Episode 2 The Housing Enforcers

Hello, can you just let me in?

The law says everyone has the right to a safe place to live.

I wouldn't keep my dog there, is the honest truth.

But for thousands of people across the UK,

the reality can be more hovel than home.

The house is falling to bits. There's nothing I can do.

In the battle for decent housing...

We've just got conditions that are just appalling.

I don't know how the people are coping, to be quite honest.

..it's local housing officers who are on the front line.

If somebody had died here,

you would've been standing in Coroner's Court.

I'm Matt Allwright and I'm back with the housing enforcers.

15 people in this house?

15 people total living in here.

I'll be with them as they tackle problem properties

and slum conditions...

It really does look shanty town.

Yeah, it's not up to standard.

..as they deal with dodgy landlords, nightmare neighbours

and everything in-between...

Oh, my God. Straight away there's the smell of dog muck.

You never know what you're going to find.

..doing their best to help those in need of a happy

and healthy home.

Oh, my God, Ted!

Today, a tiny leak turns into an epic flood...

I've got them in my shoes! I had no idea it was this bad.

Yeah, I know, mate.

Ted, you should've told us about it as soon as you got the leak.

..a dispute over planning regulations puts lives in danger...

At the moment, there are offences under the Housing Act in this property.

The spiral staircase should never have been put in in the first place.

No, that's entirely untrue, I'm afraid.

We had regular inspections when I put all this in.

When was the last time you heard anyone

use the phrase "slum landlord"?

Not that recently, right?

Well, that's because we live in a country with laws that make sure

housing meets basic standards.

And it's not just landlords -

there are laws that mean that tenants need to behave too.

I'm working alongside the men and women from councils

across the UK who enforce those laws.

They are the Housing Enforcers.

There are times in life when we all need a helping hand.

But one of the hardest things facing the UK's housing officers

is striking a balance between giving tenants help and getting them

to take responsibility for themselves

before things get out of hand.

It's a dilemma Babergh Council's Ian Watson deals with every day.

How do you do this, though?

Are you trying to just stick to the book and do your job,

or do you have to relate to people and try and understand

their situation?

You've got to be able to listen, you know,

and that's one of the most important things, listening.

It's just trying to get, you know, to the root cause of the problem

and it's sometimes just getting those people to realise that

you're actually there to help them rather than hinder them.

Some people need more help than others.

Ian's had a call from Sudbury about water coming from

the ground-floor flat of a tenant he's known for a long time.

I'm a little bit concerned because the gentleman did leave

one of our other properties in rather a mess.

I did get the tenant ring me back

and say he was trying to sort it out himself, but obviously

we need to get in there. It's our responsibility to do repairs.

Tenant Ted Hurrell moved into the flat two years ago

after caring for his elderly mother and battling addiction.

I nursed her with Alzheimer's...

..and also trying to detox from...

..a 30-year heroin habit.

It isn't the first time he's come to the attention

of ex-copper Ian.

-I never nicked you.

-No, I don't think so.

I've never known anything that you done wrong, to be quite honest.

Well, I was a smackhead for...

Yeah, I know you were heavy into drugs,

but at least you sorted yourself out, didn't you?

All right. Well, look, we've managed to get...

Let's go and have a look, shall we?

Ian's barely over the threshold and he can already see

that the situation is serious.

Oh, my God, Ted.

That's happened overnight.

That's happened over a couple of nights.

-Oh, my God, Ted.

-Yeah, I know.

I had no idea it was this bad, Ted.

With the whole flat under several inches of filthy water

and Ted's possessions ruined, Ian's shocked by the scale

of the deluge and can't understand how Ted's allowed it to get so bad.

Ah, I've got them in my shoes.

-Yeah, I know, mate.

-Ted, what on earth have you let...?

Yeah, I know.

Yeah, but, Ted, you should've told us about it

as soon as you got the leak.

Well, I've been backwards and forwards to Bury St Edmunds

because I have health problems...

..and, it's, er...

You know, it's just got worse and worse.

Right, I'm going to go and try and find out where

the mains water comes in.

Easier said than done.

With no idea where to find the stopcock,

Ian's forced to phone back to base for help.

Hi, it's only Ian from Housing.

Steve, where are the mains' stopcocks outside

these properties so we can get the water turned off?

Let's put it this way - the water's so deep and horrible,

I've got it inside my shoes and I'm not best pleased.

It seems they can't help, either.

I just can't believe that we don't know where our stopcocks are

for these properties, but there we go.

They were built some time ago.

Even more frustrating for Ian is his suspicion that

the leak's been going on for longer than Ted's letting on.

I came here last Tuesday

and there was a little bit of water out the front.

I spoke with Ted at the time and he said

he'd washed the concrete floor down inside with a couple of buckets.

What sounds like it could've been a small repair

has now left the council facing a full-scale clean-up operation.

The water is actually coming down below the dampcourse.

That's going to take some considerable time

to dry this property out.

And it's left Ted with nowhere to live.

I've spoken with the Homeless team and we haven't got any units

available for homeless at the moment.

But with neighbours stepping in to lend a hand,

at least music lover Ted's most valued possessions are safe.

-We can store some bits for you.

-Yeah, well...

At least that way it's not all over the place.

I'm just going to run this up there.

We'll sort him out a place somewhere.

Whether it be one of our properties that's coming up for rent

or something just to get him into or it may well be bed and breakfast.

Although he's been happy just to roll up his trousers and wade,

with the water still rising, even Ian's had to admit defeat

and accept he's not properly equipped to deal with the problem.

I've got everything in that I can. Need to go and get some wellies

because I need to have a look at exactly what's going on.

As far as he's concerned, the cluttered state of Ted's flat,

even before the flood, hasn't helped the situation.

If he'd only got the rubbish out the way,

that water would've come gushing out the front of the house, I'm sure.

It's sort of like dammed it in there.

The water's still pouring in and it doesn't look like it'll be

stopping any time soon.

I've just had a phone call while I've been out getting some boots.

Anglian Water have been contacted. They've given us

an arrival time of any time between now and 6pm tomorrow.

So, at this stage, I'm hoping it's going to be a lot quicker.

So, now properly kitted and potentially facing a 24-hour wait

for the water company, Ian decides to wade in again himself.

At least I don't have to have my trousers pulled up this time.

-You all right, Ted?

-Hello, there.

All right, I'm coming back in.

I've got some boots now, so I'll be able to see.

I'm dreadfully sorry, mate.

-That's all right. Look, these things happen, don't they?

-Yeah, I know.

But the shocking condition Ted had let the flat get into

even before the flood isn't making the situation any easier.

I don't know what's in here, if you know what I mean.

I don't get paid enough for this.

With piles of clothes and old newspapers everywhere,

the whole flat's under several inches of dirty water

and soaking wet rubbish.

There's a drain in here.

If I can get the water...

running into that drain, which it is.

Thank God for that.

With the blockage cleared, there's more good news.

-Ian?

-Yeah?

Anglian Water.

-Oh, they're here, are they?

-Yes.

It's going down the drain now - some of it.

Finding the stopcock finally means that water isn't pouring

into Ted's flat.

But it's also created a new problem for Ian

and the rest of the tenants.

Unfortunately, the only stopcock to the premises outside is

the one up there, which has turned all 12 flats off,

which I need to get someone back as soon as possible.

With the supply finally cut off, though,

reinforcements from the council mean the massive clean-up

can get under way.

Be prepared.

With Ted's clutter everywhere, it isn't going to be easy.

We're going to need to clear a lot of this before we can get

-a lot of this water out.

-Oh, Ted.

-Right, these guys are here to start clearing up.

-Yeah.

-Because of all the paper and everything in this...

-Yeah, yeah.

..they aren't going to be able to use their sucker.

I don't know. Are we going to need to get a skip here?

I personally would think so.

-At least if we can make a start...

-We'll make a start.

The flat isn't going to be habitable any time soon,

but at least there's some good news about where Ted's going to stay.

Basically, I've just had a call from the Homeless Team.

We've managed to get bed and breakfast for Ted tonight.

Be careful, Ted.

Something coming.

It's only a couple of hundred yards away,

so we'll get over there with his bags and take him over there now.

Oh, dear!

It might just be a temporary solution, but at least

he'll be close to home.

-Quite smart, isn't it?

-Yeah.

-You've even got coffee making facility, look.

-Yeah.

Right.

-OK.

-OK, you're sorted out for today.

-OK, mate.

-All right. And good luck,

and I'll contact you at the end of the week.

Bye!

It's a great result for Ian, so far.

The hard work is only just beginning.

The rest of the team will take over in terms of what we need to do

with that property tomorrow. Erm, successful day, really!

Later, I'll be lending a helping hand to bring Ted home.

I've been trusted with the guitar, though, which is...

-Well, you're honoured, then, aren't you?

-I'm very lucky.

It seems he's moved in more ways than one.

-Is it a bit of a shock? Are you all right?

-Yeah.

In rural Lincolnshire, North Kesteven District Council

housing officer Chris Gallimore is acting on a complaint

from a tenant about a privately rented property

that he claims was in such a dangerous state, he moved out.

I think the tenant... They weren't there very long.

They were there a few months and they moved out.

They weren't happy with the condition of the property.

Former tenant Jack and his girlfriend thought they'd found

their perfect home, when they rented a picture-postcard conversion

of an old village school.

When we first saw this property, me and my girlfriend...

We just fell in love with it.

When we first moved in, it looked like a nice house.

But before long they became concerned it was

putting their safety at risk.

Well, the house was a deathtrap, at the end of the day.

I mean, there was just exposed wires,

the spiral staircase wasn't safe up to the living room,

the gaps in the banisters were easy enough to fall down

and they were quite dangerous.

And we were told that we'd be having a new fire installed,

but again nothing come about it, so we was using the storage heaters

which were inefficient and expensive to run.

After three months, they decided to move out,

but not before contacting the council.

At the moment I don't think there's a tenant residing there,

but there's going to be another one imminently coming in.

So what we want to do is get some improvements made

before the next tenant comes in.

Chris has done some digging and thinks the safety concerns

are actually part of a problem dating back almost two decades.

One of the issues is that when the property was converted, it wasn't

authorised by Building Control and it hasn't been signed off by them.

The man responsible for the conversion is Richard Taylor.

-Hello.

-Hi, there.

-Chris Gallimore from the council.

-Hi.

-Pleased to meet you.

-Richard.

Richard's daughter now owns the property

and he's agreed to talk to Chris on her behalf.

But it's not good news.

One of the main issues with this property,

after I did some research at the council, is that it wasn't actually

-signed off - the conversion - at the time...

-Yes.

-..it was converted.

To comply with the Building Act 1984,

buildings must meet minimum standards for health and safety

set out in the Government's building regulations.

New buildings and most conversions must be signed off

by the local authority Building Control,

or by an approved independent inspector.

Crucially, it's the owner's responsibility

to ensure projects have a final certificate

to say work meets the legal standard required.

It's something Richard never did.

So what I've got is a copy of the notice from Building Control,

which is this one.

Quite a lot of the issues that's highlighted on there are things

that I'm kind of concerned about as well.

17 years ago, Building Control told Richard

the handrails weren't safe and needed to be changed.

They weren't changed and they're still dangerous.

The problem if you've got a gap that's less than 100 millimetres

is a child can actually get their head stuck in it.

And I think certainly a small child could probably fall through that gap

with the size of it.

It's not the only health hazard listed in Chris's copy

of the original inspection report.

Hazards that were never fixed.

Just going back to the list there, another thing

they're basically saying is that the staircase doesn't comply, either.

And from my understanding, it is that the spiral staircase

should never have been put in in the first place.

No, no, that's entirely untrue, I'm afraid.

No, we had regular inspections when I put all this in.

I wouldn't have put in a spiral staircase without any consideration.

If you look at this staircase, it's got very narrow tapered treads

on the inside. You've got no proper handrail on the inside.

You've got open risers where people can trip going up,

the lighting isn't very good. There's a lot of issues with it.

That's a duty of care that I've got, I understand, not you.

Well, it's not, because it's the Housing Act 2004,

which is a regulation.

Known as a duty of care, landlords are legally responsible

for preventing personal injury to tenants caused by defects

to a property.

But Richard doesn't seem to realise it's the council's job

to enforce this.

At the moment, there are offences under the Housing Act

in this property, OK? So we wouldn't be able to allow

a tenant come in this property at the moment.

Later, it seems Chris will have to tread carefully

if he wants to solve the stalemate over the staircase.

Can I stop you there? I paid quite a bit of money for

the building inspection on this place.

Can you tell me why there's no record of what they've seen?

-For Building Control?

-Yeah.

Unfortunately, you're going to need to speak to them.

-Maybe you should speak to them before you come to me next time.

-Yeah.

Defending our right to a safe place to live

is the job of housing officers right across the UK.

-This is not really an acceptable way of leaving the property behind.

-Do you think(?)

I'm working alongside the men and women that do exactly that.

-Top marks.

-Yes!

-I'm hitting the streets...

-Hello! Can you open up?

Definitely somebody inside, because we've seen movement.

..finding out what's happening on the front line...

Cistern's in the bath. I don't know how they flush it.

..and learning what it takes

to make sure a house is fit to be called a home.

I'm very shocked. This is ridiculous.

You shouldn't have people living in here.

In Suffolk, tenant Ted Hurrell's failure to report a leaky pipe

left housing officer Ian Watson facing a full-scale flood

and a mammoth clean-up operation.

I don't know what's in here, if you know what I mean.

I don't get paid enough for this!

True to Ian's word, the flat's finished and I've come back to help Ted move back in.

Are we all right to come in?

Yeah, yeah.

You should be all right back there - it's dry now.

-I've been almost afraid to look in.

-You should be quite pleased, I hope.

Right, do you want me to grab a couple of those?

You could grab a couple of those.

It looks like I get the job of moving music lover Ted's most prized possession.

I've been trusted with the guitar, though, which is...

-You're honoured, then, aren't you?

-I'm very lucky.

-All right.

-Good stuff.

-OK.

-In the back, Ted.

-Are you all right, Ted?

-Yeah.

'It's the first time Ted's seen the flat.'

Go on, Ted. I'll let you go first.

You can see what it's like then.

'The place is completely unrecognisable.'

So what's happened here, Ted...

As you can see, all of your stuff, it's all clear and clean,

all the walls have been done

and the floor is clean, ready for something to go down.

Yeah. I mean, oh, golly.

Your records are here.

Gracious me, yeah.

'Clearly, it's all a bit overwhelming.'

Is it a bit of a shock? Are you all right?

Yeah.

It's...

It just means you can start completely from scratch.

-Something to be proud of now, ain't there?

-It is, and...

I swear to God that I shall endeavour to keep it this way.

Well, I want to keep you to that cos I want to come

and have a cup of coffee with you in your nice flat now.

Yeah, well, I will be pleased to receive you.

Good.

You've done a wonderful job.

'After all of Ian's hard work,

'we're both determined to make sure Ted never lets things

'get so out of hand again.'

So this is a wet room now, OK?

So you've got a floor that all slopes down to the drain here.

All brand spanking new.

Any leaks, anything like that - what are you going to do?

Mr Watson will be informed or...

Of course they will informed immediately.

All right, good stuff.

Ted, would it be all right if you and I sit down and have a little chat?

'If there's one thing I've learnt from Ian,

'it's the importance of being able to relate to the people you're helping.

'And something I definitely have in common with Ted is a love of music -

'a love that he says helped him battle his addiction.'

It's a really nice guitar, that. It's beautiful.

TED SINGS

# On a dark, stormy night... #

What does your music give you, then?

What does that provide you with?

Comfort.

I need to do it to survive.

God and music have been my salvation.

Now I've got the chance to start again.

'It seems that the flood hasn't just given Ted the chance to start again.

More importantly, it's inspired him to want to.

What were your thoughts when you walked in the door?

Because it seemed to me you were quite emotional.

-I was.

-Why was that? What were you thinking?

Because I think they've done all this for you,

and I try to think back to what I was living in before,

you cannot... You cannot let this happen again.

I don't want to go down on record as an unreliable tenant.

-Yeah.

-Period.

I want to have a nice place that I can bring people round.

I want to come back and hear you sing happy songs.

It's so lovely meeting you, honestly.

And I really wish you the best. I hope it works out here, Ted.

Yeah, I want it to work out.

And, you know, keep playing.

Really nice to meet you, Ted. Take care.

'Seeing Ted so determined to take more responsibility for himself

'means of all Ian's hard work has paid off.'

I know you wanted to go in there and sort of remind Ted

that, you know, for all this effort that you've put in

and the money that's been spent, there is a responsibility.

-I think he gets it.

-I think so.

-Do you? I mean...

Yeah, I really do think we had a connection there with him

and certainly you did, you know, so he's going to remember this time.

And I won't forget it in a hurry, either.

Well, Ian said to me that one of the key strengths

you need as a community housing officer

is the ability to understand somebody,

put yourself in their shoes.

It's never been easier for me than with someone like Ted.

His love of music and my love of music are in exactly the same place

but at the point where he was up to his ankles in water,

that was almost all he had left.

Now, that problem has been resolved

and he's got a space that's clean and bright and warm

and that's all thanks to Ian.

In Lincolnshire, Chris Gallimore's been investigating claims from former tenants

that a converted schoolhouse could be putting lives in danger.

It's a problem that dates back nearly two decades.

One of the main issues with this property was I actually

signed off the conversion.

But having converted the property himself

it's a frustrating situation for the owner's father, Richard.

No longer able to live there herself but still liable for council tax on the empty house

he says the council advised his daughter to rent it out

to cover the cost.

They suggested that we should take in tenants,

which is why we're here, standing here today.

Never rented this place off.

I think the only issue with that is, you know,

that'd be a suggestion for them but they wouldn't necessarily know whether the property is...

I did point out that there were exceptional circumstances

that they could investigate if they wanted to.

They didn't, so she's left high and dry here

with this property that she pays rates on,

water rates and a mortgage.

-Yeah.

-And she can't rent it either.

For Chris, any suggestion from the council to let the house

would have been subject to it meeting the minimum safety standards

for a rental property - which leaves them both with a problem.

In its current condition, we wouldn't want it rented out to a tenant.

However, there are things you can do to improve the property where you could rent it out to a tenant.

And with the argument about the spiral staircase going round

and round in circles, he decides to move on to complaints

from the previous tenants about inadequate heating.

Cos you've got electric heating in here,

if at any point the electricity wasn't working

so your secondary form of heating was the multi-fuel burner

in the corner there,

unfortunately, that's been condemned and it's got a sticker on it

saying that's it's been condemned.

The actual fire's not condemned. It's the chimney...

Either way, it can't be used, can it, so...

Well, you can if we mend the chimney.

It's not a great start, and it doesn't get any better.

The storage heaters that are in here,

how old would you say the storage heaters are?

About 15 years old.

15 years, yes.

And how do you know they're working correctly?

Do you ever get anybody to test them, or...?

I left here and they were working and as far as I know they haven't been used since, so...

One of the problems, obviously, with the storage heaters is that they're

not that good in they're not that good in poorly insulated buildings.

Well, I actually found them very...

The modern storage heaters actually have

a fan in them and it actually blows the heat out.

-You're talking a lot of money here.

-It could be, yeah.

The cost of making this place suitable for tenants is mounting.

Richard's adamant he was never told that the conversion didn't

comply with building regulations, despite an inspection at the time.

Can I stop you there?

I played quite a bit of money for the building inspection on this place.

Can you tell me why there is no record of what they've seen?

-For building control?

-Yes.

-Maybe you should speak to them before you come to me next time.

-Yeah.

Well, Chris has already spoken to them.

The next thing on his list is ex-tenant Jack's claims

about potentially dangerous wiring.

There were some issues with the electrics as well.

I'm having the building tested next week.

Including the appliances.

Is it possible I can get a copy of that?

Sure, that's what I'm doing it for. That's fine, yes.

After what's been a difficult meeting for both parties,

getting the electrics tested is at least one thing they can agree on.

OK, thanks a lot for your time anyway,

and stay in contact, and hopefully be in contact with me,

as well, with any... Any sort of...

I hope you appreciate my position.

I didn't want to give you too much of a hard time.

I'm just pressing you so I know what I'm doing, really.

Knowing what needs to be done and being happy about it

are two different things, though.

I think they're making unreasonable suggestions today,

to be quite frank.

It's a modern problem today that health and safety

tends to take the extreme rather than the moderate level of thinking.

My experience has always been that they wish to spend your money a lot,

and if you cooperate too much then they will spend more money.

Beyond that, it just bugs me a little bit to think that that

my duty of care extends to and stretches beyond reasonable

expectations, to be honest with you.

But the council has a very different view.

To put tenants in a building that you know hasn't been approved

as being appropriate under the regulations at the time I think is a bit irresponsible.

The building wasn't ever signed off in the first place by

building control and he needs to appreciate,

if the stairs weren't safe, they're still not safe now.

As the owner, Richard was legally responsible for rectifying

any safety hazards

and getting the property signed off when the house was converted.

But, determined to keep the staircase,

he's come up with a more radical solution.

I'm going to consult with my daughter and then I'm going

to move back into this.

The thing about building regulations are,

you can still live in the building providing you yourself stay

there and are prepared to take the risk that you put into the

building, which, of course, I am.

That's it for today. Join me next time on the front line

with Britain's housing officers.