News

Majority of Ashfield tenants satisfied with social housing – but some living with damp and mould

By Lauren Monaghan, Junior Local Democracy Reporter

---

The majority of Ashfield tenants living in social housing say they are satisfied with the council’s services – but some report living with mould.

Ashfield District Council ran a council tenant survey during the current financial year, ending in March 2025,

Surveys were done over telephone or online with the council aiming to get 450 complete responses every three months.

Papers to be discussed in the council’s Cabinet meeting next Monday (February 17) show the results of the first wave.

This covers surveys from December 4 to December 10, 2024, which gained 450 completed surveys with 16 incomplete.

A report shows an overall tenant satisfaction of 81 per cent.

However, specific perceptions over complaints handling, did receive the lowest individual satisfaction rating of 35 per cent.

With housing repairs, 78 per cent of tenants were satisfied with repairs to their homes within the last 12 months of taking the survey, and 77 per cent were satisfied with the time taken for those repairs.

But issues with damp and mould, leaking fixtures and incomplete jobs were “mentioned frequently” among 99 tenants not satisfied with repairs and maintenance.

The safety of homes was rated highly, with 83 per cent of tenants very satisfied or fairly satisfied, but nearly one fifth of the 140 unsatisfied tenants noted health concerns from damp and mould.

Council papers say where problems are “affecting tenants’ well-being” and health they would need to be investigated as a “matter of urgency”.

Documents read: “Many respondents feel that the quality of repairs is subpar, with some referring to “bodge jobs,” leading to recurring issues.

The report, done by research firm Acuity on behalf of the council, also acknowledges problems such as damp and mould were exacerbated by “poor contractor performance”.

Awaab’s Law was introduced in July 2023 as part of the Social Housing (Regulation) Act, after two-year-old Awaab Ishak died in 2020 following a respiratory condition caused by mould in his family’s Rochdale home.

The law gives tenants, in private renting or social, the power to hold landlords to account over poor living conditions caused by damp and mould.

In February 6, 2025, the government confirmed the timelines for the implementation of the law.

From October 2025, social landlords will have to address damp and mould issues that pose a significant harm to tenants within fixed timescales, along with addressing emergency repairs within 24 hours.

Also to be discussed by the council’s cabinet next week is a large drop in its housing reserves from £49.7 million at the end of the current financial year to £1.9 million by March 31, 2029.

Council documents say the main area of this spending is going towards building new homes, bringing empty properties back into use and investment into its current housing stock.

The authority has around 6,600 low-cost rental properties in the borough, with 108 new homes built since 2018.

Four separate housing developments are under construction in Kirkby, Sutton and Huthwaite.

Documents will be further discussed and scrutinised in the meeting next week.