My rotting & mouldy house nearly killed my baby – now housing association want to charge me £600 a MONTH to fix it
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A DAD’S rotting and mouldy home nearly killed his baby - and the housing association wants to charge him £600 a month to fix it. Fuming Rhys Nicol said his three-month-old son Azair was so sick he was “throwing up green”. The tot was then diagnosed with Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) - a potentially fatal chest infection.
![[A young father holding his baby son.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/2025-nintchdbjobs000001104261-rhys-nicol-18-962596917.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
Dad-of-one Rhys, 18, said his home in Attleborough, Norfolk, is so mouldy the windowsills and walls are covered in “blacky-green fur and spots” and the bathroom has “red dots” all over it. However, his biggest concern was finding his baby’s mattress and nursery were “smothered” in mould.
![[Moldy baby crib mattress.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/now-housing-association-want-charge-962582697.jpg?strip=all&w=720)
"The mould patch was bigger than my baby," he told the Sun. Rhys says he requested a dehumidifier from housing association Places for People twice between October and December to no avail. “I sent them evidence of my 83 per cent humidity levels but I never got anything,” he explained.
![[A young man holding his baby son.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/2025-nintchdbjobs000001104261-rhys-nicol-18-962596907.jpg?strip=all&w=640)
Rhys then forked out £700 to buy a dehumidifier and air purifier himself. "I’m pulling 24 litres of water a day and we’ve lost 2 grand worth of stuff," said the young dad. The family have now been moved to temporary accommodation an hour away in Cromer, Norfolk, while they wait for the housing association to solve the problem.
![[Mold growing in the corner of a window frame.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/now-housing-association-want-charge-962582587.jpg?strip=all&w=720)
It meant they spent Christmas away from loved ones. He added: "It was the first one my mum would have spent with her grandson.". Rhys informed the housing association he had contacted his local MP George Freeman - and told them he wanted to move. He said they responded by eventually giving him two dehumidifiers.
![[Dirty bathroom sink with mold.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/now-housing-association-want-charge-962582673.jpg?strip=all&w=720)
