The last-remaining residents on the half-abandoned sections of an East London estate say they feel forgotten as they have been left to live in mould-infested homes with no firm date for being moved out.
After first hearing about plans to decant them more than a decade ago, residents living on the old parts of the Gascoigne Estate in Barking say it has become a “ghost town” in places which is attracting crime and antisocial behaviour (ASB).
The 1960s estate is currently being regenerated in phases and now only a handful of council tenants live in the original low-rise flats as their neighbours who bought their homes under Right to Buy have already moved out. Those who still live at Dovehouse Mead say their homes have deteriorated and are falling into disrepair, but claim there is a lack of urgency from the council to fix anything because they are set to be demolished.
Imane Fardi told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “Because the council has accepted they’re demolishing the buildings, it’s like they’re accepting it to just let it be and not make any changes but that’s not right. Either move my family or continue maintaining the estate, you can’t leave my family here and not maintain the estate – it’s inhumane.”
A spokesperson for Barking and Dagenham Council said they were aware remaining residents have been waiting for a long time for the decant process and are grateful for their patience. They said Be First, the council’s wholly owned regeneration company is overseeing the programme and has been visiting residents to review their housing needs, including medical issues and outstanding repairs.
The spokesperson added they will then be visiting remaining residents to prioritise households for the rest of the programme, but are working through a number of constraints against critical housing demand “as quickly as possible”.
Imane’s family live in a block where less than half of the flats are occupied. According to the family, they first heard about decant plans around 15 years ago, but said over the years the plans kept on getting delayed and they have stopped getting updates.
‘It’s like the place is abandoned’
Residents told the LDRS that during the day, the estate is full of builders who are working on the regeneration and the new tower blocks next door however once they go home, it becomes desolate and is in constant darkness due to a lack of street lights which makes them feel unsafe.
Imane’s dad, Sallah Fardi, added: “The place is empty, our neighbours don’t live here any more, it’s like the place is abandoned. It’s scary to go outside, the more people it attracts, most of it is empty. At night it’s empty.”
Sallah told the LDRS on one occasion, his car was broken into with his steering wheel stolen. His wife, Mouna, said she and her son were the victims of an attempted burglary in February, which has left the whole family traumatised.
The family believe these incidents are becoming more common due to what they feel is a lack of police presence and security at night. Imane said: “The council is building up new flats right next to us while we’re being completely forgotten despite them saying we’re not. The estate is just being trashed even more as the days go by and my family are just expected to stay in this state?”
In recent weeks, Oban House, an abandoned tower block located next to Dovehouse Mead, has been the subject of multiple YouTube videos showing people entering and filming inside the building.
The Fardi family’s neighbour, Danielle Meere, told the LDRS she recently heard a loud crashing noise coming from the supposedly empty tower block. She said: “My partner and I heard it and we looked up, I said to him ‘there’s someone raiding the flats because they’re looking for anything like scraps and boilers’. It’s happening more and more.
“The ones that are totally empty, who’s going to be there to deter them or stop them? They were making a lot of noise, [we heard it] around late morning/midday so they obviously weren’t worried.”
Inspector Carroll Weeden, from Barking and Dagenham Policing Team, said: “The local neighbourhood police team is very aware of the current situation facing those that live at Dovehouse Mead and we are working with relevant partners to navigate through this time as best as we can. We continue to support the local community operationally, with regular police patrols in the area, as well as emotionally, by providing reassurance to those who need it.”
‘Growing up it was embarrassing’
Imane’s family told the LDRS they suffer from damp and mould issues which are so bad they have resorted to cleaning and painting everything themselves as they claim their complaints have been ignored by the council. In the past, Imane said her family’s furniture has turned black from mould, and their carpets and rugs have been found soaking wet due to condensation and damp.
Mouna goes through around “10 bottles of bleach a week” while Sallah is constantly painting over walls where damp patches have appeared. Imane, who now lives nearby, said: “Growing up it was embarrassing to bring anyone here, it felt like it was never truly home because nothing was perfect.
“No matter how much I painted the walls and added accessories to my bedroom, there was still damp everywhere, there was paint cracking, the place was just crumbling so it was always embarrassing for me growing up here.”
She went on to say: “All the flats in this building that are closed off are riddled with damp, insects and mould so all of that is just climbing up into the building and through my mum’s flat.”
Danielle also believes there are problems inside the vacant flats as she often hears a leak coming from one of the empty flats which “sounds like a waterfall”.
She said: “You can actually see it on the brickwork on the outside of the flat – I think it’s on what was once the bathroom in that flat. It sounds like a waterfall in there, the water is just flowing. It’s done it quite a lot, we’ve told the council about it and they know it’s empty but they’ve done nothing about it.”
‘It doesn’t shock me we’ve been left until last’
Danielle added: “It doesn’t shock me that we’ve been left until last and we’re not hearing anything. It doesn’t shock me whatsoever but it’s very, very frustrating – and that’s putting it nicely.
“I thought my kids would have to get the bus into school and potentially change school, but now my son will be 19 this year and my daughter is in college. It just shows how long it’s been, I was worried they may have to change secondary schools, this was all before they actually started secondary school.”
Nesil Caliskan, the Labour MP for Barking, said: “I continue to be concerned about the wellbeing of my constituents that remain on Dovehouse Mead. I share their frustration that the council have yet to provide a timeline for the decant of the block. I continue to lobby the council for a plan to rehouse these families, and am supporting the families to seek redress.”
‘We take mould concerns very seriously’
A council spokesperson said while they have no current reports of ASB, they take it very seriously and encourage residents to report any incidents to them and crime to police. They added: “We also take concerns around damp or mould seriously and we urge residents to report any issues to us. We can then arrange for a surveyor to visit to identify the root causes and to help resolve issues. We’ll continue to work closely with these households during this transition to support their needs.”
Insp. Weeden told the LDRS: “Our priority is to catch criminals and keep people safe, and it remains of utmost importance to the officers that police Dovehouse Mead. Rest assured, any crime reported to us will be investigated. Please speak to a local officer with any concerns you have, call 101 to report an offence, or call 999 in an emergency.”
Are you still living in the original Gascoigne Estate homes or did you used to live there? Get in touch with Ruby at [email protected]
