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Peabody boss to launch investigation into ‘what went wrong’ after woman left dead in home for two years
The chief executive of London association Peabody has promised to launch a fully transparent investigation into “what went wrong” after the body of a 61-year-old resident was left undiscovered for two years.
Ian McDermott said he was devastated to hear what had happened to resident Sheila Seleoane, who was found in her housing association flat at Lords Court in Peckham, south London, last Friday after police forced their way into the property.
Mr McDermott, who became the chief executive at Peabody in October, said he understood the “anger and frustration” and promised to learn from the investigation, which he said would be “comprehensive and transparent”.
He added: “We’re looking at every single contact and visit we made to understand what went wrong and what we, as a landlord, could and should do to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”
Her death is being treated as unexplained but not suspicious.
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Neighbours of Ms Seleoane have since shared photographic evidence with Inside Housing that shows a contractor acting on behalf of Peabody had left a calling card after attending the property to carry out an annual gas safety check on 16 March 2020. This was the same day the UK first went into lockdown because of the coronavirus pandemic.
A follow-up letter dated 23 March 2020 was stuck to the door using sellotape from the association, which reminded the 61-year-old that under the terms of her tenancy she must allow access for gas safety inspections.
It read: “A forced entry date for your property has been set for 7/04/2020.”
Housing associations have a legal obligation to complete the check under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998.
Additional WhatsApp messages shared with Inside Housing from a group chat between residents in Lords Court show them openly discussing the possibility their neighbour was dead as far back as July 2020.
One resident wrote: “Peabody still hasn’t checked on the neighbour.”
Another resident suggested that maybe it was because it was a health issue and a risk of contamination in a property where a dead body is found.
In response, a resident pointed out that “they [Peabody] don’t know she’s dead”.
One resident, who lived in a flat next door to where Ms Seleoane’s body was discovered, said it felt like the smell of rotten meat was “seeping through the walls”.
The recent university graduate said he called both the police and the association about his concerns for their neighbour.
He added: “Coming out of lockdown after living in such a crowded place was difficult, and now this, it’s hard to live with the trauma, we shouldn’t have to live like this.”
In his statement, Mr McDermott said: “We had followed up neighbours’ concerns and tried repeatedly to make contact, and after we were told by the police that everything was fine, we didn’t assume the worst.
“Clearly, looking back, the red flags were there. It should have been obvious to us that Sheila had either abandoned the property or something was very wrong.”
He added: “Even with the challenges of lockdowns, we should have done better. I don’t think it was because we didn’t care. But something, or a number of things, have gone wrong.”
Mr McDermott said Peabody needs to learn from what has happened, but could not provide any answers until the investigation was completed.
In response, a Metropolitan Police spokesperson said: “Police attended the address on two occasions in October 2020 after they were contacted by a local resident and the housing association. It was not deemed by the officers that there were sufficient grounds to enter the premises.
“The Met’s directorate of professional standards has looked at the officers’ actions and not found any reason to launch an investigation.”
The police told Inside Housing on Monday that a file on the tragic incident is being “prepared for the coroner”.
