Episode 13 The Housing Enforcers

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

-You've actually seen that, have you?

-Yeah, we have, yeah.

But for thousands of people across Britain right now

the reality can be more hovel than home.

We've got a nappy in the tree there, look.

I'm sure that that is pee.

COCKEREL CROWS

In the battle between tenants and landlords,

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

I can smell gas.

You're committing an offence under the Housing Act.

Are you having a laugh?

'I'm Matt Allwright.'

Damp, cold, dangerous...

They're trying to make me look bad.

Have you only recently become aware of planning permission?

'I'm back on the job once again,

'joining the ranks of the housing enforcers.

'They're tackling problem properties...'

It's a right old mess in there, isn't it?

'..dealing with the consequences of nightmare neighbours...'

I've had three tyres cut.

'..and doing their best to help those in need.'

-This is the first time I've had a smile on my face.

-Oh, Margaret!

We just heard a squeak.

Today I have a close encounter of the furred kind.

BOTH: Oh!!!

I hear from a council tenant who's at breaking point.

It's really a pain because I'm fed up with it now.

This is going to keep going on and on and on.

And we brave the back yard of a seaside property

that's anything but shipshape.

Oh, it's horrendous. I mean, there's shopping trolleys,

there's hardcore, fence panels, all sorts.

Oh, we've got a nappy in the tree there, look.

They say an Englishman's home is his castle.

But if that place is rented it's the job of housing officers

to make sure it's a decent place to live.

They keep an eye on landlords to make sure the property

is up to scratch, and on some tenants

to make sure they're keeping their half of the bargain.

Part of any housing officer's job is to try to unpick disputes

between tenants and landlords.

In Sandwell, in the West Midlands, the council deals with

over 800 complaints about poor housing conditions every year.

Housing officer Neena Varma has had a complaint from a tenant

who's about to be evicted.

He's complained about having no heating, no hot water,

no gas or electric.

So, we're going to investigate and see what's going on.

The landlord - he's been trying to gain access to the property

in order to address some of the issues.

-Right.

-But, um, he's not been successful.

Tenant Mark is claiming his rented flat is in such a shocking condition

he's had to stay with friends, and now he wants to be rehoused.

But Neena thinks there's more to this case then meets the eye.

I have a few concerns, really, about the occupant.

If he's been complaining, why has he only just complained

when he's been served with an eviction notice by the landlord?

Why hasn't he brought these issues up earlier?

And then why has the landlord not addressed the issues any sooner?

-Somewhere along the line something is not...

-Right.

It's not as it's been reported then.

Mark's flat is one of three in what, on the outside,

looks like an ordinary building.

But in the inside it's a very different story.

Is this supposed to be your kitchen?

That's supposed to be the kitchen, yeah.

Is that where the boiler was, Mark?

-Yeah.

-So what happened to the boiler?

It got stolen, innit?

How long ago was that?

-About a month or two.

-Right, OK.

That's why I had to put a lock on the door.

You've got no gas or electric, that's what you're saying?

-No gas, no electric.

-And how long have you had no gas and electric?

For about a couple of months, I think.

And what's your landlord or your letting agent doing about that?

He hasn't done nothing about it.

'A lack of the most basic amenities means that this flat

'is completely unfit for anybody to live in.

'And things don't get any better in the bathroom, or what's left of it.'

-What's happened here?

-That's what they've done.

-Who's done that?

-I don't know, some people, I think.

-Somebody broke in?

-Yeah.

-Where's your washbasin?

They've smashed it.

Can I ask, how much do you pay for this?

About 100 quid a week.

-And is that paid through housing benefit?

-Yeah.

-Right.

-Think so.

So the shocking conditions in here are costing the landlord nothing,

but I'm wondering why it's taken Mark so long to report it?

Why didn't you contact the council initially, before?

Cos it's only been brought to our attention, well, my attention, now.

It's only been getting worse since the last couple of months.

How long have you been living here?

-Seven years.

-Seven years?

But it's only the past few months it's been like this?

It's been worse every week or so.

-So, it's been deteriorating, obviously.

-It's been getting worse.

Yeah, because the landlords not done anything,

-from what you're saying, yeah?

-I just want to move out, so...

-Well, there's no way that you can live in conditions like this.

-No.

Neena's right.

The entire flat has been thoroughly wrecked and it's uninhabitable.

I mean, I can see that the radiators have been

pulled off the walls, as well.

So, were there radiators in here when you moved in?

-Yeah.

-What happened to them?

They just took all the radiators and the pipes and everything.

-Who took those?

-I don't know.

-If I knew who it was I would have phoned the police.

-Right.

Scrap metal is a tempting target for thieves,

with a kilo of copper pipe fetching up to a fiver,

whilst a radiator could be worth anything up to 50 quid.

Despite sellers now being legally required to prove

their identity when cashing in scrap metals such as copper,

it's still a problem which costs the UK economy

an estimated £770 million a year.

Did you report it to the police anyway?

-No, cos I didn't know who it was.

-Well, it doesn't matter, does it?

Do you think that somebody's done this on purpose, then, broken in?

I think so, yeah.

-And put you in this position, yeah?

-Yeah, definitely.

-OK.

Well, whatever's happened,

there's still a case to answer for the landlord who,

despite the disgusting conditions, is still being paid £100 a week.

The rent is still currently being paid on a property

which they know has got problems.

And I know that they've not had access,

but there was means and ways of having access if they wanted.

They could have enforced that by going to court

and getting a possession order.

I mean, there comes a point when you say,

look, this is your investment, this is your property.

-Why on earth would you not want to be forcing the issue?

-Absolutely.

-Is it because...?

-They're getting the rent.

Because you're getting the rent.

-You're getting the rent regardless.

-Absolutely.

-I mean, this is the worst property we've been in.

-I think so.

Coming up, we're in for another shock outside.

I've just seen that rubbish move, there.

You are joking! Are you serious?

BOTH: Oh!!

Over on the sunny coast of Clacton-on-Sea,

we join up with housing officer Grant and technical officer Ian.

They've been called out to a problem property that

has a surprise in store.

There's a history of complaints with these properties

over the last 10, 12 years.

The building is currently rented by Kelly Mills, Brian Noble

and their young children.

-Have you been here very long?

-Since March.

What, this year? Right, OK.

They want Ian and Grant to assess a number of issues at their home.

One of the biggest concerns is the amount of visible damp.

-Very high, Ian.

-Need to have a look outside, as well.

And we've also got mould upstairs.

Walls are cracking, the bathroom...

If you look at the front door,

down the side is all split where he's done the lock and that.

-Oh, right, yeah.

-Missing screws and everything.

Huge great gap there. I don't know if it's been jemmied before but...

In the nine months they've lived here,

Kelly and Brian have also struggled to get hot water from the boiler.

If we want to have a bath, we turn the...

Turn it for the water.

-It only runs a little bit.

-Right, OK.

So, basically, we have to use a shower to actually fill the bath up.

You've got a mains electric shower.

All right, let's have a look at the boiler.

-Do you have a certificate for the boiler?

-No.

-Has anybody been to check it in the last year?

-No.

That's why the hot water's not very hot.

The knob's missing off the front here, it was right down on minimum.

So let's see if we can get some hot water out of it now.

-I can see the steam coming off.

-Yeah.

-Yeah, that'll do.

Right, we've got the hot water sorted.

We need a new knob on there, though.

If only all problems were this easy to fix.

Does your extract fan work?

-I don't know. I've never heard it.

-So does the window open?

-No.

The kitchen ones don't open, that's what we've had a problem with.

-Oh, this isn't good.

-What neither of them open?

-No, neither of them.

-Well, that's painted shut, then, I would have thought.

-Yeah.

Yeah, that's painted shut, that one.

And the issues continue, with a crumbling wall in the back garden.

We'll show you the garden where the kids come back to play.

-Right, yeah.

-It's bowing, as well.

-Yeah.

And when you touch it there you can feel, like, it moving.

Yeah, that's not looking good at all, is it?

Careful. This could end up seriously hurting someone here.

It's seriously dangerous, isn't it?

With safety always being the top priority, Grant takes a closer look.

Crikey! Whose rubbish is this over the back?

Sorry to get off the subject, but look at this!

Unbelievably, it seems that a section of the garden

has been fenced off and is now being used as a dumping ground.

It's horrendous. I mean there's shopping trolleys,

there's hardcore, fence panels, all sorts there.

What's happened, Grant, apparently, is when nine moved out

and seven moved out, they were cleaned out and they were just

chucking the rubbish over here.

Is this for use for all of the properties?

-Yeah, it was supposed to be.

-So, like, a little garden area?

He was supposed to be opening the gardens up to make

-the gardens look bigger.

-Yeah.

-The smell. Have you smelled it?

-No, I mean...

HE SIGHS

Kids can't come out to play.

There's nowhere for the kids to play.

-We've got a nappy in the tree there, look.

-Yeah.

-Better check the bins there, as well.

-Rats, isn't it?

-Have you noticed any rats about?

-I know my neighbour has.

-Right, OK.

This quantity of rubbish poses a serious health hazard

to anyone who lives here.

We need to deal with this urgently.

What started off for Ian and Grant as a routine inspection

has now escalated into something that needs immediate action.

OK, well, I made some notes. We know what's going on here.

Basically, there's quite a few things we're going to

-require your landlord to do.

-Right, OK.

Not least of which, to clear all that stuff from the back.

But there are other things here, as well.

I mean, your windows in particular, you need to be able to ventilate.

We need to see a gas safety certificate.

-So, what we do is we write a letter to your landlord.

-Right.

It will basically set out what we want him to do.

We'll send a letter to you with a copy of what we're

-asking your landlord to do.

-OK.

-OK, we'll be in touch.

-Thank you.

-OK, no problems. Thanks a lot, and see you soon.

-Thank you.

Coming up, Ian and Grant get a tidy result from the landlord.

Cor blimey, you've been busy.

Crikey, what a difference.

Britain is getting older.

There are more than 11 million people over 65 in this country,

and over 600,000 of them live in council-run sheltered accommodation.

I'm in Stevenage to visit a scheme where housing officer

Valerie Chalkley keeps a watchful eye over her residents.

-Hello, Val. I'm Matt.

-Hi, Matt, I'm Valerie.

Nice to meet you, how are you?

I'm the sheltered housing officer for Shaftesbury Court.

-Oh, marvellous, that's why we're here.

-Absolutely.

-I understand you've got a resident you'd like me to meet?

-I have, Miss June Moring.

-Second floor?

-Yep, lovely.

-Let's go.

Sheltered housing schemes normally comprise of anything between 20

and 40 self-contained flats or bungalows

and they have communal areas such as lounges and laundry rooms.

This scheme in Stevenage has been June's home for over 11 years.

But recent battles with damp in her flat

have been causing her some major headaches.

Since they put the new shower in and put all the new pipework in

I've got nothing but dampness.

I'm not very happy about it.

It's stressful.

As a trainee housing officer,

I've come to see what we can do about June's problem.

This is the lounge piece.

-Lovely. So, this is a studio flat?

-Studio flat.

-So, you've got this room...

-And the bedroom through there.

Oh, look at that. It's very cosy here, isn't it?

And would you like to see the kitchen?

I would like to see the kitchen.

Do you know what? It's very bright and light and clean.

It's fantastic, isn't it?

'Well, Matt, it may be sparkling on the surface

'but there's a hidden enemy lurking in this flat.'

-I've got problems here with the dampness at the moment.

-Yeah.

-So, this is the area where there's problems?

-Yes.

-So, they've come out in the last two days, really?

-Yes.

-To sort it out.

-That's right.

-They pulled the fridge out, scrape it away, redecorate...

-Yes.

-..and it's already back again.

-It's back again.

So what's that all about, then?

We don't know, we've got to investigate.

I've had all the shower ripped out, and they found a leak there,

but that's been repaired and everything's going away properly.

It's clear that the disruption caused by the damp

is putting a bit of a strain on June.

They've had all this off, the tiles and the shower off,

-and they can't find no leak behind there at all.

-Right.

-Are you worried about having them in to do more work?

-Em, I do...

It's a terrible mess afterwards and I'm quite a clean person.

I can tell. I can tell that. But there's having it clean,

and then there's having it clean to your own standards.

-They're two different things, aren't they?

-Yes.

'And the damp has started to creep out of the bathroom

'and into the hall.'

It's lifting the paper off, isn't it?

-And it's going out to the hallway now, as well.

-Yeah.

-That's the thing, cos your flat is so perfect...

-Yeah.

..that any little thing,

-you're going to notice it straight away.

-Yes.

'But for council tenants in sheltered accommodation,

'help is always at hand.'

What I do, I report to Val, the warden, she gets in touch

with the contractors, and then they come to see me.

-They do that quite quickly?

-Quite quickly, yes.

-That's good news.

'I've made my assessment, so it's time for a debrief with Val.'

-How did it go?

-Yeah, really, really good.

-This is a big responsibility, this place, isn't it?

-Very, yeah.

I mean, not only have you got the people that are here,

but the building itself, it seems...

It's maintainable, as well.

So, if any repairs or anything like that,

I have to make sure the repairs are done.

So I've got all the repairs, the ambulance calls

if anybody falls or anything like that,

medical conditions, things like that. It's a big responsibility.

-How many residents?

-I've got 48.

She's a lovely lady, June,

but it feels like one of those jobs that's going to take...

-It's not going to take one visit.

-No, no.

It's been decorated three times and, because it's continuous,

something must be there for him to do it. But we can't understand

where the leak is coming from. It's not coming from above,

it's only starting halfway down, but it's not going down below.

-Right.

-Because I've checked the tenant down below.

Here's the thing, though, Val -

if you're here talking to me who's looking after the block?

-Ah, got my telephone.

-So, you're never off duty.

-Never off duty, no.

-If they pull the cord, I'm there.

-Yep, that's it.

-That comes through.

-It was lovely meeting you.

-You too.

-Take care.

-Thank you.

Coming up, the situation in June's flat is worse than expected.

Soaking, absolutely soaking.

Back in Clacton-on-Sea, Ian Kavanagh and Grant Fenton-Jones

have returned to inspect the scene of some epic fly-tipping,

and it seems things have changed beyond recognition.

It's taken Grant and Ian's clean-up team the best part of a day

to clear all the rubbish and hazardous waste

from the rear garden,

and now they're back to check on the progress.

Cor blimey, you've been busy.

Crikey, what a difference.

And the trampoline's gone, and the swing.

And all the brick rubble. Blimey.

-Any vermin or anything?

-No, none at all.

-Can we get them bikes out, do you reckon, or not?

-I'll have a go.

-Just the two bikes.

-I was going to say, it's a bit iffy.

I know that's a bit iffy but if we can get rid of them

that would be brilliant.

Lovely, wahey!

There you are, Ian. New bike for you, mate, look.

I reckon you can restore that.

That'll do. Smashing.

Crikey.

Look at that over there, they've even done the...

-They've even got rid of the dog's mess.

-I know.

Everything's gone. You've left a nappy, look.

I've got David Bellamy coming to look at these new nappy trees.

They're good, aren't they?

-You'd have thought they'd have got that down, wouldn't you?

-Yeah.

Way!

Wahey!

Cheers, chaps. Well done.

-No worries.

-Have a chocolate lolly.

-Yeah.

We had quite a result, really,

cos the actual landlord who owns these properties,

he lives quite a way away.

So he was unaware of how bad it's got and that his managing agent

hadn't made him aware and certainly hadn't sorted it out.

So we gave him a price to do it and we done it,

so we'll claim the money back.

For the tenants, the council clean-up now means

the gardens are a much safer place.

I'm just really happy that they've managed to come out and do it now.

I mean, the kids can now really come out and start to play

and make it their own garden again.

And now Grant's been in direct contact with the landlord,

he's confident the other problems inside the properties will be

dealt with quickly.

We've served schedules of work on the landlord and he's in the process

of doing the work, so they've got a slightly longer timeframe on them

than the rubbish because, obviously, the possibility of vermin.

So, this was urgent, so we had to get this done.

So, all in all, good result, really.

Back in Sandwell, I'm with tenant Mark

who's living in shocking conditions.

His landlord has started eviction proceedings,

but I want to know why he's still getting £100 a week in rent.

There has been payment made throughout on this property,

and that always concerns me. It just makes me think

when that money's coming in that comes with a little ticket

attached saying "responsibility".

Responsibility for the tenant and for the property,

and for other tenants, you know,

other properties nearby that will be affected by it.

It looks like the landlord hasn't been keeping

an eye on the back yard, either.

I've just seen that rubbish move there.

You are joking. Are you serious?

Is there a dead c...

BOTH: Oh!!!

-Did you see the size of that rat?

-That's just smaller than my dog!

This is a massive problem here.

There's problems in there. That's horrible.

Well, it's all this rubbish that's causing the rats to come.

These are all from the same landlord, these properties?

Yes, one landlord owns the three.

So, it would be interesting to know if -

you know, this place, just being absolutely apocalyptic -

what the next one up looks like.

Absolutely. So, we'll get an indication of whether the landlord

is looking after his properties or not.

You see, Mark says it's the landlord who's to blame

for not keeping up the maintenance on his flat.

So, let's see if the tenant upstairs has had a similar experience.

She's been living here for three months.

But you've found, generally, if you call him up he'll come out,

-or he'll send someone to sort things out?

-He will send someone.

-OK.

-I will text him.

-Yep.

'So, the landlord responds to her calls. What about the amenities?'

Are there any other problems with the flat

that you can identify at all?

Is it, you know, damp or does the heating work, the electricity?

-Everything else as far as you're aware...

-The electric's fine.

It's all fine.

'So, it would appear the landlord

'isn't quite as neglectful as Mark claims.

'He's agreed to talk to me on the phone.

'He hasn't allowed us to record his voice,

'but he does know I'll be telling you everything he's saying.'

I'm trying to understand how the property could have been

in this condition while rent is still coming in.

That's the thing I find difficult, I'll be honest.

OK. So, what it sounds like you're saying is that you were

aware of problems in the property for some time.

You tried to gain entry but you were concerned that going

straight to an eviction process might not be in the best interests

of the tenant, and that's why you held off for some time

and were unaware, during that time, of quite how bad

the condition of the property had got.

'The landlord also says he's made several attempts to get in contact

'with Mark to gain entrance and repair things,

'but was unsuccessful.'

Well, from his side, you know, he's saying that he did try,

he tried to call and, you know, couldn't get in.

So, clearly, someone's not right.

-You can't both be right, can you?

-No, no, yeah.

Every time he's come to the door I've offered to him to come in

and he's doing something else.

So, he'd come up he'd say, "hello,"

-and then he'd go away again?

-Yeah, yeah.

-So, why would he do that, do you think?

-I don't know.

And no idea what happened with the boiler and the radiator?

-You just came back...

-I came back and it was just like that.

-It had just gone?

-I was moving my stuff round

and I put it all into one place, like, the kitchen,

and it was all everywhere, on the floor and that.

And, what, the front door was broken in, were there signs of entry?

-The front door was broke.

-Yeah.

-The back door was broke.

-Yeah.

So I've had to do all that, like, to keep it secure.

And that's how they took the boiler and the radiator away?

That's how they came through this way, yeah.

But you didn't feel like you could contact the police

-about any of this stuff?

-I felt threatened if I did

cos of people in the area, know what I mean?

It's difficult for the landlord, then, maybe to believe you

if there's not a police report or something.

I know that, yeah, yeah.

But the people in the area, I haven't phoned the police on them,

know what I mean?

Something could come back on me and I'd rather just keep away from it.

Just move.

So, it sounds like Mark knows who wrecked the flat

but was worried that reporting it could put him in danger.

It's a difficult situation, to say the least.

Obviously, at the moment you can't stay there.

No, I ain't staying in there, no.

Presumably, I don't know, with your mate?

I don't know if that's a long-term thing, or...?

Until I get myself a flat, like, get myself sorted somewhere.

-I'm trying to look for a flat, so...

-Yeah.

I don't want to live in this flat anyway, so...

-It's just not good.

-No.

'I'm not sure whether we'll ever get to the bottom of what's

'really been happening here and, as housing officers, well,

'it's not really our job.

'No landlord wants nightmare tenants.

'It's probably a good idea to keep a closer eye on a property

'and deal with any issues before they get out of hand.'

In the immediate, what's the action that we're going to take here?

Well, basically, I'll go back and I'll discuss it with my senior

and see whether we can put a prohibition order on this property.

Try and get some assistance from housing options

to rehouse the gentleman in question.

Because, like you said, it's just a health risk.

Nobody can live in a condition as we've seen today.

So that's the immediate call of action that I'll be taking.

The landlord has been in touch and told us that,

after several unsuccessful attempts to gain access to the property,

he had no choice but to serve tenant Mark with an eviction order.

He also says that the flat was in a reasonable condition

before Mark moved in.

He's now being rehoused and the landlord is busy renovating

the flat to get it back into a habitable state.

Oh, and he's cleared all the rubbish from the back yard

so, hopefully, there'll be no more unwelcome visitors.

In Stevenage, council tenant June Moring's been battling

with an ongoing problem with damp in her sheltered accommodation flat.

It's really a pain because I'm fed up with it now.

They've had the bathroom out.

They've had the shower out.

They've had the toilet out.

I hope they can solve the problem because, if not,

this is going to keep going on and on and on.

But, thankfully, June's housing officers are on the case.

What we're going to do this morning, June,

-we're going to protect the carpet out here.

-Thank you.

And then we're going to take up the vinyl in the bathroom,

see what's underneath, run the shower to see

if anything's coming still from the shower

and then we'll assess it then.

Depending on what we find,

I'll tell you what we're going to do afterwards.

-One way or the other, we'll leave you safe and tidy today.

-Yeah.

-OK?

And it's all systems go, with extra care taken to protect house-proud

June's flat from further damage.

We're going to hope when they take the flooring up

it's going to be wet through and we've solved the problem.

And, within half an hour, June's bathroom floor is ripped up,

revealing the cause of the problem.

-What have we got there, then?

-I'm all wrapped up this morning.

It's soaking.

There you go, it's soaking.

What we do have on site,

we have a guest room that the residents can use.

Obviously, it's just to stay in.

So, I think I'll discuss it with June

and ask June if she's prepared to go up to the guest room

for a few days, and we'll take this tray out,

cos this is absolutely soaking.

It might be an original pipe that we didn't know, under there.

-Until we take that out, we don't know.

-Yeah.

-But at least we're on the right track now.

-Thank God for that.

-Yeah.

Right before her eyes, June's pristine bathroom

is being pulled apart to get to the source of the damp.

It smells.

Very mouldy and damp.

We found a leak on an existing pipe here, so we're going to repair that.

We're going to dry this bathroom out with a dehumidifier and heaters.

We're going to take all of the tiles off the wall and replace everything.

After ten months of chaos,

there's finally light at the end of the tunnel.

I'm much happier now they've found the leak.

This is the third time that they're rigging the bathroom out.

I do hope that they leave it nice and clean,

the same way as they found it this morning.

I'm going to put these in here then we'll get the dehumidifier as well.

So that you can't trip over it.

That's it there. I've taped that up. Just please be careful when you walk

in and out where we've put the cable across from the wall socket.

-I will, yeah.

-Thanks for your time.

-That's all right.

It's another victory for the housing officers

and staff at this enterprising sheltered housing scheme.

June's very happy that we've found the problem.

Obviously, not with the disruption, but she's happy

we've found the problem and we're going to put it all right.

That's it for today's show.

Join me next time when I'll be finding out more about what it takes

to become a front-line housing officer.