Rented Mansfield Woodhouse home 'had leaky roof, faulty boiler, damp and mould'

Inspectors found that the property, on High Street, had a leaking roof that was causing damp and mould, a lack of smoke detectors and a faulty boiler and power sockets.

In a case brought before Mansfield Magistrates' Court by Mansfield District Council, Fiona Needham, 49, of Glastonbury Close, Mansfield Woodhouse, was convicted of one offence under the Housing Act.

She had previously pleaded not guilty to the allegation and was due to be trialled on the matter on October 3, but changed her plea to guilty.

Fining her £1,060, the chairman of the magistrates, said: "We take these matters very seriously, there were children in the property."

The magistrates also ordered her to pay a victim surcharge of £100 and full prosecution costs of £1,551.85.

The court was told the landlord had failed to comply with an improvement notice issued by the council in relation to premises which she owned on High Street.

Council officers inspected the property after receiving a complaint of disrepair in April 2018.

They found serious hazards that would affect the health and safety of the tenant, her young child and any visitors.

In the property there was a risk of falling due to lack of light switches, a boiler that was not heating the property sufficiently, damp and mould where the roof was leaking, and escape windows on the first floor without appropriate safety catches.

The property also had an inadequate smoke detector and an insufficient number of, and faulty, power sockets.

There were informal attempts to persuade Needham to carry out improvements but no work was done so officers served an improvement notice in June 2018.

They revisited the property and found that while the roof had been replaced and the electrical system checked, the smoke alarms were not connected.

The magistrates heard that a significant fire safety risk remained at the property and that the council was considering carrying out the works needed and recharging Needham.

In mitigation, Needham’s solicitor told the court that his client accepted she had not done enough to get the work done, but said that tradesmen had not always been allowed in to the property.

Commenting after the case, Councillor Marion Bradshaw, portfolio holder for housing, said: "Every tenant deserves to live in a home that is at least safe and this property clearly fell short of that mark.

"It is up to landlords to ensure the safety of their tenants and if they do not, the council has shown with recent court cases that it will pursue that, and rightly so."