RESIDENTS in a block of flats shrouded in scaffolding for the last four years have told how their lives are a misery.
Those living at Oak Square in Stockwell, south London, have battled with darkness and constant noise since work began in 2020.
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Lume Bajrime, 42, said she feels like her family is “living in a prison” in their darkened flat.
Her children, 17, 15 and 10, are terrified to sleep at night in case someone climbs up the scaffolding and into their rooms.
I want to leave, I feel like a prisoner here
Lume Bajrime
Lume, who pays £169-a-week in rent, told The Sun: “It’s dark all the time. We have to use lights constantly. It’s cold too. There have been multiple robberies in the flats.
“We can never leave the windows open because we’re so scared. We never know what’s going to happen.”
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Neighbours dumped their rubbish down into the level of scaffolding outside Lume’s home, she claimed, causing a foul smell.
She added: “The rubbish would come from upstairs. It took ages, maybe a month, for someone to collect it. There were 15 black bags full of rubbish.
“I want to leave. You feel like a prisoner here.”
Lume revealed she spends £100 a week at least on her electricity bills, battling to keep the lights on.
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Her neighbour, Jessica Hoyos-Villa, 35, told how her autistic son, seven, can’t cope with the lack of light.
She said: “It’s difficult living here. You can’t open the windows. He likes to see daylight, he’s autistic.
“For us, it’s depressing. We weren’t warned and no compensation is enough for how it affects you mentally. Especially coming out of Covid.
“It’s like being in jail, that’s the easiest way to put it. Natural light is so important. It’s a security risk. You can’t leave the windows open because anyone can come in.”
‘IT’S TOO MUCH’
Jessica has been living in the house with her family for eight years, with scaffolding going up three years ago.
She claimed the drilling begins at 7am, and doesn’t let up throughout the day.
“We’re woken up with drills every day. You want to pull your hair out that’s how bad it is. My son covers his ears. For him it’s too much,” she added.
She revealed one neighbour has mental health issues, and almost got into a fight with a group of builders on the site.
“It was in the courtyard. It was really scary. This drilling is too much for people. They drill for seven days in a row. I could’ve been down there with our children. It’s scary. They need to work with the residents.”
Another resident, Robert, told how dozens of his neighbours have fled the blocks since work began.
He added: “People have been broken into. One person woke up with someone stood at the end of the bed after getting in through the window. They were terrified and had to chase him out of their home.
“For years builders would sit right by my window to have their lunch on the top floors. After a lot of complaining they moved a distance away but it was so off-putting.”
REPAIR WORK
Work began on the site after faulty cladding saw parts of the structure of the building chip away and fall to the ground.
The cladding was replaced, but work had revealed serious damage to the structure of the brickwork.
And so construction began again to remedy to wider problems.
Scaffolding was first put up in 2020 and works were expected to be finished by summer 2023, according to construction company Equans.
Yet a year later there’s still no finish date at the properties run by housing association Notting Hill Genesis.
Equans latest updates claims scaffolding began coming down from December 4, but the three blocks are still entirely covered.
Each of the three ‘programme completed’ dates currently read “delayed due to balcony remedial works”.
The website still reads: “Site decant: End of April 2024.”
One woman, who wanted to remain anonymous, burst into tears when The Sun visited her home.
She said: “It’s been so hard. I’m trapped here because I’m on shared ownership and don’t have the salary for a full mortgage.
“My neighbours have all left and there was a really nice community before.
“There are people here who’ve wanted to retire but couldn’t because of everything that’s happened. It’s been rubbish.”
NIGHTMARE
Another anonymous resident described it as a “nightmare”.
“It’s gone on for so long. None of the deadlines have ever been met. I’m here home working with constant drilling, I can’t see outside, have no access to daylight. My balcony is useless.
“I had to draw the curtains this morning because there were two builders on my balcony. You wake up ready to be in defence mode so no one catches you. I can overhear the builders’ morning meetings it’s so loud.”
Another, who also didn’t want to be named for fear of reprisals, added: “We hardly have any lights. We left the window open once and they were drilling upstairs. All the debris came into my house. It was everywhere, covered my furniture.
“We had no warning and my children’s room was covered in this dust that clogged the throat. The kids are traumatised by the noise, they constantly hold their ears. It’s not normal drilling – it vibrates your insides.
“They’re massive drills.”
Equans declined to comment when approached by The Sun.
A Notting Hill Genesis spokesperson said: “Oak Square has been subject to a substantial building defect remedial programme since 2020. Regrettably the programme has faced setbacks along the way, which means it has taken longer than expected to complete and has been highly disruptive to residents.
“Although residents’ safety has never been at risk, we do recognise they have had to put up with sustained disruption for far too long. We apologise for the inconvenience and distress it has caused.
“In recognition of this, we have offered substantial compensation to all households, averaging at £13,000, as well as offering to buy back residents’ homes at a value which assumes all remediation work has been completed. We are also offering priority transfers to those in social rent housing, subject to the availability of a suitable alternative home.
“For those who choose to remain, our extensive programme to bring Oak Square up to a high standard both we and our residents are happy with will continue. We thank them for their patience and understanding over such a long period.”
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It comes after locals told how burglars and creeps scale scaffolding outside their tower block.
And others said they hadn’t seen the sun in two years because of building works on their home.
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