The sad story of a lady living in an inhospitable social housing, neglected by Southwark Council.

…and me, the leaseholder right above, fighting a broken system. 

This story unveils a distressing reality faced by some living under Southwark Council, emphasizing the dire consequences of neglect and the need for accountability and change.

In a time when the Post Office Scandal, the death of toddler Awaab Ishak, and the COVID-19 inquiry occupy the public consciousness, accountability and tackling wrongdoing are a must.

Bad smell

Living under Southwark Council for some people can be a heartbreaking experience, as exemplified by the story of a woman in her early 70s who has spent 40 years as a Council Tenant. Neglected by Southwark Council, her flat has never undergone repairs or maintenance, and despite a series of complaints brought to the council’s attention in January 2023, she continues to endure appalling conditions in 2024.

Isolated for many years, she has lost touch with reality. The only companions she has are a clowder of 10 cats, providing solace in the face of neglect. Living in a damp flat with a leak in the kitchen, surrounded by cat urine and faeces, she exists in a putrid environment, worse than a war zone in a country at peace.

The most disheartening aspect of this story is the careless response of Southwark Council officials to complaints, especially in the first 8 months since I brought this issue to their attention. Their unplanned visits lack a strategy to address the actual issues that have left the lady condemned to live amidst filth in an uninhabitable flat. 

As a concerned neighbour, I sympathise deeply with her plight, at the same time, I am directly affected. Her mental and physical health has deteriorated significantly in the last two years due to the unsanitary conditions she endures daily. My health has also been affected despite living a very healthy lifestyle, and I couldn’t find an explanation for it.

Bad Zoo

Back in 2018, the council resident tried to address a mice infestation in her flat by bringing in a cat, today she has a clowder of 10. No need to mention that this is illegal, and in breach of the Tenancy Agreement. Her habit of feeding animals in her 20 square metre garden has attracted pigeons, foxes, squirrels, and rats, unfortunately creating a nuisance for neighbours. 

There are no kind words in the world to approach anyone and tell them in the most respectful way that there is a bad smell coming from their apartment, specifically if the person is already nose blind to it and mentally ill.

The lady’s mental health makes communication difficult, even trying to help her is a struggle. I made the mistake of approaching her back in 2019, and not even my apologetic approach suggested calling the Council to eliminate the bad smell coming from… I could not finish the sentence.

I had to live with the smell for 4 more years thinking that there was no solution because the council told me that there was nothing they could do about it on phone calls back in 2019 and 2020. The pandemic brought more isolation, also the smell got worse to the point I lost 2 flatmates at the beginning of 2023. Not only the smell, a lot of flies are coming through my windows. One of my ex-flatmates brought to my attention that that is definitely a case for the Council to solve.

So, my problem is not the lady, it is Southwark Council’s disengagement with complaints. Following all the ongoing issues I am having with the council at the moment, I looked for legal advice and also I joined a Leaseholder Action Group where the consensus is that the Council treats Leaseholders as cash cows and with no respect. 

Further down in the article, I provide some of the footage of the neglect and the bullying from the council officials. The officials are taught to say “they have a duty of care” but they do not apply it.

I decided that by helping the lady, I would help myself. 

Bad health and rapid deterioration

Since December 2023, the lady’s health has gotten a lot worse than usual, which was expected after so many years of living at serious risk from the dampness and mould, and the cat urine and faeces in her home.  I do not have the details of what ills her right now but I dug for more information about what living in those conditions can cause to her health: 

– Respiratory problems: Damp and mould can irritate the lungs and cause asthma. Cat allergens can also cause allergic reactions such as coughing and wheezing. Also, faeces dust in the air could bring serious respiratory complications. This last bit has been deteriorating my health and I was not aware why my sudden change.

– Infections: Cat urine and faeces may contain bacteria and viruses, such as Salmonella, E. coli, and Toxoplasma gondii, which can cause infections in the brain, eyes, stomach, and other organs. These infections can be dangerous for people with weak immune systems. 

– Cat scratch fever: It can cause swollen lymph nodes, fever, headache, fatigue, and sometimes a rash or blisters.

– Long-term exposure: Breathing in cat urine and faeces for a long time may lead to chronic respiratory problems and other health issues.

Southwark Council has the lady’s life in their hands. 

Also, she fell and cracked her head open. I wonder whether it was from the leak in the kitchen. I will get to it.

Bad Council procedures

In my recent research, I found out that the council overspent 28 million pounds in maladministration in 2023. Why am I not surprised?!?!? Our Service Charges have doubled in the last 2 years, and every single one of my complaints in the last 7 years has been mishandled. 

Southwark Council receives on average 500 complaints per day.

It is time for accountability, to find out why Southwark Council is stuck to the same clan of contractors running for the works who quote whatever they please, abusing the loophole since there are no regulations in place. This is the topic for my coming post.

I raised a complaint in January 2023 about the smell and consequences of animal food offerings from the resident. The only action Southwark Council took at the time was designating a Resident Service Officer (RSO) who came to visit and advised her to stop feeding animals due to her health concerns. The lady kicked the officer out but took part of the advice from another female colleague of his. There was no further assistance back then. The complaint was closed in March without addressing the underlying issues and had no communication with me. I found out 3 months later when I sent a series of back-and-forth emails.

Since Southwark Council does not have procedures in place to:

1. Discuss or communicate the plan of action on complaints.
2. Does not take feedback about complaint resolutions, only the review stage.
3. Every mistake the contractors made are charged to leaseholders, instead of holding the contractors accountable.

In future publications, I will give more details.

Bad dead animal smell

Eight months passed since the complaint and a smell of dead animals permeated my flat. I was expecting the worst but not…, phew. I sent emails with copies to Cllrs and the MP. The RSO denied everything in my email claiming he visited the site the day after. That prompted my fury.

Given the persistent lies from the Council RSO who denied the existence of cats, the smell, the pile of faeces, and the damages, I saw myself forced to gather evidence. I gained access to the patio of the property with the rubbish collector, who confirmed the smell, refusing to clear the under-stair cupboard because they are not allowed to collect dead animals. Perfectly understandable. I included the video testimony from the rubbish collector in my next email and the pictures of the pile of excrement.

Bad cop 

I had no other resource than taking evidence due to all the denials to be able to document everything. At my doorstep, where I have CCTV in place, I had a conversation with the newly assigned Social Worker to the case on the 31st of August. 

In the conversation, she acknowledged the problems I brought up and confirmed the unorthodox approach of the RSO, who till that day was never inside the resident‘s flat to assess the situation. She mentioned the precarious inhuman situation the resident lives in, with dampness, mould and leaks. She also promised to contact me via email and phone but that never happened.

Two months later, on the 31st of October, I used the recording in an email exclusively to the official immediate superior to the RSO, to prove the veracity of my claims and the corrupted conduct demonstrated by the officer. Finally, a visit of a cleaning team was scheduled for the 1st of November. Guess what? The RSO himself and his superior were wearing brand-new yellow gloves in hand.

Sooooooo, it is possible to take immediate action, right? Why 10 months later?!?!?

While the progress of my “blackmailing” was promising, the cleaning was conducted inside the resident’s home and part of the patio but the pile of faeces in the bushes and the under-stair cupboard were left behind.

Bad bully heroes

The RSO was given the authority to decide on resolution and action plan. Observing the process from my window, I intervened to ensure proper action and tried to have a conversation with the RSO.  

Angry as he was already due my earlier emails with a copy to every level, he was shouting at me, so I immediately pulled my phone out and told him that I would record our conversation, leading to a more composed interaction. He was also recording.

They compelled me to express gratitude for their hands-on cleaning as if it were not solely motivated by the incriminating recording I sent the day before. The request to clean the under-stairs cupboard and the patio’s accumulated faeces resulted in just trimming bushes. Additionally, they casually joked that animal faeces act as plant fertiliser.

The RSO told me that I am not a leaseholder yet and that he manages me. I’m still trying to decipher the enigma. I have been paying 18 years of mortgage, I’m in limbo for the RSO, making me feel like the repossession of my property is in their hands.

Bad row 

In the recorded row, the RSO tried to put me down, lecture me about the council procedures for 18 minutes not allowing me to speak, criticising me for my approach by emailing his superiors and the number of complaints.

He continued denying everything and did not allow me to talk, he was provocative, confrontational, and irritating.

Bad truce

Later on, I tried to talk to his supervisor who came to the site but she, ill-informed by him, refused to talk to me at first. I stood there until we had a conversation. She asked for a truce and to work together to solve the problem. I agreed.

Still, they left behind the soil and all the faeces on the patio. Clearly, yellow gloves do not clean cat poop.

Two days later, a letter on my post from Southwark Council accusing me of harassing the lady and forbidding me from taking pictures and recordings. That was a break of the truce. 

I will not tolerate defaming me without proof and also a flagrant abuse of power to intimidate me. This is a war and here are my proofs. I am not scared to speak the truth. “Instead I wrote ‘a song'”.

Bad Resident Service Officer, bad manager too

I escalated the issue to the Resident Service Manager, two levels up but “like father, like son”, I spent the most useless two hours clarifying four open complaints and all the issues. The manager, polite and very receptive, came unprepared, not even viewing the attached testimonial videos or photos in my email. He narrated that the RSO is already handling it, having called the RSPCA and other pet charities to address the cats’ issues. Truth be told, none of the charities has visited the site. I called the RSPCA, but they had no record of any reported issues at that address, so I left mine. Unfortunately, calling RSPCA is not cheap.

I filed a complaint against the bully, confrontational, and corrupt RSO, but the manager closed it without further investigation, considering I was in the wrong. Soon, I will raise the review stage of the complaint with more evidence.

At least, the manager acknowledged the smell and arranged a second cleaning round in the flat on December 13th.

Unfortunately, the matter returned to the same RSO, who intentionally obstructed and neglected the under-stair cupboard during cleaning, focusing solely on the inside of the resident’s flat. This prompted new evidence gathering.

Bad dripping pee rugs 

I recorded the cleaner testifying about the disrepair and filth inside the flat just a month and a half after the previous cleaning. She mentioned feces and rugs soaked in cat pee, emphasizing the need to move the lady out and repair the entire flat. She said the state of the flat is critical. 

I begged for the under-stair cupboard to be cleaned, and she suggested asking the team leader. I did and the man refused to enter the cupboard and claimed that it was cleaned from the previous visit. I insisted and this time he said he had no instructions to do it and he did not have a torch. I said I did have one, he said: 

“I’m not entering there. Do you want to do it? Come down and you do it”

Here we go, another bully. I replied, are you sure? I will do it, and I did. I guess he was satisfied with humiliating me.

Bad spade of poo

I went inside the under-stair cupboard with my phone on and took out one spade of feces. The cleaner noticed my phone recording and became angry, accusing me of causing trouble. He then forcibly expelled me from the patio. I complied but continued the conversation from my balcony.

The elderly lady overheard the discussion and verbally assaulted me. Regrettably, the only thing she grasps from this situation is that I am the one making complaints. In life, reality depends on the prism with which you look at it, perspectives vary. She will likely never comprehend who the true hero is.

Yes, not bragging but I practically saved the lady’s life despite she is not exactly a lovely granny. 

I called the police but I did not report the verbal abuse. They put me in contact with an officer from Safer Neighbourhood but I have never received any reports about the issues, just a call to be informed that the issue was investigated and I cannot know details for the lady’s protection.

Bad kitchen roof

I also raised concerns about the kitchen roof in August. Despite my good intentions in offering to unclog the drain, the Manager prevented me from doing it and the result is that the resident’s roof still floods, and the leak persists, causing further damage. On these cold days, there is ice. 

Sadly, the repairs will be invoiced in MY SERVICE CHARGES. I worry that the repairs will be carried out too late. 

There is no excuse for not performing this 5-minute job now. Still no action.

I will keep you updated because I will never surrender. I will fight until the problems are solved right and with a definite solution, not a temporary one.

Bad first anniversary 

My heart stopped when on the 27th of January 2024, exactly on the first anniversary of the complaint, I looked out of the window and saw a fire brigade on the patio of the lady looking and pointing up to my window. 

To add salt to the injury, a radiator burst in the lady’s flat, flooding the carpeted floors downstairs. The brigade stopped the leaking radiator. I am always scared of the lady setting fire to our semi-detached flats. I will reinforce my insurance. 

The firemen had a chat with me and asked if a Social Worker was assisting the lady. Hmm? I haven’t seen her since August, – I answered. Maybe the RSO made her disappear, – I thought. 

They tried calling the RSO, and I commented that I was ready to take them to court, and they added: “You should and the resident should. That flat is inhabitable, and she should be moved away immediately.”

Bad council accountable

This story is not an isolated case, and there are more damp and molded flats even in the same building. They recently located a new resident in a flat with a current leak and toilets molded. Another topic for the coming post.

I had no choice; I started a legal battle against Southwark Council. Here is part of my defense of one of the issues written in advance.

I will keep you updated, fellas!!!

February 15th, 2024