Episode 8 The Housing Enforcers


Episode 8

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Transcript


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

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-Seen those flies?

-Yeah.

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'But for thousands of people across Britain,

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'the reality can be more hovel than home.'

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Vermin, vermin, filth.

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-Ooh!

-Oh!

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It's not me! Blame the landlord!

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'In the battle between tenants and landlords,

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

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-We're coming in.

-No, no.

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-The police...

-Excuse me.

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'I'm Matt Allwright.'

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I'm trying to understand how the property could be in this

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condition, while rent is still coming in.

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'I'm back on the job, once again joining

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'the ranks of the housing enforcers.' It smells like pee.

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This is somebody's playground.

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'They are tackling problem properties...'

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It just feels like a time bomb.

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

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-He called me a BLEEP.

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

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We can stand here and look at the very rich people, looking back down.

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All of this stuff needed planning permission and you've never...

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They won't give it.

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'Today, I visit a landlord who knew the rules,

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'but still broke them.' It seems like you've just gone ahead anyway.

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-Is that right?

-That's right, yeah.

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'A mum and her six kids are driven to despair by the state of their house.'

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This mould here... I mean, this is only a couple of days' worth.

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If I left it and didn't wipe it off, it would

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literally come all the way up the walls and it goes like fur.

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'And one council tenant hopes her dreams of a more practical

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'property can come true.'

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How important is it for you that you have your independence?

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It is very important to me.

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And I was given an illness that takes that independence away,

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but I still try to be as independent as I can.

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Britain is in the middle of a housing crisis.

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The Government reckons, to meet demand,

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we need to be building nearly a quarter of a million homes

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every year, but the reality is we're only managing about half that.

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It's just one of the reasons why the number of people

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renting their homes right now is at its highest since the 1950s.

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At the front line of this crisis are the country's housing enforcers

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and in this programme, I'm training to become one.

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'Planning permission.

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'Whether you're a developer building a superstore or just wanting

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'to extend your home,

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'it's something you need to get before even laying the first brick.

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'But what happens when you ignore the law and, well, you know,

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'do it yourself?

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'In Newham, East London,

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'a landlord hasn't obtained planning permission for an extension on his

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'property and has repeatedly ignored council notices to remove it.'

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Look at that. That's the building work that he's doing.

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He's constructing a vast castle on the back of his house,

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with which he can fill renters, presumably.

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People who are going to pay him money to live there. Look at it.

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It's huge!

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'Along with planning officer Tiffany Mallen and planning

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'enforcement and policy manager Christine Lyons, we've got

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'a warrant to enter the premises to see what's been going on.'

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-Is that all right?

-You can have a look, mate.

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I've got nothing to hide. They want to knock it down.

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'The landlord, who likes to be known as Mr Fox,

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'has converted the property into three flats.'

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Can I just clarify how many people you've got living through

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that front door at the moment? In these three dwellings. How many in total here?

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You've got about four here and you've got two upstairs and I live on the top one.

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-Right, OK.

-The gentleman just told me there's six people living in this flat.

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The gentleman I spoke to in the corner there.

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-He said to me there's six people living in this flat.

-Yes.

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They pay £1,250 a month for being here.

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And that includes all their bills and their council tax,

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or their proportion of the property's council tax, because we haven't

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got the property banded as flats.

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-It's banded as a single dwelling house.

-That's right, yeah.

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'So, there are two things going on here.

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'Firstly, Mr Fox doesn't have the right planning permissions

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'in place, and secondly, he's not in the right council tax band.'

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They're trying to make me look bad, like I'm not paying the council tax, yeah? But I was willing to pay it.

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But did you get the planning permission in the first place?

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-No, they won't give me the planning permission.

-Right.

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'And, yet, he still went ahead and built the extension anyway.

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'It sounds like Mr Fox has been making up his own rules.'

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I'm so confused about this place.

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He's claiming that he applied for planning permission, but then didn't receive it and then...

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Then he's not going to be able to pay council tax cos he's not paying council tax on the right thing

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because it's not been given permission in the first place.

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Yeah. He's obviously converted it into flats without permission.

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I think he's trying to claim that this is lawful, but obviously there was an enforcement notice on it

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and he's still not complied with the original enforcement notice.

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'Enforcement notices are documents served by the council which require

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'any buildings that don't have planning permission to be removed.

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'Clearly, that hasn't happened here.'

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We want these properties to be retained in their original

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format, as much as possible.

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Extended aesthetically and extended properly,

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with the proper consents, building control and planning permission,

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if required, to make sure they are retained as family homes.

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-They shouldn't be making our properties into these mishmash of flats.

-It's a breeze block hotel.

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What it appears to be from here is just a series of additions

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that have gone on as and when he's found he wants another room.

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He's a guy that seems to have avoided putting this

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right at several stages and when enforcements have gone in,

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he's just carried on building, building, building.

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Everyone sees Planning as a bit of a soft touch.

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We don't quite get the grasp of what's going on.

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Actually, we do and our legislation is in place to protect the environment and protect land use.

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Newham takes direct action. We will happily come in here and resolve this through

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bringing in contractors to remove unauthorised development.

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The enforcement you're talking about means men coming in with hammers...

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-Yeah.

-..really.

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'Without planning permission and proper building regulations,

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'this extension isn't just unlawful - it could be dangerous for anybody living here.'

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They do not meet the space set out by the London Plan for requirements

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for flats. They do not meet those standards.

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-What do you mean? They build rabbit hutches, do they?

-No, they're built to a standard.

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-This would not meet those standards.

-What's wrong with the standard?

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-The floor area isn't the correct floor area and...

-Have you got a front room that's bigger than this?

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-Are you having a laugh?

-And also, the fact the stacking isn't correct.

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-What's that?

-The stacking of the properties isn't correct.

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-There's no means of escape.

-There's windows. Fire regulations...

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Those windows open so firemen can get in.

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But you can't get round the back of the premises.

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'So the flats don't have the legal minimum floor space

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'of 39 square metres for a single person and 50 for a couple.

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'And the living spaces and bedrooms aren't

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'stacked above each other to reduce noise disturbance between the flats.

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'It seems this place is unlawful on all sorts of levels.

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'Mr Fox is convinced he's not to blame.'

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Have you only recently become aware of planning permission?

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All of this stuff needed planning permission and you've never...

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-They wouldn't give it. I applied. I submitted drawings...

-Yeah.

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I had the planners round. They had a look at it.

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Then if they don't grant it, doesn't that mean you don't do it?

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Why do they ask you to submit drawings after the fact?

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Cos they need to look at what you're suggesting

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and then they make a decision whether that's acceptable or not.

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-Yeah.

-And if they say it's not acceptable...

-Yeah.

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It seems like you've just gone ahead anyway. Is that right?

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That's right, yeah.

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Mr Fox is adamant that actually there's nothing going on here

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that's not acceptable.

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Crucially, what he's saying is that all we will end up doing

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if we knock down the extensions that he's put up is put people

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out on the streets, people that could be living here.

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-Thank you very much.

-That's all right.

-See you again.

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I'll apply for a certificate of law for this.

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I will take down the side building and the rest of it,

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I will not touch.

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'Our inspection complete, Mr Fox remains defiant.'

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-Nice to meet you, Mr Fox.

-To take it down, they've got to take half the building down.

-Right.

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-That will never happen.

-Yeah.

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'We'll be back later to see what happens to that extension.'

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If someone comes in and takes your home away, how would you feel?

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It's not just packed inner city streets that

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suffer from overcrowding.

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Down on the coast, tenants are as short of space as anywhere else.

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Swale in Kent includes the Isle of Sheppey,

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nestled at the mouth of the Thames Estuary.

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At only nine miles from end to end, it has its own unique culture

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and character.

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Stay-at-home single mum Victoria has rented a house here with her

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six kids, the eldest of whom is autistic.

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They've been here for the past three years, but the house is damp

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and massively overcrowded and things have now reached crisis point.

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My landlord wants to sell the property cos he can't rectify

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the issues in the house, like the damp and other problems.

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So I'm being evicted anyway.

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So, either way, I need somewhere bigger and stable to live.

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I just want a bigger home, somewhere we can be settled.

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Until then, Victoria and her kids,

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who range in age from eight to 18,

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have to live in a house riddled with rising damp, which occurs

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when moisture is absorbed from the ground up into the walls.

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Yeah. See? This mould here - this is only a couple of days' worth.

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If I left it and didn't wipe it off, it would

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literally come all the way up the walls and it goes like fur.

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It's really not nice.

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And it's ruining more and more of their belongings as we go.

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Damp and mould is a particular risk to babies and children and can

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lead to respiratory infections and affect the immune system.

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Myself and my son and my daughter are all asthmatic and obviously,

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being in the damp's not good for any of our chests.

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So, that is causing health problems like that.

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And apart from that,

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it's not nice for the children to be around the mould.

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So, it's just not good.

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But it is rising damp

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so there is nothing I personally can do to stop it.

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It is down to the landlord.

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Victoria's right.

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It's her landlord's responsibility to treat the damp

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and stop it from coming back.

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But the work has yet to be done and in the meantime,

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her kids are suffering the consequences.

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-How's your cough been today?

-Bad.

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-I coughed in assembly and it echoed everywhere.

-Yeah.

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It's not good, is it?

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The damp's making your bad coughs and bad chests again, isn't it?

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And as if the damp isn't bad enough, the house is seriously overcrowded.

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For Victoria's girls, Kia and Abi, the situation is less than ideal.

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It's horrible because you go upstairs in the morning to

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get in the bathroom, wash your hair, and they're always in there.

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If you go in the front room, they're on the sofas,

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-you've got to sit on the floor.

-I love living with my family,

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but it's too squidgy because like there's three boys in one

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bedroom, two girls in another and our brother's in the hallway upstairs.

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It's really overcrowded. We love living with them,

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but it would be nice to have a bigger house.

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With space so tight,

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eight-year-old Kieran doesn't have anywhere to call his own.

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There's no room to play. I usually go in the hallway.

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I'd like to live in a big house. I don't know where though.

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He should have a space in his room to be able to play.

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None of them have got no personal space.

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Coming up, Victoria's bedroom leaves a lot to be desired.

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That's an actual hole, which leads direct to the tiles.

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-Is the landlord aware of that?

-The landlord done it.

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Back in Newham, and landlord Mr Fox has built a huge extension onto his

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house without planning permission

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and without meeting council building regulations.

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The floor area isn't the correct floor area and also...

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Have you got a front room that's bigger than this? Are you having a laugh?

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'Back at the office, it's time for a debrief with Christine and Tiffany.'

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We got in there, which was a result. I didn't know if that was going to happen.

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We got the information we needed, enough for our position to take things forward.

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I mean, the thing is, we're dealing with broad brushstrokes.

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We're not talking about fire prevention, or anything like that.

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We're talking about extra rooms being built.

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It seems to me fairly cut and dry that having been told not to

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build things, he's gone ahead and built things.

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Was it me or was there a few flaws in his logic?

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As we were going through there, he was saying,

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"You can't enforce this because you told me to stop.

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"I didn't, but you didn't do anything about it afterwards."

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I was really struggling to understand, you know,

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his reasoning, his logic.

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The notice, once issued, stays on the land

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and it can stay on the land forever. But this case is clear.

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He's built something that doesn't comply with planning,

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or building regulations,

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hasn't been through the building regulations approach either.

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We don't know if it's even a safe structure.

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From our point of view, it shouldn't be there. It's an ugly structure.

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It's just breeze block. It's not very nice to look at.

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We'll be writing to him, telling him basically that he is to remove the unauthorised extensions,

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he's to remove the loft conversion as well,

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and setting him a timescale to do those works.

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If he doesn't, then the options are, either remove them or prosecution.

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Well, it seems Mr Fox has decided to avoid prosecution.

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Despite having to dismantle his unlawful extension,

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brick by brick, he is unrepentant.

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It's what you call a gamble.

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You take a chance with your money

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and you either get away with it or you get caught.

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As I say, they caught me for this up here,

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so I'm prepared to take it down.

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We've taken away the extension, coming round to the left.

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And the rest of it, which is continuing straight down,

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we'll be taking that down as well.

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That's more or less what it is.

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If you're an Englishman, your house is castle.

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You know, it's known for it.

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I mean, mine did look like a castle at one stage.

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Yeah, in other words, it's their prized possession.

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I mean, if someone comes in and takes your home away,

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how would you feel?

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Luckily, this part of the extension wasn't being used,

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so his tenants still have somewhere to live, for now.

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And despite everything, Mr Fox is feeling philosophical.

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Not to worry.

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There's a lot worse things in life to be concerned about.

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Maybe next time, he'll wait for planning

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permission before embarking on any more building work.

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Back on the Isle of Sheppey, in Swale, single mum Victoria

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and her six kids have spent the last three years

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living in a cramped rented house,

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where she's also found herself fighting a serious

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case of rising damp.

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If I left it and didn't wipe it off, it would

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literally come all the way up the walls and it goes like fur.

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In order to carry out the extensive repairs that are quite

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clearly necessary here, the landlord claims the property has to be empty.

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So, he's issued Victoria with an eviction notice.

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But finding affordable accommodation with enough

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space for the whole family on the island is proving tough, so

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Victoria's called in housing officer Sue Davis to see if she can help.

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-Hiya.

-Hello, is it all right if I come in?

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-Yeah.

-Thank you.

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The last time we spoke about the situation was, if I'm right,

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I know you're privately renting and the landlord's selling,

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-and you've been looking for private rent?

-Yeah,

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but there's just nothing about, is there?

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If it's OK with you, we'll have a look round,

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-so I can see who's sleeping where, and the make-up of the house.

-Yeah.

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Victoria's kids have really been struggling with

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the lack of space, but the damp is making matters even worse.

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Right, so, whose room is this?

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It's Ciaran, the eight-year-old, Kyle, the 15-year-old,

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-and Jamie, who's nearly 17 this month.

-OK.

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-But you can obviously... You can smell the damp in here.

-Yeah.

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And all that wall, I mean, that goes black quite regular,

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-but as I said...

-We've had Environmental Health out, though,

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-haven't we?

-Yeah, he said it's rising damp.

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That's something I need to take to the Environmental Health again,

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-see if they can have another look.

-Right.

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-Cos that is an issue...

-Yeah.

-You've got three lads in here.

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Well, Kyle was asthmatic as a baby,

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the doctor has recently said his asthma's back, his wheeze is bad.

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I said to him about the damp. He said he can't say that

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-that's obviously, the problem, is it?

-No.

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But it ain't going to help his asthma in any way.

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It's clear this is no place for kids to spend time in,

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never mind having to sleep here,

0:17:290:17:32

and things are no better in the next room.

0:17:320:17:34

OK, so you've got the two girls in here.

0:17:340:17:36

A lot of their furniture is actually in my bedroom, because it's...

0:17:360:17:39

-We're losing so much through mould.

-Everything's doubled up, isn't it?

0:17:390:17:42

-OK.

-You can feel the walls in here, I mean, if it rains, that's it.

0:17:420:17:46

-They're soaking, absolutely, so...

-Yeah, right.

0:17:460:17:49

Obviously, that's the only reason we keep that there,

0:17:490:17:51

is so there's somewhere for it to be in the way.

0:17:510:17:53

-Who's up here?

-Lee, the eldest, yeah.

-He's your eldest.

0:17:560:17:59

-OK, this is like a landing.

-Yeah, yeah.

0:17:590:18:02

Victoria's 18-year-old son Lee has autism, which affects how

0:18:020:18:06

he communicates and relates to other people.

0:18:060:18:10

He should have his own bedroom but the chronic shortage of space

0:18:100:18:13

means he has to sleep at the top of the stairs.

0:18:130:18:17

-Obviously, where he is, 18.

-Yeah.

-Even though he's mentally not 18.

0:18:170:18:21

-No.

-It still is...big boy.

0:18:210:18:23

He's not in a position to really share with

0:18:230:18:25

-any of his siblings at all, no?

-He can't, no.

0:18:250:18:28

It's like this... To me, that's an absolute mess, but to him,

0:18:280:18:32

-that is how it's got to be.

-Yeah.

0:18:320:18:33

-If I literally moved a boot or something...

-He'd know.

0:18:330:18:36

-..when he'd come in, he'd be, "Who touched my stuff?"

-So,

0:18:360:18:38

if he comes in and something's been moved,

0:18:380:18:41

-he won't be able to cope with that?

-He'll... No, he will have a tantrum.

0:18:410:18:44

And what does that entail, what does he do?

0:18:440:18:46

Well, the same as a, like, three-year-old.

0:18:460:18:48

When they have a tantrum, he can kick out,

0:18:480:18:50

-scream, jump about on the floor...

-Does he get physical?

0:18:500:18:52

Hit things...yeah, yeah.

0:18:520:18:54

You've been here for about three years,

0:18:540:18:56

-has he always been here, then?

-Yeah, because he...

0:18:560:18:58

It's just not even worth trying to get him to share.

0:18:580:19:01

-Doesn't want to, doesn't want to share.

-No.

0:19:010:19:03

As Lee's full-time carer, alongside running the home,

0:19:030:19:06

Victoria really does have her hands full.

0:19:060:19:09

Her room is crammed with clutter.

0:19:090:19:12

That's all the kids' bits, that are not against...

0:19:120:19:14

This was the only place in the house that wasn't actually mouldy.

0:19:140:19:17

And there's no escape from the damp, either.

0:19:170:19:20

The whole of that bit goes black with mould.

0:19:200:19:23

That's an actual hole, which leads direct to the tiles.

0:19:230:19:27

And is the landlord aware of that?

0:19:270:19:28

The landlord done it,

0:19:280:19:30

-because he was trying to have a look...

-Oh.

0:19:300:19:32

..into the ceiling to see what was going on,

0:19:320:19:34

-he cut the hole, said he'd be back, ain't been back since.

-OK.

0:19:340:19:38

He's took all these out, because they're all on separate fuses, but if

0:19:380:19:41

you can see round the edges, they've all gone damp

0:19:410:19:43

-and they kept blowing the whole of the electrics.

-OK.

0:19:430:19:46

Right, I'm going to have to get Environmental Health out anyway,

0:19:460:19:49

-just to do safety things, check everything over.

-Right.

0:19:490:19:51

-Because you're still living here, at the end of the day.

-Yeah, yeah.

0:19:510:19:54

It's a situation which needs to be sorted as soon as possible,

0:19:540:19:58

but finding a new place in the same area for Victoria

0:19:580:20:01

and the kids won't be easy.

0:20:010:20:04

So, all your kids are at school on the island.

0:20:040:20:07

-Apart from Lee...

-Apart from Lee.

0:20:070:20:09

..and Jamie's in college on the island, yeah.

0:20:090:20:11

-So, and you've got support here, haven't you?

-Yeah.

0:20:110:20:13

So, that kind of restricts their area, as well, to a certain extent.

0:20:130:20:16

Yeah, well, that's the thing, I mean, obviously,

0:20:160:20:18

Jamie, at the minute, is feeling like he should move out

0:20:180:20:21

to give us more space, but I don't want him to move out.

0:20:210:20:24

-No, we don't.

-He's still a baby, I'd rather have him at home

0:20:240:20:26

-and be able to guide him better in life.

-Absolutely.

0:20:260:20:28

Yeah, and we want you as a family to stay together,

0:20:280:20:30

-and help you as a family.

-Yeah, we don't want to split us all up, no.

0:20:300:20:33

That's what we're here to do. We're here to help you move on

0:20:330:20:36

to somewhere that is adequate for you.

0:20:360:20:39

-Yeah, and somewhere we can stay.

-That is... Somewhere you can stay.

0:20:390:20:42

-A bit permanent, yeah.

-Yeah, long-term housing for you.

0:20:420:20:45

-Lovely, thanks for that, Victoria.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

0:20:450:20:47

-See you later.

-See you later.

0:20:480:20:51

'I'm going back to the office. I'll speak to Environmental Health.'

0:20:510:20:54

There are issues there and we need to get them sorted out.

0:20:540:20:57

What we don't want, with this family,

0:20:570:20:59

is for, like Victoria said, she's got one of her sons

0:20:590:21:01

who's saying, "I don't want to do this any more.

0:21:010:21:04

"I want to leave." Well,

0:21:040:21:05

we don't want that, we want to keep the family together,

0:21:050:21:07

so we've got to do everything we can to keep them together,

0:21:070:21:10

to get them moved on into housing that's sustainable for them.

0:21:100:21:13

And that's what we're aiming to do.

0:21:130:21:15

It's not easy finding a property to suit such a large family,

0:21:210:21:25

but, happily, the landlord has agreed to

0:21:250:21:27

hold off repossession proceedings, while Sue and the team continue

0:21:270:21:31

their search to find the right home for Victoria and her kids.

0:21:310:21:35

'Councils around the country have different ideas and policies about

0:21:410:21:46

'how their properties can be altered and changed to suit the tenant.

0:21:460:21:50

'But you can't draw up a policy that covers everyone.

0:21:500:21:53

'If a tenant, for example, suffers with health problems,

0:21:530:21:56

'the council has to deal with that on a case by case basis.

0:21:560:22:00

'Today, I'm in Stevenage.

0:22:000:22:02

'And I'm travelling with architect Andy Hills.

0:22:020:22:05

'We've come to see Heather Dunlop, who has MS,

0:22:050:22:09

'in the hope that we can find a way to make her house more

0:22:090:22:12

'suitable for her complex health needs.

0:22:120:22:15

'Multiple sclerosis attacks nerves in the brain and spinal cord,

0:22:150:22:18

'causing symptoms that affect muscle movement,

0:22:180:22:21

'balance and vision.'

0:22:210:22:23

There you go. Do you want to take it from there?

0:22:230:22:26

'Heather's lived in this house for the last 18 years

0:22:260:22:28

'and has asked the council to extend the ground-floor living

0:22:280:22:32

'accommodation to better suit her needs.'

0:22:320:22:35

-Where do you want us, Heather?

-By the table.

-OK.

0:22:350:22:39

'While Andy takes some quick measurements outside,

0:22:390:22:42

'I want to find out more about Heather's current situation.'

0:22:420:22:45

So, Heather, even coming through the door, we could see

0:22:450:22:48

some of the problems that you've got with the property right now.

0:22:480:22:51

Can you talk me through what it is that is wrong with this house

0:22:510:22:56

right now, for you?

0:22:560:22:58

It's wrong in the fact that I still live...

0:22:580:23:01

I still sleep upstairs, so I need to be able to sleep downstairs,

0:23:010:23:07

and also wash downstairs,

0:23:070:23:09

so hence why I'm having...or would like to have the extension.

0:23:090:23:14

-I know you've lived in this property for some time.

-18 years.

0:23:140:23:17

How have things changed since you've been in this home?

0:23:170:23:20

I've got a rare form of MS, primary progressive,

0:23:200:23:24

that every day I get worse.

0:23:240:23:26

There's never any getting better.

0:23:260:23:28

When was it clear that you needed this place to be changed?

0:23:280:23:32

About five years ago.

0:23:320:23:34

Was it when you realised you were going to be

0:23:340:23:36

dependent on a wheelchair?

0:23:360:23:38

Yeah, in 2010, I became... into a wheelchair.

0:23:380:23:41

And I physically can't stand to get on a stairlift to get up

0:23:410:23:46

the stairs on my own, without somebody helping me.

0:23:460:23:49

What are you doing at the moment, then? How are you dealing with it?

0:23:490:23:52

My son, at the moment, or my daughter if she's here,

0:23:520:23:55

they physically lift me on the stairlift,

0:23:550:23:59

I go up the stairs on the stairlift, and then my son or my daughter

0:23:590:24:03

will lift me off the stairlift to get into my bed.

0:24:030:24:06

And in the mornings, my 24-year-old son has to see his mother naked,

0:24:060:24:11

to get in that shower.

0:24:110:24:13

How important is it for you that you have your independence?

0:24:130:24:17

It's very important to me.

0:24:170:24:18

I was given an illness that takes that independence away,

0:24:180:24:22

but I still try to be as independent as I can.

0:24:220:24:26

'Andy's still finalising the architectural drawings for

0:24:260:24:29

'the planned extension, to make sure

0:24:290:24:31

'they satisfy Heather's requirements.'

0:24:310:24:33

Then, hopefully, you know, at the end of this, we'll have something

0:24:330:24:37

that you, as far as this scheme's concerned, you're content with.

0:24:370:24:41

OK.

0:24:410:24:42

The first thing that we need to improve is the front access.

0:24:420:24:46

And, then, this door, which we came through in front of the stairs,

0:24:460:24:50

into the living area, we've got to widen as much as we can,

0:24:500:24:53

so you've got lounge, dining, kitchen.

0:24:530:24:57

I need to have a ceiling hoist,

0:24:570:25:00

-preferably that goes right from my bed to my washing facilities.

-Yes.

0:25:000:25:05

And that's all I want to do, is sleep and wash.

0:25:050:25:08

Everybody has a right to wash, don't they?

0:25:080:25:11

Yup.

0:25:110:25:13

Once the architectural plans are finalised,

0:25:130:25:16

it's up to the council to decide

0:25:160:25:17

whether to fund the improvements or possibly search for an existing

0:25:170:25:21

property that's already designed with wheelchair living in mind.

0:25:210:25:26

For now, Heather will continue to rely on her son

0:25:260:25:28

and daughter to enable her to stay in the family home,

0:25:280:25:32

until a final decision is made on the proposed extension.

0:25:320:25:36

That looks like a big bit of work for you, Andy.

0:25:360:25:39

-It's a big job, isn't it?

-There are some real practical issues.

0:25:390:25:42

It's not just simply putting an extension on the back a house.

0:25:420:25:46

There are some major issues with drainage, to get the drainage out to the front.

0:25:460:25:50

And, yeah, taking her out of her situation with the kitchen

0:25:500:25:54

-going et cetera is very disruptive to Heather.

-Presumably,

0:25:540:25:58

there comes a point where the cost of work like that,

0:25:580:26:02

you have to weigh it up against the possible benefits

0:26:020:26:05

and it might not actually be, you know, a cost efficient thing to do.

0:26:050:26:08

Yeah.

0:26:080:26:10

The housing folk who obviously have responsibility will take

0:26:100:26:14

that on board.

0:26:140:26:15

My job as the architect is to provide the design, get the costs

0:26:150:26:19

and report back to them, so they can make an informed decision.

0:26:190:26:23

For the Dunlop family, finding a solution can't come soon enough.

0:26:230:26:28

While the council consider the extension to Heather's

0:26:310:26:34

existing home, a few weeks later,

0:26:340:26:37

a nearby three-bedroom bungalow has become available.

0:26:370:26:41

Housing officer Greta Gardiner hopes this could solve Heather's

0:26:410:26:44

housing problems.

0:26:440:26:46

Sometimes, it's very difficult

0:26:460:26:47

when a tenant's in a property that is no longer suitable for them.

0:26:470:26:51

So, every single case is treated individually

0:26:510:26:54

and we assess their needs

0:26:540:26:56

and what we have available at the time, to the best of our ability.

0:26:560:26:59

The council hope that this property, when it's refurbished,

0:26:590:27:02

will provide more accessible accommodation,

0:27:020:27:05

without the need to build on additional rooms.

0:27:050:27:08

This afternoon, we showed Miss Dunlop

0:27:080:27:12

and her daughter this property.

0:27:120:27:14

We were able to show her what we could do to the property to

0:27:140:27:17

make it suitable for her, so she'd be able to live here comfortably.

0:27:170:27:21

With some small alterations,

0:27:210:27:22

this new home will allow Heather to live much more independently.

0:27:220:27:27

I think Miss Dunlop has had a really difficult time in deciding

0:27:270:27:31

what is best for her cos it's not just about Miss Dunlop,

0:27:310:27:34

it's about her and her family and how it all works for them.

0:27:340:27:38

It's not about bricks and mortar, it's about people being comfortable.

0:27:380:27:43

We are doing our best and hopefully,

0:27:430:27:46

this will be one of those success stories.

0:27:460:27:48

Since filming, we've been told that the high cost of building

0:27:480:27:51

an extension to Heather's current home means that it's looking

0:27:510:27:54

more likely she'll be moved into the bungalow

0:27:540:27:57

which will be specially adapted to suit all her needs.

0:27:570:28:00

That's it for today.

0:28:020:28:04

Join me next time on the front line with Britain's housing officers.

0:28:040:28:08

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