A WOMAN whose son has severe asthma has complained about mould and damp issues in her Yatton property and said she is “terrified” he may die.

The residents, who asked to remain anonymous, said she has been living in difficult conditions for six years, and added her son has asthma and a collapsed lung.

She said: “I live in a house through housing association with Alliance Homes.

"I’ve been living here for seven years and I first reported mould six years ago.

The woman said she had lived in the Alliance Homes house for seven years, first reporting mould issues six years ago.

“They didn’t do anything about it, just told me to wipe it off,” she said.

“My eight-year-old son has a collapsed lung, often gets pneumonia, and his asthma is severe.”

“My 8-year-old-son has a collapsed lung, often gets pneumonia, and his asthma is severe.

“It was really bad this year, it was out of control.

“Alliance came out and said there’s no ventilation and the fans are not working, the woman said.

“It got so bad there’s a hole in the ceiling,” she said. 

(Image: Contributed)

"I had a leak in the bathroom. There’s no ventilation and they installed the wrong fans.”

The woman and her family were them moved to a bed and breakfast for five days before Alliance said there were no mould issues, the woman said.

“Two weeks ago, we were moved to a bed and breakfast for five days but then was told by alliance in a report that there’s no mould in the house.

“I am terrified my son’s going to die.”

Alliance Homes has a dedicated team to help residents with such concerns, a spokesperson said.

The organisation took added steps because of her son’s condition even though no mould was found in a visit to the property October 16.

The housing association offered the family an alternative two-bedroom house for immediate let October 17 but the woman turned the offer down, Alliance said.

Alliance has an appointment November 21 to change the extractor fans and decorate the property, including the ceiling.

It also plans to install ‘humidity sensor’.

An Alliance Homes spokesperson said: “We’re sorry for the issues our customer has experienced with her home, and the distress this has caused her.

“We take her concerns about damp, mould, and her son’s health very seriously.

“We have a dedicated team who works closely with customers to investigate and resolve any problems with damp and mould in our properties.

“In this case, we treated mould in the understairs cupboard in the past.

“When our customer reported damp and mould again on October 11, we visited her home on October 16 to investigate.

“During this visit, we did not find visible mould, but we wanted to take extra steps due to our customer’s concerns about her son’s health.

“We offered her a new two-bedroom home the next day as a direct let.

“She viewed this property on October 17 but decided not to accept it.

“While we continued looking into the issues, we arranged for her and her son to stay in a hotel as a temporary solution.

“Although our surveys found no mould in the property, we did identify that the extractor fans in the kitchen and bathroom weren’t working as well as they should be.

“We’ve scheduled an appointment for November 21 to replace them.

“We’ve also agreed to redecorate the living room ceiling, which had damage from an earlier leak we repaired, as well as the understairs cupboard and bathroom ceiling.

“We’ll also install a sensor to monitor humidity and any potential risk of damp and mould in the future.

“We’ll keep working with our customer to find the best solution for her and her son, including the option to move to another home if she prefers,” Alliance Homes said..

“We’re also committed to addressing existing issues to make sure her home is safe and comfortable.”

North Somerset Council said its housing service has provided general advice to the resident on managing damp and mould.

A North Somerset Council spokesperson said: “Our housing service has provided the resident with general advice on managing damp and mould.

“While we would expect the housing provider to work with them to resolve any issues in the first instance, the resident can contact us for further advice and support with their housing issue if necessary.”