Stoke Newington council flat 'unfit for human habitation'

A surveyor told Chris Henriques and Sarah Shepherd that their home in Beck House, Stoke Newington, has four Category 1 hazards – problems so severe that the council “must take action”.

The hazards relate to “damp and mould”, “asbestos”, “crowding”, and “electrical hazards”.

Over £16,000 of repairs are needed (before VAT) and must be done instantly, the surveyor said, adding: “I find the landlord in breach of its duty to ensure the property is and will remain fit for human habitation.”

But another surveyor dispatched by Hackney Council claimed only £830 worth of work was needed and suggested the tenants were causing the mould themselves by not properly ventilating the flat.

A Hackney Gazette investigation last year found a number of properties in the block were riddled with damp and mould.

Chris and Sarah said they recently had to replace their bed and mattress because so much mould was growing on and around them.

“I feel like I’m having a breakdown,” said Sarah. “I just think it’s despicable. It’s beyond a joke. We just want somewhere suitable to live.”

The mould which was growing behind Chris and Sarah's bed, forcing them to replace it (Image: Sarah Shepherd)

Health Hazard

The Hackney Gazette reported last August that Chris, 50, a painter for Tottenham Hotspur, had been diagnosed with a chronic disease linked to moisture-damaged buildings, creating a cavity in his lung.

Sarah, 36, is also under investigation over a persistent lung condition.

Dr Susan Collinson from Homerton Hospital told Hackney Council in June 2023 that Chris should be “urgently” rehoused as the “noxious and pervasive” mould was worsening his illness.

But eight months on, the couple still haven’t been rehoused.

“His health is getting worse,” said Sarah. “He’s constantly sick. They aren’t understanding the severity.

“He’s been taken to A&E by ambulance about four times since October with breathing difficulties. They’re talking about signing him off as unfit to work now.

“Chris’s consultant has told him to speak to his GP about his mental health now as well, because even he’s noticed a deterioration.”

Mould photographed inside Chris and Sarah's Beck House bedsit last August by the Hackney Gazette (Image: Charles Thomson)

Council Surveyor

A surveyor sent by Hackney Council in November found numerous problems.

The front door wasn’t “fully operational” and was surrounded by black mould.

“Black mould is evident throughout on the internal face of the metal windows,” he wrote.

He added that a cracked bathroom window and defective extractor fan amounted to breaches of the council’s duties as a landlord.

The “insulation inefficient” single-glazed windows were “susceptible” to mould, he accepted – but attributed the overall mould problem, “on the balance of probabilities”, to “condensation… caused by the tenant occupation density and use”.

He recommended the council consider replacing all Beck House’s windows, but listed repairs needed to Chris and Sarah’s bedsit as totalling £830.

He dismissed Chris and Sarah’s suggestion that damp walls were contributing.

“I did not note any significant defective brickwork,” he wrote.

The current state of the black mould growing inside the couple's bathroom window at Beck House, Stoke Newington (Image: Sarah Shepherd)

Another Opinion

But a surveyor for Chris and Sarah said the opposite, finding some brickwork in “poor condition”.

“It is likely that moisture is seeping into the flat at low level as a result of this,” he wrote. “High damp meter readings were recorded internally at low level.”

Rusty metal and rotting wood was causing “rainwater ingress around all windows,” he added, while the bathroom had “cracked and blown” tiles “not affixed to the wall properly”, with water trapped behind them.

He also found a blocked drain, a defective plug socket and possible asbestos tiles seemingly missed by the council surveyor.

While condensation was a problem, he attributed it in part to a major leak after a council contractor fitting the bath incorrectly, saturating the walls.

Sarah Shepherd told the Hackney Gazette that every time Hackney Council treats the mould, it just grows back (Image: Sarah Shepherd)

Catch up:

• 'Mouldy flat gave me a rare lung disease. I fear I will die before I can move'
• 'Council knew I had asthma but made me move into a damp, mouldy bedsit'
• Hackney Council tenants say mouldy flats are making them ill
   

Council

Sarah said the discrepancy would be “hilarious” if it wasn’t so serious.

“They are allowing people to live in these conditions,” she said. “The doctors told them eight months ago that Chris needs to be urgently rehoused.”

Cllr Clayeon Mackenzie, cabinet member for housing services, said: “We’re sorry to hear about the health problems being experienced by Mr Henriques.

“This is a very complex case and we have been working hard to try to resolve the situation including undertaking work in his home to treat and tackle damp and mould and providing advice about some simple steps to prevent condensation developing in their home.”

He added: “Following the issues raised last year by the Gazette, we wrote to the residents seeking to arrange surveys to identify any repairs required, but only two tenants replied.

“However, we did carry out inspections on a number of the homes in the block to establish the work needed to address the damp and mould.

“We are also still scheduled to carry out extensive work on the block by April 2026 as part of our ongoing investment in our homes.”