Last week, a severe case of damp and mould came to my attention via social media. I want to address the entirely unacceptable conditions and offer my sincerest apologies for the severity of that situation. This is not the standard of accommodation service our service families deserve, and I have been engaging with our suppliers to gain robust assurances that such cases are proactively identified and managed with compassion.
In relation to this case, an offer of alternative accommodation was made within hours of the post, work has already been completed to rectify the immediate problem and the installation of a new bathroom has been scheduled. I have also asked our suppliers to carry out an urgent review of all outstanding damp and mould cases to ensure there are no other families in a similar situation.
Last year, DIO conducted an assessment across the SFA estate to fully understand the extent and the causes of damp and mould. A year-long programme of works to address the underlying causes in thousands of homes is already underway with over 3,300 homes receiving damp and mould remedial work in the 2023/24 financial year.
Over the next 12 months, £29million will be spent on damp and mould mitigation packages for around 4,000 families, prioritising those with vulnerable family members. While we are moving at pace, this will take some time to fix as we have extensive issues with damp and mould in some homes, at least 2-3 years of work is required along with significant investment.
If families need to report damp or mould, they should call the National Service Centre on 0800 031 8628 to raise a report and undergo an initial assessment.
I would like to assure you that I am personally committed to ensuring cases like this never happen again. At times, we all get things wrong, but we remain determined to learn and to do better, I will continue to do all in my power to ensure we work collaboratively to significantly improve performance.
Mike
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