A mum – who was among the first to move into a new Bellsmyre housing estate – has hit out over a string of “nightmare” defects with the property.
Katie Jenkinson, 36, has been at the Muir Road development with her nine-year-old autistic son, Finlay, since February this year, having been one of the first families to move in.
The site along Muir Road was the first phase of Caledonia Housing Association’s multi-million-pound regeneration for Bellsmyre.
However, she has described the move as a “nightmare”, claiming she still doesn’t have any flooring and the front door leaks water.
She also says enamel has stripped off the bath and her back garden is moving because of a lack of drainage.
Katie is furious with Caledonia Housing, claiming there is a lack of urgency to fix the catalogue of issues.
She told the Lennox: “Between Caledonia housing and the builders, nothing is getting fixed.
“I still don’t have any flooring, and my door is letting in water.
“Our four back gardens in our row are moving because there is no drainage, and some enamel on my bath has come off, and they want me to buy a new bath.
“Other folks even moved in with broken windows. I would class these as major issues, but they don’t seem to care.
“There have been eight or nine people who have all had issues with their front doors.
“When you move into a new house, you don’t expect all the hassle.
“I have a wee boy who is autistic and has a lot of sensory issues, so having no flooring down has been a nightmare.
“They haven’t admitted to the errors. No one has said, ‘we haven’t done that correctly, let me fix that’. Nothing.
“They’re accusing me to cover their backs so they don’t have to fork out.”
Katie reported these issues numerous times, but due to the lack of urgency in fixing the issues, she contacted MSP Jackie Baillie.
The Labour MSP said: “These issues have been ongoing for a number of months now, and I have contacted Caledonia Housing Association on her behalf.
“I hope that the repairs will be fully addressed, especially as we are moving towards winter.”
Andrew Kilpatrick, director of assets at Caledonia Housing Association, said: “We’re proud of everything that’s been achieved at the Bellsmyre development, which is a multi-million-pound investment to deliver 66 new homes, all for affordable rent.
“The contractor, CCG Ltd, has completed over half of the homes, which the first residents started to move into in December 2022.
“We understand the concerns that have been raised by this tenant and we’re sorry that Katie and her son are still waiting for some work to be completed.
“We arranged a site visit with Katie, the contractor, and a representative of Caledonia to discuss the issues raised and can confirm that they are in hand and are being attended to.
“We have a robust process in place for any snagging issues which our tenants identify, and our aim is to have these addressed quickly as we remain fully committed to meeting our tenants’ housing needs.”
