Wandsworth Council is throwing money at its housing problems, particularly over damp and mould, but recent responses given in oversight committee meetings point to ongoing culture and attitude problems. Here are five damning takeaways that show how badly Wandsworth is failing its tenants — and why the council can no longer hide behind excuses.
1. How big is the problem?
| April 2023 – March 2024 (most recent summary) | Wandsworth total | Of which: leaks / damp / mould |
|---|---|---|
| Ombudsman decisions | 74 | 10 |
| Findings of maladministration or severe maladministration | 29 (39 %) | 5 (50 %) |
| Compensation ordered* | £15,750 | £9,875 tied to “property condition” cases |
* excludes rent refunds/credits.
Wandsworth’s maladministration rate on complaints-handling is even higher: 87 %, against a national 84 % for councils.
“Property condition” (repairs, damp, mould) is the single-largest source of complaints: 37 cases in the year, with a maladministration rate of 62 %.
2. What tenants experience on the ground
| Case | Delay to fix main defect | Compensation / rent credit | Ombudsman verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| 202317965 Pregnant tenant sleeping in her car | 17 months (Sept 2022 → Feb 2024 internal works) | £2,000 + £2,500 rent credit | Severe maladministration (repairs) and maladministration (records) |
| 202305918 26 leaks in 7 years | 6 months to inspect damage; underlying pipe unchecked for years | £375 (+ £100 already paid) | Maladministration (repairs & complaint-handling) |
| 202309321 Nine-month wait for mould wash | 9 months (Jan → Oct 2023) | £200 | Maladministration (repairs) + £75 for complaint delays |
| 202400314 Cracked-window case | 9 months (Oct 2022 → July 2023) | £250 | Maladministration (repairs & complaint-handling) |
Patterns across the files:
Token redress: most payouts sit at £100-£400, well below what residents spend on ruined possessions or extra heating.
Long waits: emergency leaks often stretch into half-year sagas; a basic window re-glaze took nine months.
Resident “blame”: officers repeatedly advise tenants to “open windows” or “wipe condensation” instead of tackling structural faults, a practice the Ombudsman warned against in its 2021 Spotlight on Damp & Mould report.
Vulnerability ignored: pregnancy, disability and medical notes seldom trigger swifter action or temporary decants.
3. Two special reports – and still counting
The Ombudsman has now issued two “special reports” on Wandsworth in 18 months, an escalation reserved for landlords with repeated serious failings. Each report [pdf] highlights the same themes:
- Slow diagnosis of leaks and damp.
- Poor record-keeping (missing surveys, lost photos, unlogged complaints).
- A culture of minimising problems and asking residents to prove they are not at fault.
The latest landlord-performance dashboard [pdf] shows Wandsworth’s maladministration rate (65 %) is only marginally better than the national average for big councils — hardly the success the authority claims.
4. What the council says — and what the numbers show
| Council line | Data reality |
|---|---|
| “We fix emergencies the same day.” | Four-day gap before repairing a split waste pipe. Two weeks to fix waste water leak just last month. |
| “Aggressive Ombudsman stance.” | Only 3 % of orders were overdue; 97 % complied within three months. The failings are Wandsworth’s own. |
| “Lawyers are whipping up claims.” | Tenants waited 6-17 months for basic repairs before seeking help; a majority had no-win-no-fee representation only after council delays. |
| “We’re doing all we can.” | 50 % of recent damp/mould decisions still end in maladministration; cabinet members have yet to publish a plan that meets the Ombudsman’s recommended timetables. |
5. What needs to change
- Admit the scale: stop questioning Ombudsman findings and approach, stop blaming lawyers for inaction, and publish a quarterly leak-and-damp dashboard.
- Front-load inspections: burst pipes, waste stacks and roof leaks should trigger same-week specialist surveys, not months of “watch and wait.”
- Prioritise the vulnerable: pregnancy, disability and long-term illness must prompt automatic consideration of decant or hotel moves.
- Tie pay and career progression to compliance: link managers’ jobs and salaries to cutting the maladministration rate on property condition below 30 %.
Until those steps are taken, the numbers — and the human stories behind them — will keep climbing. Wandsworth’s residents have waited long enough.
