A mum says her son has been left “disfigured” after the family has been forced to endure a 10-year damp and mould problem in their council house. Catherine Odigie claims her nine-year-old son Raphael, nine, is now suffering with a severe skin condition as a result.
Ms Odigie, 42, said she first complained to her local council in 2013. But, a decade on, the bedroom walls and ceiling of her flat are still covered in black mould, which she believes has been caused by a leaking water tank in her block. The problem is so bad her son has to sleep downstairs to ease his symptoms, while teachers have warned her the problem is damaging his education, MyLondon reports.
Mum-of-three Ms Odigie, who lives in South London, said: “All his skin has been disfigured because of the mould and damp problem. He is on full medication from the GP because they don’t know what else to do for him. It’s scratch, scratch, scratch. It’s like sores all over his body and it’s itchy. His eyes and lips are swollen and he has been sleeping downstairs for the last few years. His teacher said he was coming to school tired all the time. He can’t have a good sleep because of the problem and it’s affecting his education.”
Ms Odigie said her mould and damp nightmare started two years after moving into the flat, while pregnant with Raphael. The problem got so bad in her upstairs bedrooms that Ms Odigie had to sleep downstairs in the living room with her eldest daughter Audrey for most of the pregnancy, she claims.
In August 2021, she said an independent surveyor inspected the property and drew up a list of the issues that needed fixing. But when workmen sent by the council arrived at the flat three months later to sort out the problem, she was astonished to find they’d turned up with household mould spray to fix the issue.
Ms Odigie said: “It was like something you could buy at the supermarket. I couldn’t believe it. I could have done that. The problem is with the building. The mould is going to come back if you just wipe it and don’t sort out the leak.”
A doctor recommended Ms Odigie and her family be moved to a less mouldy property in an attempt to relieve Raphael's symptoms, in a 2020 letter seen by MyLondon. She hoped this would push Lambeth to move her family into a new house.
But when the council got back to her, it allocated her Band D - the lowest priority for rehousing - and said she was only eligible for a one-bedroom flat despite having three kids, according to Ms Odigie. When she appealed, Ms Odigie said the council moved her up the priority list by just one step to Band C2.
She said: “My GP said that Lambeth hadn’t even been in touch in December last year, even though I filed a medical assessment about Raphael with them. Lambeth now has an arbitration scheme for repairs but I don’t trust it. How can we trust Lambeth and their own solicitors? Do people think we are fools or what?”
Lambeth Council has been contacted for a omment.
