Awaab’s Law latest as damp and mould reported at more than 2,000 RBH homes

The interim chief of Rochdale Boroughwide Housing has welcomed the latest breakthrough of the Awaab Act as more than 2,000 of his properties have been hit by damp and mold. Plans to change the law commemorating Awaab Ishak were confirmed by the government last week.

Awaab died in December 2020, aged two, after a prolonged exposure to mold in his family’s home on Rochdale’s Freehold estate, owned and managed by Rochdale Boroughwide Housing (RBH). The housing association knew about the problem several months before his death, but took no action.

Yvonne Arrowsmith, interim chief executive at RBH, met with Housing Secretary Michael Gove as he confirmed that the government is amending a bill currently in Parliament, in line with many of the Awaab Bill campaign’s demands. She said: “I support Awaab’s law and look forward to it being included in the code soon.

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“I would like to once again extend our deepest sympathy and apologies to Awaab’s family. I was grateful to have had the opportunity to meet with the Secretary of State last week to update him on our recovery plan and to discuss the actions we are taking to ensure that all RBH homes are safe and comfortable for our tenants are.”

Ms Arrowsmith has been tasked with reversing RBH following the sacking of Gareth Swarbrick following the Awaab inquest last November. RBH board members, who had lent their support to Mr Swarbrick before ousting the boss days later in an about-face, also announced they would step down in 2023.

Yvonne Arrowsmith has a big job ahead of her at RBH(Image: Manchester Evening News)

Three board members have now resigned from RBH and two new non-executive directors have joined. RBH is currently recruiting a new chief executive who is expected to serve until April, while the search for another non-executive director will begin in the next two weeks.

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