Cancer patient living in mouldy flat offered new home following ITV News report

  • Housing

ITV News Political Correspondent Daniel Hewitt explains the latest

A cancer patient who was unable to sleep in her own bedroom owing to an extreme mould infestation, has been offered a new home after ITV News revealed the shocking state of her flat.

Julie Roberts, 37, had been battling mould at a property in Newquay she'd been privately renting for seven years, but the problem had become too severe for her to tackle by simply washing the ceiling and walls.

She last complained to her landlord about the problem five months ago, but says the issue was not addressed.

Julie was diagnosed with lung, brain and liver cancer last year, and her worries were made worse when she was told last week there was also a tumour on her bladder.

Why Julie is still concerned despite being happy with her result

Unsure how long she would live, Julie told ITV News she was desperate to either have her home made liveable once more, or to move house entirely.

"This is my bedroom. This is where I don't want to sleep - with all the damp," she told ITV News, "I hate it, just lying here, lying with the damp."

Now Mears, the firm which manages her property, has offered Julie a permanent, two-bedroom house.

Watch as Julie talks through the severe mould and damp she's been forced to live with

The company has agreed to pay for Julie’s removal costs and she is expecting to move in to the property by the end of next week.

Mears told ITV News it will be carrying out condensation and mould surveys in the rest of the block where Julie currently lives, and also across the whole of their portfolio of properties.

Julie is the latest tenant to have had her situation remedied following ITV News Correspondent Daniel Hewitt's reporting on the widespread mould and damp problems plaguing homes throughout the UK.

But ITV News has been "inundated" with "hundreds and hundreds" more examples, which have not yet been addressed.

ITV News investigations have found there is a "growing problem with severe mould and damp" throughout the UK, with councils often not dealing with residents' complaints.

Following a report on the state of many council houses, the Housing Ombudsman launched its own national inquiry to investigate the issue.

The Ombudsman wants to publish the findings of its investigation by autumn, and aims to "make far-reaching recommendations that promote greater understanding of the complexity of tackling damp and mould and share best practice across the sector". But those with private landlords will not have their concerns addressed as the Ombudsman investigation will only look at council housing and housing associations.

ITV News Political Correspondent Daniel Hewitt hears from tenants who feel 'forgotten' by their housing providers

Citizens Advice says the inquiry should look at all housing, rather than just social housing.

Katie Martin, director of external affairs at Citizens Advice said the problem is a "real imbalance of power" between tenants and landlords.