‘Mould in my house made my son ill but the problem wasn’t fixed – I’m worried what will happen now’

A mother living in a damp home fears what may happen this winter after she claims an outbreak of mould caused chest problems for her son and meant he was unable to walk across the living room without stopping for breath.

Tracy Manley, 59, has lived in her home for 27 years but discovered it had a problem with mould around three years ago.

She said it began with dampness around the windows before she noticed that items stored in the airing cupboard in her son’s bedroom were becoming damp.

Ms Manley, who is unemployed, receives personal independence payments (PIP) and rents her semi-detached house from Bristol council. She decided to empty that cupboard, but she believes doing so disturbed the mould, which then affected the health of her 31-year-old son, who asked not to be named.

“When we stripped the bedding last winter, he became ill and had to go on antibiotics,” Ms Manley told The Independent.

“There was a rattling on his chest. We went to the doctors, and first of all, they said it was clear, but then he had trouble with his breathing.”

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Ms Manley added: “He couldn’t walk across the living room without stopping for breath. It was a serious chest infection, and it was really bad. The doctor put him on a course of antibiotics for around 10 days.”

“It was a case of when it (the mould) was disturbed that was the problem. You were disturbing the mould and then breathing in that disturbance.

“It was a bit scary – we hadn't considered that possibility.”

Photographs of her home taken last winter that Ms Manley shared with The Independent show patches of mould around windows, on the ceiling and in the airing cupboard. She said she tried to treat it with chemicals but could only keep the problem at bay.

About tackling it, she said: “You’re always told to open the windows and to ventilate - we tried that, we tried the diffusers, the dehumidifiers.

“We left vents open, but it was a case of tackling it, clearing it away, but it was still coming back. That’s the problem, it seems to be an ongoing thing in the older houses.”

There was also a health concern for Ms Manley herself, who was diagnosed with throat cancer last year and was undergoing chemotherapy when the mould was causing an issue.

“I was worried about my own health and it took a mental toll”, she said.

“I’ve got a low immune system myself and I’m on a course of chemotherapy. After my cancer diagnosis last year, I was on a much stronger course of chemotherapy.”

“It was difficult to stay positive – it was draining on my mental health.”

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Ms Manley is not alone in dealing with such problems – more than eight million people in the UK live in cold homes, campaign group Health Equals has warned.

New research commissioned by the group found that 28 per cent of people in the UK report living in homes with issues like damp, mould, or cold, which can cause health conditions.

Health Equals’ research found that a quarter of those living in a cold home report experiencing respiratory symptoms such as coughing, wheezing, flu and pneumonia, while more than a third report mental health impacts, including depression and anxiety.

Ms Manley is worried about what might happen this winter. She said the council responded to her requests for help and previously patched up the mould, but she believes this has not fixed the root causes of dampness.

She said: “There’s still damp in my kitchen as well and I’m worried about my son’s chest problem coming back this winter, as well as my own health.

“They’ve checked up in the loft, they’ve checked the guttering, and they seem to say there’s no problem with any of that, so it’s just tackling it as it comes on.

“It’s keeping an eye on it over the winter and seeing how it’s going to progress, but you’re worried you’re going to disturb it again.

“You’ve got to clean it, but you’re worried about making it worse for yourself. Then it gets airborne.”

Responding to Ms Manley’s situation, councillor Barry Parsons, chair of Bristol council’s homes and housing delivery committee, said: “Our priority is to ensure all council homes are safe, warm, well-maintained, and meet the standards required of us as a social landlord.

“Since our self-referral to the regulator of social housing, we have been working hard to improve the way we manage and maintain our housing stock. Significant progress has already been made; since August, the number of open damp and mould cases has fallen significantly. However, we recognise there is still more work needed to ensure our homes meet the standards tenants deserve. We will continue to invest in the safety and quality of our homes with a strong focus on tackling damp and mould.

“Every report of damp or mould is taken seriously and responded to within 10 working days. We encourage any of our tenants experiencing these issues to contact us so we can investigate and provide support.”

The Independent understands council officers visited the property last week to inspect the problems and treat them.