"Woman left in housing with damp and mouse infestation"

[dutchman]

Samatha Basley says her home at Paul Stacey House is in a 'shocking' condition



A woman living in ‘squalor’ in social housing says she cannot take much more.

Samantha Basley has been told she must wait until August 9 to have the mouse infestation and damp in her home assessed.

Ms Basley, 35, has lived in Paul Stacey House in Coventry for nine years in a flat, arranged by Citizen Housing.

Her mother Jacky Basley is desperate to help her get the problems fixed, but says Citizen are unresponsive.

She said: “The place was in a shocking state when she moved in. We tried to help her decorate but there was black mould, urine seeping through her bedroom ceiling at one point from the flat above when they had a blocked toilet. It's damp all the time. It’s not doing her mental health any good.”

Samantha has severe asthma and struggles with anxiety, among other mental health problems.

Her living conditions have become so bad that she said her GP put her on diazepam for anxiety and stress, and even wrote a letter on her behalf.

She said: “My doctor wrote to Citizen to say that the flat was making my health worse and they urgently needed to fix the issues.

“My best friend at the time also wrote a letter to them because she was deeply concerned about my mental health and my feeling suicidal sometimes. She explained the situation and I rang them because I couldn’t take it anymore.”

She claims the flat had black mould and damp for the first three years of her tenancy but said she is not keen to be rehoused.

She said: “I just want them to fix the problems. I like the area and I’ve made really good friends in the building. I could move and be in a bad area with no friends around me. My neighbours are brilliant, I’ve known them for years and we get on really well.

“If they move me, I’d be isolated and alone. That is the last thing I need right now.”

After being contacted by CoventryLive, Citizen Housing arranged a visit with Miss Basley for July 5.

But since the visit on Monday, Samantha has found another mouse and said she is unable to make contact with Citizen.

Samantha alleges that promises were made to solve the problem but no date or immediate solution was given.

She said: “My mental health is suffering and I need Citizen to help me. I want my home to be my home and I want to feel safe.”