A SINGLE mum “wants an apology” after being hit with nearly £20,000 worth of roof and window repairs, which the council are telling her must be paid within 5 years.

Grace Parks, who lives in The Friary, is one of several residents who received a letter in February this year saying repairs to the roofs and windows were required, and would cost around £18,500 per leaseholder.

They were initially told the costs must be paid within 18 months, but after complaining to the council, this was changed to monthly payments of around £500 for the next five years.

According to Grace, the council say this is going “above and beyond” their regular Leaseholder Debt Recovery policy.

Grace said: “I’m a single mum on a salary of £600 a month, it is just not doable.

“Emergency works were carried out on the roof in 2013, why didn’t they tell us then the roof was going to need repairing?

Leaving it so long has meant the cost has doubled.

“They could’ve set up a sink fund then so that by the time the bill came in, some of it was already paid.

“I’m happy to pay for it, I just can’t afford the huge monthly payments.”

At the Wiltshire Council Housing Board meeting on Monday, Janet O’Brien, head of housing strategy and assets at Wiltshire Council said: “A sink fund is one of the policies we will be looking at going forward.”

Grace would also like to see changes made to the Debt Recovery Policy, which she says is “completely unreasonable and unfair”.

The policy currently means any debts over £1,500 have the same repayments schedule, whether they are for £2,000 or £20,000.

Ms O’Brien added: “In the past we have not done major works at The Friary in the way we currently are, which is why the cost is so high, so these are unusual circumstances. We are certainly looking into more favourable terms for large amounts of debt for residents.”