A stay-at-home mum from Lewisham says she feels terrible for making her three kids live in a mould-infested home that she’s been living in for 11 years.

Jade King, 32, lives in Lee with her 15-year-old daughter, her 10-year-old daughter, and seven-year-old son, and all three of her children have to share a room, and the mould hasn’t made the situation any easier.

Jade claims the mould in her home was hidden by Lewisham Council when she was first shown the house in 2013.

Lewisham Council had placed Jade under L&Q which was taken over by Phoenix Housing In 2021.

Jade told the News Shopper: “When I first moved in my new neighbour was the one who alerted me to the mould since the lady who used to live there left because of how bad it was.

“But what they did when I moved in was just mould-washed and high glossed it because when I first viewed the property, it was just white gloss paint everywhere.

“Now I understand why – they did it to cover up the problem.”

Jade says all three of her children have been badly affected by the mould health-wise.

She said: “My son and daughter both have really bad hay fever, and the mould in their room is making it worse.

“So their breathing is difficult and it's really affecting my son's eczema, and it's like flaring up through because he has allergies.

“So, the mould spores and the dampness isn't helping, and, throughout the night, they’re coughing and wheezing.

“They’re getting ill continuously.”

Jade says that Phoenix wasn’t notified of the mould at the time, and claims they’ve done nothing about it since 2021.

She is currently in a dispute with Phoenix, telling the housing authority that they owe her compensation since all her furniture has been damaged.

Jade said: “Phoenix said to me that they’d give me £400 and £100 goodwill gesture for me to buy cleaning products to clean my furniture.

“That is their goodwill gesture.

“But the mould is now on my son’s mattress, my mattress, pillows, and just things that can’t be cleaned off. 

“The only reason they’re offering me £400 is because they’ve said they can see from their side that they’ve known for over nine months about the mould have done nothing about it when their policy states that they’re meant to deal with it within seven days.”

A Phoenix spokesperson said: “Phoenix took on the management of this home in November 2021.

“We first became aware of damp and mould issues following contact from the resident in May 2023 and carried out a mould wash that month.

“However, in November 2023, the mould returned.

“We carried out a further inspection of her home in November 2023 and a further mould wash in December 2023."

Jade says her kids can’t invite any of their friends around as she doesn’t want any of them to get bullied.

Jade told the News Shopper that the mould is “probably worse for the children".

She explained: “They don’t understand why they’re being made to stay in it.

“They ask me ‘mummy, when are we going to not have to deal with this? When’s it going to go?’

“And I’m saying ‘mummy’s doing her best, I’m fighting, and that’s all I can do, baby, I’m fighting for you.

“I feel terrible.” 

The mould has also taken a toll on Jade’s mental health.

Jade suffers from Bipolar II disorder and says she was let go from work because of it.

Jade said she lives in a "home that you don’t want to come home to.”

She added that: “In the last decade, the mould has just gotten worse and worse and worse.”

Jade explained that the flat was recently assessed and the mould on the wall was seen, but she said that the people who assessed the flat didn’t realise that the mould was growing through her carpet as well, citing that the assessment hadn’t been done properly.

The spokesperson for Phoenix said: “We have apologised to Ms King for the delay in identifying and remedying the cause of the mould, and were liaising with her to take further action to resolve the issue.

"Having further reviewed this case, we are now offering her and her family a permanent move to a three-bedroom home.”