Residents’ anger set to force sub-let U-turn.22/05/2009 | By Martin Hilditch
Notting Hill considers allowing shared owners to escape troubled development by sub-letting their homes
Notting Hill Housing Association has admitted it could let desperate shared owners sub-let their homes to escape a development in which a young woman died from carbon monoxide poisoning.
At a packed public meeting last Friday night furious residents of the Bedfont Lakes estate, in Feltham, vented their anger about their living conditions.
It was the first chance they have had to collectively grill representatives from Notting Hill, which part-owns many of the homes, and developer Barratt, which built them.
The estate has been plagued by problems since the death of teacher Elouise Littlewood, 26, in the new build home she co-owned with Notting Hill in February 2008. Her flatmate, Simon Kilby, is still in a coma.
All the homes in the development had been given a full set of gas safety certificates. Many residents lived without gas for months following Ms Littlewood’s death as checks were carried out and repairs made.
But in the autumm, after residents thought the problems with the system were over, 14 boilers were turned off again for safety reasons after a resident reported a further issue.
Some homes are still without gas today - and residents have reported numerous other problems with their properties, such as damp.
At the meeting Barratt and Notting Hill were forced to abandon plans to make a presentation outlining the cause of the problems after barracking from the crowd.
A significant number of residents demanded that Barratt or Notting Hill should buy back their homes.
