‘Tower of nightmares’: Woman, 81, exhausted by decades of ‘rolling disrepair’ in 22-storey block
An 81-year old woman who has lived in a 22-storey tower block for more than 30 years says she is exhausted after decades of “rolling disrepair”.
Jay Allen is a resident of Rundell Tower in Clapham Road, Stockwell, which is managed by Lambeth council.
She describes her home as “the tower of nightmares” and says successive issues with leaks, damp and mould have made the building “uninhabitable”.
Ms Allen said: “We are paying rent to be inconvenienced. Many of the flats on the tower have leaks from the ceiling.
“It is so bad, a tenant on the 17th floor has had to put a bucket to catch the leaks in her lounge.”
Three months ago, in December 2024, a leak broke out in the top floor of the tower causing water to travel down the building through floors and ductwork.
Ms Allen said: “Because the waste pipe’s duct was also flooded, it created a stench from dust and dirt in the utility duct.
“Then there was an infestation of small black flies that came out from the waste pipe ducting crawling through the cracks and holes in the toilet back panelling.”
A spokesman from Lambeth council said its contractors are investigating the problem and working to trace the leak.
He said: “It is always challenging to firstly trace the cause of the leak and then identify the actual location, which is often behind panels and units and not always visible.
“Access to apartments above the affected property can also be difficult, particularly during working hours. As a responsible landlord, the council will always make every effort to deal with water leaks of this nature as quickly as possible.”
For Ms Allen, the leak is the latest in a series of disrepair complaints including damp, mould, leaks and flooding in her flat, which she has raised with the council since 1991.
A letter sent to Ms Allen from Lambeth council dated May 25, 2004, shows a surveyor notifying residents of their need to access 11 of the tower’s flats to repair leaks.
The letter states “most properties” on Ms Allen’s wing of the tower “have been affected by the leak”.
A year later in 2005, former Liberal Democrat cllr for Stockwell Anthony Bottrall, wrote to the council regarding the condition of Ms Allen’s flat.
The letter states: “There has been a long history of water penetration into Ms Allen’s flat from the storey above.
“Housing failure to deal conclusively with the damp problems in this flat over a period of 10 years or more is most depressing.”
Ms Allen says the “decaying” tower must be fully refurbished to avoid future leaks and disrepair.
She said: “The council has wasted so much money through incompetence and inefficiency.”
A Lambeth council spokesman said its priority is to ensure each of its 33,000 council homes are safe and well-maintained for residents and it is committed to dealing with reported problems quickly and effectively.
He said: “Despite reductions in Government funding over recent years, Lambeth has invested hundreds of millions of pounds in improving our council homes and estates. We have also awarded 10 repair and maintenance contracts to new providers as part of our drive to improve standards and services for council tenants.”
Pictured top: The Rundell Tower in Clapham Road, Stockwell (Picture: Google street View)