A Nottingham family say they were left without a working boiler for three weeks, leaving them in cold conditions in their council home in the run up to Christmas. James Wilkinson, his wife Michaela and son Jamie, 34, have been forced to cope with no heating or hot water at their Nottingham City Homes (NCH) property in Bilborough since the beginning of December.
NCH said its staff visited the home on Friday to fix a blockage in the system. Describing the last few weeks, James said: "We have been left like this through the cold weather, it’s not acceptable." The 56-year-old, who suffers with COPD, said he had been worried about how the cold would affect his health. The house is getting damp which won’t be good for me," he said.
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“My wife and son have learning difficulties, they need me.. It’s disgusting, it’s not fair. During the cold snap we were really, really, cold, struggling really bad. I’ve had a chest infection that was really bad."
Contractors had been out to the house on numerous occasions but had not managed to fix the boiler, James said, meaning the family have had to make do with two small fan heaters. James, who also has a spinal disorder and a history of mental health difficulties, said there were no family or friends that could support the family.
“I’m starting to feel really, really low in myself, I don’t want to go down this road. I’m starting to feel desperate. I can’t even wash my stoma. It’s starting to make me feel dirty and horrible. I’m normally a clean person, I’d wash my stoma every day."
He said he had already had pneumonia twice and was told he risked dying if he got it a third time. NCH told Nottinghamshire Live contractors had attended to fix the boiler on Friday, December 23, but James said it had since stopped working again.
A spokesperson for NCH said: “We appreciate the difficulties Mr Wilkinson and his family have been having due to problems with the boiler and we were keen to get things fixed and running properly for them as soon as possible.
“We had already renewed the pump to the boiler but have now returned to fix a blockage in the system.” James said the boiler broke down after a few hours, meaning he and his family would be left in the cold this Christmas.
Speaking on Wednesday, December 28, a spokesperson for NCH said: “We appreciate the difficulties Mr Wilkinson and his family have been having due to problems with the boiler and we have tried a number of different ways to get things fixed and running properly for them as quickly as possible.
“We have now taken the decision to replace the boiler and upgrade it to a combi, which we are fitting on the 29th. We hope this will resolve matters once and for all.”
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