‘It’s horrendous’: Chesterfield family’s concerns about ‘terrible’ council house

Elizabeth Davis her partner Luke Bembridge and their three young children, Mason, Lilah and Jack, moved into the Chesterfield Borough Council home at The Crescent, Brimington, around a week ago.

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Elizabeth, 29, said there are a number of issues with the property, including 'holes in walls everywhere', 'lots of mould' and a faulty extractor fan.

She told the Derbyshire Times: “It’s horrendous.

“I feel so anxious, upset and stressed – I cried a lot at the weekend.

“My youngest child has complex health problems and I'm worried about my kids being in such a terrible house with all these holes and mould.

“Why did the council let us move into this place when there are so many issues?

“We’d like to move to a better three-bedroom house if possible.”

Elizabeth – who said a builder friend told her it would cost up to £1,000 to carry out repairs in the house – has complained to the council about the property.

A council spokesperson said: “As a responsible landlord, we take all complaints from tenants seriously and aim to resolve them as quickly as possible.

“In this case, it looks like some issues have been uncovered when wallpaper was removed.

“Our team will arrange a suitable time with Ms Davis to visit her property, undertake a full survey and agree any necessary repairs.”

The council manages approximately 10,000 houses, flats, maisonettes and garages in Chesterfield.

The Derbyshire Times has reported on a number of Chesterfield families’ concerns about their council homes in recent weeks.

Last month, Chesterfield MP Toby Perkins said new council houses are needed in the area.

“I am very conscious that we haven’t got enough family-sized council flats or houses in Chesterfield, particularly houses,” he said.

“This is a national problem, partially caused by the fact that we have a Government which promotes the Right to Buy council houses but makes it very expensive for councils to build new ones.”

He added that the council needs to ‘catch up on a considerable backlog of serious housing repairs’ as the nation comes out of lockdown.

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