness tell them that no home is better than a home that is affecting yours and your children's health.

I think that in the current political situation many of the national papers would have a field day with your story.

Also a wider audience for your situation may be helpful in finding someone who can help you.

Re: HELP needed
 

Thankyou for all responses however I do have to say that the damp is NOT my Gault as it is rising damp, I regularly open my Windows whilst wiping them down as I do every day. Hyndburn homes do not care about me and my situation and this has led me to urgently need moving.... It's getting to the point were I go out and I dread going home because I know tonight might be yet another trip to resuscitation for breathing difficulty again :( ..... I have taken all precautions necessary and got help from all people I can think of, however I do.think the local paper is the next step ..... still looking for private houses so if anyone does know of any in the Clayton le moors area or around that general area please get in touch

Re: HELP needed
 

If you get your story into the press then people in general are good....and someone may come forward who can help you.
I feel for you and hope you can be re-homed very soon...you and your children deserve it.

Re: HELP needed
 

Thankyou very much Margaret

Re: HELP needed
 

Rising damp is a particular problem in older houses and as Clayton is built on clay the ground underneath the houses doesn't drain.

Earlier this year we spent a month out of our house while the problems of damp were addressed....our house is not rented so the cost was down to us...and believe me it was not cheap.

I know this doesn't help your situation, but I just wanted you to know that I understand your problem having lived through them myself.

Re: HELP needed
 

Learn something new everyday I.didn't know Clayton was built on clay but you would think the name would give me a hint. I will phone hyndburn homes again Monday and if no luck I shall contact observer :)

Re: HELP needed
 

The Evening Telegraph would provide a quicker response and better coverage.

I know this from when I referred Hyndburn Homes fiascoes to them in the past.

Re: HELP needed
 

It isn't Clayton but there are a few houses to let on both Westwood St and Devonshire St Accrington. If you could move there whilst you are waiting for a Clayton move it may help you.

Re: HELP needed
 

Yes....that is why there was a brickworks at the top end of Clayton.
When our living room floor was taken up there was a mini stream flowing underneath......our house is at the bottom of a slight incline so the water all flows down to the bottom.

Like MargaretR, I think your best bet would be the Lancashire Telegraph and if that doesn't give Hyndburn Homes a kick in the jacksie...then I would be contacting one of the red top nationals......I'm sure they would use it to fan the political fire a bit.
Often stuff that gets into the Telegraph finds its way to the nation newspapers.

Re: HELP needed
 

Thankyou greeny but unfortunately that is too far as I have a lot of ties with the area

Re: HELP needed
 

May I suggest that you take the letters you have and some photographs if possible into the office of Graham Jones, it is just by the traffic lights on Abbey Street.
I am sure that you will get help there, in normal times he is very helpful when people have problems with the authorities and as it is the run up to the election I am sure that will result in a speedy response.

Re: HELP needed
 

All i can tell is Graham Jones certainly was a great help to me a few years back, so i would say, well worth popping in.;)

Re: HELP needed
 

the problem with hyndburn homes is that despite no longer been council owned they still have strong ties to the council or it certainly was the case when i had problems with them which explains why depsite people such as social services getting involves and otehr agencies they still get away with doing sod all to sort issues out as serious as this.All i know is if saint vincents or any otehr housing association was been as negligent as hyndburn homes they wouldnt get off as lightly

i hope a prod from graham jones gets things sorted he does put himself out there as been against slum landlords and this is happening right under his nose and has been for some time now

Re: HELP needed
 

Please can you email me immediately on [email protected] Graham Jones (MP&PPC). I'll do everything with my staff to help.

Re: HELP needed
 

I have emailed you, Thankyou everyone I'll be sure to let you know how this works out.... I have to say I have very much lost faith in hyndburn homes houses after everything that has happened and posting this and reading people's stories.... I'll continue my search for a house in the hope I find a nice DAMP FREE home for me and my children

Re: HELP needed
 

Hope you get sorted very soon.

Re: HELP needed
 

good luck and i hope graham gets somewhere with them for you ..

i may disagree with graham on some things but cant fault him for helping where he can

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Graham knocked on my door and we had a nice conversation about this, that and the other...True, I only had 3 hours sleep and had drank my bodyweight in caffeine-laced drinks that my side of the conversation wasn't much, He Seems like a good guy.
Hope you rectify your situation.