Southwark Council has apologised after leaving a vulnerable Peckham man waiting for two and a half months to fix a problem causing damp and mould in his home.
The problem, which was caused by a broken cold water storage unit, affected several properties in Caroline Gardens, a Grade-II listed nineteenth-century almshouse development just south of the Old Kent Road.
Donald Eldred has lived in an almshouse on his own since March this year, after finding himself homeless at the start of the pandemic.
Mr Eldred, who grew up in Lambeth and has lived in south London for most of his life, said he had largely been very happy with his home until he noticed a pipe dripping from the attic down his bedroom wall and onto a flat roof overlooking the garden.
Emails show that he told his housing officer about the problem on November 1. When he got in touch with the News early last week, the only council employees that had been to his house had been the housing officer and a plasterer – and no plumber – so the problem had continued.
Mr Eldred, who suffers from diabetes as well as depression, said he can no longer sleep in the bedroom, where a large patch of damp has spread across the wall and discoloured the light blue paint, and now has to spend the night on the sofa in his living room downstairs.
Council officers eventually fixed the original problem late last week – but Mr Eldred said that another pipe burst in his attic, causing a second leak. Southwark fixed this on Monday (January 17).
Mr Eldred said that he was baffled by the delay to the repair work, given that it was the council’s own property that was being affected.
Councillor Stephanie Cryan, cabinet member for council homes and homelessness, said: “There have been some issues affecting several properties in Caroline Gardens, our engineers have worked to fix this, and the cold water storage unit was renewed last week which has resolved the problem. We have supplied dehumidifiers to dry out any remaining damp.
“However, we could have dealt with this issue more quickly and our communication on getting the matter resolved was not perfect. I am sorry for any delay this caused to residents and we will ensure our process is better next time.”