No apology, a last minute confession, massive pay rises - the housing bosses who failed Awaab Ishak.
Last April, Faisal Abdullah and Aisha Amin grieved for the loss of their 'happy, smiley' son. He had died, days after his second birthday, poisoned by the mould which caked the walls of his Rochdale home - mould which their landlords, Rochdale Boroughwide Housing , had failed to take responsibility for and fix.
Yet RBH has insisted that pay rises for its bosses are justified, telling us, last month, that 'executive pay and pensions are in line with pay for senior leadership teams within the social housing sector, reflecting the size of the organisation'. Four of those executives remain at RBH and benefitted from another pay hike the following financial year - coming into effect less than five months after Awaab's death. Those executives included Nadhia Khan, the housing association's director of customer and community, who oversees the team with responsibility for repairs and engaging with tenants in her role.
But it was only on the third day of Awaab's inquest - last Tuesday - that RBH publicly admitted any responsibility - and that admission came after two days of damning evidence and insight from leading experts which left them with little choice. Following six days of evidence at Rochdale Coroners Court, Ms Kearsley has said RBH should have acted to deal with the issue between July 2020 and the toddler's death on December 21 that year. She also found that ventilation at their home was 'not effective', and criticised the landlord's approach of blaming the family for the problem - insisting there was 'no evidence that the ways of living by the family were in any way excessive'.
"Due to an ongoing disrepair claim no remedial action was taken. Remedial works to treat and remove the existing mould should have been undertaken.
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