It has been six months since the Mayor of Hackney, Philip Glanville set out the council’s action plan outlining their commitment to tackling damp and mould. In a blog, Councillor Clayeon McKenzie, cabinet member for housing services and resident participation provided an update on the council’s work to combat damp and mould in the borough.

The original action plan included a promise to improve the council’s response to the issue for the benefit of not only Hackney Council tenants, but also those living in homes of other social landlords or privately rented properties across the borough.

In the blog, Cllr McKenzie says that while there is still much to do in tackling the problem, the council has ‘made strides towards the goal’ to achieving their ambitions on the matter.

He highlights the steps taken by the council so far, including launching a new service to speed up the response to leaks in properties, which since its implementation in January has seen over 1,100 emergency visits carried around within an average of 1.5 days.

Other measures taken by the council include:

• Aiming to inspect 75% of reports of damp and mould within a five day target
• Recruiting two new specialist officers to carry out inspections to help them achieve their targets
• Conducting a full reevaluation of the urgency of disrepair cases to prioritise any necessary work based on the severity of each case and the age and health of the people living in the home
• Finalising plans to survey 20% of Hackney Council’s homes during this financial year to assess their condition, allowing them to prioritise properties most likely to suffer from damp and mould
• Increasing their in-house repairs team from 159 to 170 officers, including the hiring of a new disrepair and damp & mould manager
• Responding to more than 120 reports of damp and mould in privately rented homes since December, serving enforcement notices when the landlords failed to take steps to resolve the issue
• Investing almost half a million pounds in additional officers to increase the number of inspections across the private rented sector, to help tackle rogue landlords
• Writing to all housing associations across the borough to find out how they plan to tackle damp and mould in their homes. Additionally, the Mayor is continually meeting with the chief executives to ensure they deliver on these plans

Councillor McKenzie said: “Tackling damp and mould is not a one-off promise or campaign – it’s a long-term commitment. The steps we have already taken provide a firm foundation for us to continue to build on our work and achieve our ambitions for tackling the issue.

If anyone detects a leak, I would urge them to contact the repairs centre as soon as possible so a visit can be scheduled”.