Brighton mum's kitchen scaffolding hell as ceiling crumbles

Veronica Finnegan, of Lichfield Court, Whitehawk, has slammed the council for ignoring her numerous pleas for help after noticing the initial crack in her kitchen ceiling last November.

The mum-of-two says that after months of phone calls, Brighton and Hove City Council fitted scaffolding in February to secure the room, but that she has been unable to fully open her oven door to cook for her young children since.

Veronica said she feels the city council 'don't care' about fixing her home (Image: The Argus)

And as Veronica’s battle for her children’s safety continues, there are now concerns the crumbling ceiling contains asbestos.

“The council simply don’t care,” she said.

“The crack was very thin when we first reported it to the council, who said they would do something about it, but they never did.

“It was getting wider two weeks later and they said they would 'be the judge' of whether it was dangerous when I said it could collapse. It was getting bigger, and they then said they would send someone out.

The kitchen ceiling is held up with scaffolding (Image: The Argus)

“Then there was the issue of asbestos. I was told there wasn’t any, then they called me back and told me there was and to close the kitchen door. This carried on and we still have no idea if it’s safe to be in there – I have two children.

“There’s still scaffolding in the kitchen holding the ceiling up a month later. I can’t open the oven door, and I can't get into the cupboards with all my plates in. I am in a small flat with two children.”

Veronica said Mould and damp also plagues her flat, which she believes is the reason her son has had a cold “for nine months”.

Veronica has been unable to fully open the door on her oven (Image: The Argus)

“You hear about the child who died, and I worry for the safety of my children. My son has had a cold for months now,” she said.

“I can’t put anything against the wall in the living room because it’s damp. They don’t care. They say the delays are because of Covid but that was three years ago.

“It’s just so stressful trying to get everything organised for the children. I have reported it so many times.”

Veronica said she believes the damp in her living room is due to an external pipe which runs next to the affected area.

Scaffolding and wooden beams support the crumbling kitchen ceiling (Image: The Argus)

The city council has now apologised for the way it is handling the situation.

“Our repairs team visited Ms Finnegan’s property in July 2021 after damp was reported in the lounge. We carried out a full fungicidal washdown of the area affected and decorated with a mould inhibiting paint,” said a city council spokesman.

Mould in the living room of Veronica's home (Image: The Argus)

“In February 2022, we visited the property again on an unrelated repair request. During this visit we were made aware of a further small area of mould growth in the lounge.

“We thought this related to a historical leaking external rainwater downpipe that had recently been repaired during external renovations.

“We advised the tenant to clean down the surface mould with a damp cloth and contact us in the case of any reoccurrence.

READ MORE: Father of boy who died after exposure to mould welcomes law to tackle damp homes

“With regards the kitchen ceiling, we visited the property as an emergency out of hours call. We found that urgent action was required to make the ceiling safe.

“One the same day, the ceiling was propped, and the kitchen light fitting made safe. We then asked contractors to quote for the necessary repairs. We phoned Ms Finnegan in early February to let her know this.”

After The Argus contacted the council, contractors will now visit Veronica’s home to begin repairs on Monday, March 13.

“We acknowledge that we could have done more to keep the tenant updated on the works being planned and we would like to apologise for this,” the spokesman said.