Mould complaints in England’s social housing double over two years

Formal complaints of damp, mould and leaks to the housing ombudsman are expected to reach 5,300 for 2022-23, up from fewer than 2,000 two years before. Photograph: Jeff Gilbert/Alamy

The number of social housing tenants in England complaining of damp and leaks is on course to more than double in the two years since a child died after living in a rented flat with chronic mould.

However, less than half of landlords are estimated to have introduced policies to tackle the problem and some are still blaming tenants’ lifestyles, the housing ombudsman said.