A mum-of-three has told how her children have been put on steroid inhalers for their coughs and are getting worse due to mould on their house.
Marzena Piatkowska, from Scunthorpe, has lived in the property for three years and said she first noticed patches of black mould appearing on her walls in October 2022.
She said her three children, aged nine, six and six months, are suffering with breathing problems, persistent coughs and skin problems, which she believes are being caused by the mould, and have been prescribed steroid inhalers by their GP, reported GrimsbyLive.
Marzena said she also suffers with a constant tightness in her chest and that her mental health has been affected.
She said: "It's affecting my mental health because my kids are telling me they don't want to live there.
"My six-year-old daughter is asking if we can move out because there's so much damp. They don't want to live there. I'm very upset, I'm so emotional and I can't do anything to help them. I've got chest pain and a tightness in my chest."
Marzena told how "last year in October we started having mould appearing everywhere" and she claims that she reported it to the landlady.
She believes that the mould has been caused by the leaking roof that has now been repaired and says "we've still got a lot of mould upstairs and downstairs".
And she said that cleaning the mould and using a dehumidifier has made no difference with the family are always cold because of the walls being wet.
She continued: "I tried cleaning the mould and have used a dehumidifier.
"We feel cold all the time because all the walls are wet, and we put the heating on but the house is still cold, it doesn't matter how long we have the heating on, it's always cold. We've tried to dry the walls but my children are getting worse and worse."
The landlady reportedly claims the problem has been caused by a lack of ventilation and an inspection she ordered reached the same conclusion.
Marzena said last Monday her landlady had a damp survey carried out on the property and that the subsequent report on the situation said the issue with mould was her fault.
"The landlady came with one guy on Monday to inspect the wall but she didn't see the problem because she just sat on my sofa and didn't check the house. She hasn't even seen the problem. His report said it was my fault. How can it be my fault?", she said.
Marzena's landlady told ScunthorpeLive that the property had not been ventilated properly.
"The tenant was informed at the beginning of her tenancy that she needs to ventilate rooms to avoid damp," she said.
"The damp survey reads 'The damp is condensation damp. With improved building features in the house, such as wall insulation, double glazing and draught proofing, ‘natural ventilation’ is prohibited.'.
"Stale air is trapped causing streaming windows and walls, which ultimately leads to musty smells, dampness and mould growth. The humidity levels were high in the property, ranging from 75% to 77% respectively.
"The humidity levels could be higher than this during the night time and into morning when all the windows are closed. We generate about 25 pints of moisture a week each by these normal lifestyle practices.
"Without good care of the property on the tenants' behalf and ventilation the damp will rise only.”
