Glen Brown in his flat

A VICTIM of the Islington care homes abuse scandal is to take the council to court over the poor state of his flat.

Glen Brown, who lives on the Andover Estate in Finsbury Park, has been left without flooring due to flooding in his flat, which has also caused severe condensation and mould.

The flooring was removed by the council in May 2021 but still has not been replaced. He sent an email to the council to escalate his complaints.

Almost exactly a year later, he received a reply saying that according to Town Hall records, repair works were finished. In the same email, Mr Brown says he was offered substandard replacement flooring.

Mr Brown, 53, who works in construction and has lived in his flat for 24 years, said: “I came home from work one day and the whole place was flooded. I cleaned it up with towels, which was treacherous work. I reported it to the council and they stalled.”

He added: “It took three months to come in and deal with my flooring, they just left me in that condition. They never paid for me to go to a hotel or whatever. We are filing for court proceedings, because I’m still in the same situation as I’ve been for 19 months with no flooring.”

The water from the persistent floods has soaked into his walls, leaving him with severe condensation and mould.

“There’s even mould on the jacket hung on the back of my door and the walls are leaking water. It’s like a domino effect,” said Mr Brown, who keeps most of his belongings in boxes to protect them from the damp.

“It’s ruined so much of my stuff. I have pool cues belonging to my dad, and those are ruined. I’ve had to take time off because the damp and mould made me ill. But then I’m in this flat, which is the environment that made me ill in the first place. And I can’t bring anyone here because it’s not a good environment for me to live in.”

Mr Brown also suffers from several health issues, including asthma and chronic rhinitis, which the mould and damp aggravates. His mental health has also suffered due to the state of his home.  He was a victim of the abuse in the Islington care homes scandal as a child and now feels the council is just laying on more misery.

“If this is how they treat a child of historical abuse, then what does that say?” he said.

“I’m assertive. I know what I’m doing. Imagine how many people there are in these blocks who are struggling so badly, who’ve got worse conditions [than me], with mould all over the bloody place?

“I’m only speaking out, not so much for me, but for those other people out there who are struggling. Maybe they’ll read the story and say to themselves: ‘well, you know what, if he did it, I can do it.’”

He added: “For two years I’ve followed [the complaints] protocol. I haven’t gotten mad with anyone. I’ve actually talked to all of them properly, and they just do things in their own time and when they want to, and if they’re pushed – they have to have their backs against the wall before something happens.”

Islington Council has publicly apologised for the council’s past failure to protect vulnerable children in its children’s homes in the 1970s and 80s, which has been described as the worst chapter in the council’s history.

The Town Hall’s housing chief Councillor Una O’Halloran said: “We want everyone to have a secure and decent place to live. “We will keep working with Mr Brown to resolve the flooring issue, and would like to visit again to further investigate the damp and mould.”