A terminally-ill dad with a rare bone cancer disease says he is being “left to die in inhumane housing conditions".
Russell Ashford, 50, from Chippenham, is housebound and living with intractable and excruciating pain.
He lives in a three-bedroom house in Devonshire Place that he and his wife Karen rent from the Chippenham-based GreenSquareAccord housing association.
He said: “The roof leaks and there are tracks in the ceiling and walls where water is coming in. The ceiling plasterboard is hanging down.
“When it rains my garage floods and we have to move my medication to stop it from getting soaked.
“They made a repair to the roof just after Christmas but a roofer friend said they have made it worse. They haven’t done what they should have done.
“The outside wall is full of water. When it rains we are going to be in trouble again.
“The back doorframe and door are disintegrating and need to be replaced but they just nailed a panel to the door and it is pinging away again.
“When we call to complain, they promise to call us back within 48 hours but nothing ever happens.”
“We have never missed a rent payment in five years. We pay our way and are not asking for a lot but GreenSquareAccord just don’t seem to care. It’s unbelievable.”
Mr Ashford says it’s “a miracle” he is still walking after undergoing three rounds of chemotherapy, four rounds of radiotherapy and having major surgery to rebuild his pelvis.
“My pelvis and other parts of my body are riddled with cancer. I’ve had a hell of a journey,” says Mr Ashford, who has two children aged 12 and 14.
His independent advocate, Dr Stuart Farrimond, and his local MP, Michelle Donelan, have both complained to GreenSquareAccord, about its failure to repair and maintain Mr Ashford’s home.
Dr Farrimond said: “His house is in a terrible state of disrepair: a leaking roof has caused internal damage, his backdoor is rotten and insecure, meaning he is unable to get contents insurance.
“There is penetrating damp and mould throughout. Despite persistent appeals to his landlords, GreenSquareAccord, little has been actioned, other than repeated assurances since last October that he will be ‘contacted within 48 hours’. No phone call ever comes.
“Michelle Donelan MP has twice written to the organisation’s CEO, Ruth Cooke, and is similarly exasperated by the lack of action.
“Russell is a remarkable man who has repeatedly defied medical expectations, outliving his prognosis several times.
“He married the love of his life in lockdown, when medical professionals told him he was unlikely to survive more than a few months.
“No one should be subjected to the inhumane housing in which he is being forced to live, let alone this wonderful, family man who deserves much better in his final days.
“I desperately want Russell to feel safe and comfortable in his own house. This ongoing ordeal is worsening his mental and physical health.”
A GreenSquareAccord spokesperson said: “We’re sorry to hear that Mr Ashford is having problems in his home.
“We have requested a replacement door for Mr Ashford, and we are going to his home on Tuesday, February 14 to inspect his leaking roof.
“The issues with damp and mould in Mr Ashford’s home have not been reported to us.
"Now we have been made aware of these, we have also arranged for a surveyor to visit his home on Wednesday, February 22 to carry out an inspection.
“We will act on the surveyor’s recommendations as we are committed to resolving the issues in Mr Ashford’s home.”
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