Anshul Bandal says residents in Ada Lewis House should have the option to install air-conditioning

NEIGHBOURS in a housing association block of flats have warned of the “unliveable” conditions as temperatures soar.

Residents in Ada Lewis House, just off Camden Road, told the Tribune this week of mass purchases of fans and sleepless nights as they struggle to keep cool.

Their homes, which were finished seven years ago, are “completely unsuitable” for the heat.

“It’s completely mad”, said Lisa Turley, who was one of the first residents to move in.

“Any new housing should have air-con in it, because they know that this is going to be a problem. I’m a diabetic so we’re more prone to getting dehydrated and the temperatures inside just become dangerous.

“My kids go over the road to the shop where there is air-con and just stand there. They can’t even shut their bedroom door because it’s too hot. We’ve got ceiling fans which you attach to the lights. We’re not cooking because as soon as you put the cooker on, it’s unliveable.”

Another resident, Anshul Bandal, said that over the past three or four summers the heat had become “unbearable”.

He and his partner have invested in four fans for their rooms but are worried about staying in the flat in the future without the ability to put in an air-conditioning unit.

“I think we should absolutely have the optionality to install air-con for new-builds”, he said. “My partner and I have spoken about if we decide to stay here for another five years, especially if we have kids, if we can install air-con and I’m pretty sure we cannot.”

Temperatures in Islington hit 34 degrees this week, the hottest ever for a day in May, leaving many sweltering inside.

Lisa Turley, one of the first residents to move in, says she doesn’t use her oven in the hot weather

The majority of buildings in London suffer from poor insulation, and even for new-builds, developers normally focus on ensuring they are warm in the winter.

“It’s like living in an oven”, said Fran, who did not wish to give her last name. “100 per cent the developers should be thinking about this. I feel like the UK is really far behind. In public buildings we have air-con, but where people are living, they just don’t think about it. It was not thought about when they built this building, or if it was thought about, they decided it was too expensive.

“Because we are leaseholders, we don’t own the building, so we can’t do any works on the external parts, which is what you would have to do to have air-conditioning.”

Councillor Jackson Caines, the Green Party’s housing spokesperson, said: “Higher temperatures are here to stay, and developers must adapt their building designs to ensure residents are not living in unbearable over-heated homes.

“New housing should include good ventilation with a through-flow of air to cool rooms.

“We know over-heating is already a problem that particularly affects babies, older people and poorer residents, and we have concerns that new developments in Islington like Holloway Park are not being designed to optimise ventilation.”

A Southern Housing spokesperson said: “Ada Lewis House was des­igned and built to meet all relevant building regulations. It includes a range of design features intended to limit heat build-up. These include dual aspect homes to support cross ventilation, mechanical ventilation systems and high perfor­mance window glazing to reduce solar gain.

“However, periods of extreme heat, such as those experienced this week, can still result in higher internal temperatures.

“We’re currently rev­iew­ing requests from some residents to install air conditioning. No decision has been made yet and we’re continuing to look at these requests in line with the lease and building safety require­ments. This process is in place to ensure any alterations are carried out safely and don’t impact the building or neighbouring homes.”