Basingstoke family forced to move out of home as mould takes over

Jodie and Steven Longyear moved into a newbuild David Wilson home in April 2022, which is run by Sovereign housing association, with their three young children. 

When moving into their home in Basingstoke, the couple said there were signs of mould, but after contact with their housing association, the issue was resolved. 

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However since then, the black mould has gradually spread from their loft throughout their home; along their carpet and even through the wall in their eldest son's bedroom, Riley, six, who suffers from asthma. 

In November, Jodie complained to Sovereign. Someone visited their home and temporarily helped with their mould issue. 

Riley, six years old, has been rushed to hospital six times due to difficulty breathing. (Image: Jodie Viney)

But after Riley was taken to hospital six times, most recently on December 21, and diagnosed with a lung infection, the family have moved out into temporary accommodation until the situation is resolved.  

Jodie said: "It's very stressful.

"We're reaching breaking point with it, every day I'm on the phone to try and find someone to sort it and my kids are going to school for a break, and we're spending a fortune so we don't have to be at home."

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As the issue got worse in January, with mould growing on their walls, Sovereign attended again and identified that the loft in their home would need to be reinsulated. Black mould progressively spread throughout the families home. (Image: Jodie Viney)

The family have been unable to stay in their home since January 9 due to the ongoing work and Sovereign has put them in temporary accommodation.  

They had been staying in a hotel in Basingstoke but a discrepancy with their booking saw them forced to move to a hotel in Aldershot, which has caused difficulty with taking their children to school as well as paying for petrol.

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A spokesperson for David Wilson Homes Southern said: “We are working closely with Sovereign Housing to help the family understand how to correctly ventilate and maintain their home so that there are no issues with damp.

“The property was handed over to Sovereign in March 2022 with no damp or mould upon inspection, but upon learning about the issue in December, we took moisture readings of the ceiling and walls which were normal. To provide extra help we have recently installed additional vents in the roof to aid the circulation of air.”

A spokesperson for Sovereign also said they're working with David Wilson to resolve all of the complex issues within Jodie's home by replacing all the insulation and carrying out a mould wash. 

They explained that alongside helping with food and fuel payments, they made another payment to help with outgoings as well as future payments.

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The spokesperson added: “As soon as we were made aware of issues at our customer’s home, we acted quickly. We recommended that Jodie and her family move into temporary accommodation while these issues are investigated.

“We are working with Jodie to find alternative temporary accommodation to the one she is currently in which is more convenient, but this does depend on local availability.  

“We know our customers are rightly concerned about damp and mould and we’ve become more proactive in how we tackle it. We fully understand that this is an unsettling time for Jodie and her family and we have every sympathy for them.”