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RBH apologises after ‘making assumptions’ about lifestyle of Awaab Ishak’s family
The housing association whose mould-ridden flat led to the death of a toddler has apologised for making assumptions about his family’s lifestyle.
Rochdale Boroughwide Housing (RBH) has admitted it “did make assumptions about [the family’s] lifestyle” and that “we accept that we got that wrong”.
Awaab Ishak died in December 2020 from a respiratory condition caused by mould in the RBH flat, where he lived with parents Faisal Abdullah and Aisha Amin in Rochdale, Greater Manchester.
Awaab had just turned two. His family had repeatedly complained about the condition of the flat.
Following an inquest into his death, senior coroner Joanne Kearsley said that after an inspection of Awaab’s home by RBH in July 2020, “too much emphasis was placed on the cause of the mould being due to parent’s lifestyle”.
She said the housing association did not identify the lack of an adequate ventilation system as a factor in the presence of the mould.
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In a statement on Tuesday via Twitter, RBH laid out the changes it is implementing in the wake of the coroner’s conclusions.
The association said: “We did make assumptions about lifestyle and we accept that we got that wrong. We will be implementing further training across the whole organisation.
“We abhor racism in any shape or form and we know that we have a responsibility to all our communities.”
Last year, housing ombudsman Richard Blakeway published a Spotlight report on damp and mould. Called It’s Not Lifestyle, it refers to a common belief in the sector that damp and mould are the result of how tenants live.
Mr Blakeway said the word ‘lifestyle’ should be “banished” from social landlords’ vernacular when it comes to damp and mould.
Other actions by RBH include significantly accelerating inspections of every home it visits for damp and mould and then taking immediate action when needed.
The landlord said it will bring in an experienced interim external chief executive as soon as possible to lead RBH.
Former chief executive Gareth Swarbrick was sacked on Saturday following nationwide pressure. He had refused to resign until then.
The association said it supports the coroner and Housing Ombudsman’s call for the Decent Homes Standard to be strengthened to include damp and mould.
It said RBH and the whole housing sector must now treat damp and mould as a critical safety issue.
At the start of the statement, RBH said: “We want to start by saying again how sorry we are for the loss of Awaab.
“We know our words will not take away the pain felt by his family, nor will they immediately heal the hurt and the strength of feeling which is justifiably being felt in Rochdale and across the country.
“Our whole organisation, which is made up of caring and passionate colleagues, is completely focused on putting things right for our customers, the people of Rochdale and the wider community and sector.
“However, we know that we got things badly wrong.”
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