A wheelchair bound woman has been left feeling suicidal because she feels trapped in her damp-ridden flat, despite begging the council to move her elsewhere.
Denise Saunders, 49, of Telfer House, Kingswood Estate, Dulwich, suffers from sciatica osteoarthritis, a degenerative condition that leaves her in constant pain.
She rarely leaves the house because, unable to use the stairs, she fears that if the lift breaks, she won’t be able to get back into her home.
The mother-of-three also relies on her son to take her out because she is too weak to push herself along. But as he suffers from anxiety, he rarely wants to leave the house. Denise said: “I told my doctor I was suicidal just because it gets to a point that I can’t look outside.
“I’m jealous of people coming and going. I can’t even walk. I walk around my house with a zimmer frame.”
She says if she was moved to a bottom floor flat “it would mean I wouldn’t have to rely on the lift. I’m scared that if I’m back and there’s a fire, I won’t be able to get out.”
Denise says she was suspended from the bid system that allows tenants to apply for new housing in September 2021 because the council wanted to know about the status of her two adult children who live with her.
Despite explaining that her son was her carer, and her daughter a student, and providing the relevant documentation, seven months later, she remained banned from applying for new housing.
She says she has only left her estate twice in the last two years.
The News contacted the council to find out why Denise’s calls for help had gone unanswered. Denise says the council have since unsuspended her from the bid system.
She says she has also experienced severe damp throughout the twelve years she’s lived in the property, and at one point developed a leak from a decayed attic window which poured onto her bed for days.
A council spokesperson said: “Our Housing Solutions team is in contact with our resident about getting the documents processed so she can access the system again as soon as possible.
“Leaks into her property’s bedrooms were connected to an issue with the roof, which unfortunately took longer than expected to resolve.
“We’re grateful for our resident’s patience and our repairs team has agreed dates with her to return this month to make good on the damage inside her home.”