Awaab Ishak death: Board sacks boss at housing body that ran home where boy, 2, was killed by mould
The chief executive of the housing body which ran the home in which a toddler was killed by exposure to mould has been sacked.
A coroner ruled that Awaab Ishak died in December 2020 from a respiratory condition caused by mould in the one-bedroom flat managed by Rochdale Boroughwide Housing (RBH).
Its chief executive, Gareth Swarbrick, has now been removed after days of political pressure.
On Thursday, Mr Swarbrick apologised but said: “Having spoken to the board, I can confirm that I will not be resigning.”
Yet, on Saturday, the representative body chair and vice chair and the board of RBH said in a statement: “The board has taken the decision to remove Gareth Swarbrick from his post as chief executive of RBH with immediate effect.
“We will now work to appoint an external interim chief executive.”
RBH said its “original instincts” were to keep Mr Swarbrick in post in order to “see the organisation through this difficult period and to make the necessary changes”.
However, the board now recognises this is “no longer tenable”.
“As an organisation we are deeply sorry for the death of Awaab and devastated that it happened in one of our homes,” the statement continued.
“We must ensure this can never happen again.
“His death needs to be a wake-up call for everyone in housing, social care and health.”
The coroner noted RBH had made changes in the wake of the tragedy.
“Under new leadership RBH will continue to embed these changes and to continue to drive further improvements to our homes and to our communications with tenants,” the statement said.
RBH vowed to share lessons about the health impact of damp, condensation and mould with the social housing sector and to support sector-wide changes.”
“We will work with other agencies local and national and with central government in implementing the wider changes recommended to them by the coroner.
“We support the Coroner and Housing Ombudsman’s call for the government’s Decent Homes Standard to be strengthened to include damp and mould.
“There will be no further statement at this time.”
‘Defining moment for the housing sector’
Awabb’s death, two days after his second birthday, was caused by “extensive” mould in his family’s flat, a coroner concluded – describing the case as a “defining moment for the housing sector”.
Describing the property, coroner Joanna Kearsley said it was “not equipped for normal day to day living activities, which led to damp and condensation.”
Ms Kearsley said: “How does this happen? How in the UK 2020 does a two-year-old child die due to exposure to mould?
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The chief executive of Rochdale Boroughwide Housing said he would not step down following the boy’s death.
“The issue is not simply a Rochdale problem, nor is damp and mould simply a social housing problem, it is a significant issue in private sector too.
“There is little doubt the tragic death of Awabb Ishak will and should be a defining moment for the housing sector.”
Family accusations of racism
Awabb’s family have accused RBH of racism – insisting they have “no doubt at all” they were treated this way “because we are not from this country”.
They said: “Rochdale Boroughwide Housing we have a message for you – stop discriminating, stop being racist, stop providing unfair treatment to people coming from abroad who are refugees or asylum seekers, stop housing people in homes you know are unfit for human habitation.”
Awaab Ishak’s father Faisal Abdullah, counsel for the family Christian Weaver, solicitor Kelly Darlington and Awaab’s mother Aisha Amin (second right) outside Rochdale Coroner’s Court
Mr Swarbrick said he was “truly devastated” about the tragedy and “the things we got wrong”.
Addressing racism accusations, he added: “As a community owned organisation we support the diverse communities of Rochdale.
“We are proud of the work we do with all our tenants.”
The housing ombudsman is now investigating more mould complaints after the conclusion of the inquest.
Specialist search teams, police dogs and divers have been dispatched to find two sisters who vanished in Aberdeen three days ago.
Eliza and Henrietta Huszti, both 32, were last seen on CCTV in the city’s Market Street at Victoria Bridge at about 2.12am on Tuesday.
The siblings were captured crossing the bridge and turning right onto a footpath next to the River Dee in the direction of Aberdeen Boat Club.
Henrietta Huszti. Pic: Police Scotland
Eliza Huszti. Pic: Police Scotland
Police Scotland has launched a major search and said it is carrying out “extensive inquires” in an effort to find the women.
Chief Inspector Darren Bruce said: “Local officers, led by specialist search advisors, are being assisted by resources including police dogs and our marine unit.”
Aberdeenshire Drone Services told Sky News it has offered to help in the search and is waiting to hear back from Police Scotland.
CCTV of the sisters. Pic: Police Scotland
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The sisters, from Aberdeen city centre, are described as slim with long brown hair.
Police said the Torry side of Victoria Bridge where the sisters were last seen contains many commercial and industrial units, with searches taking place in the vicinity.
The force urged businesses in and around the South Esplanade and Menzies Road area to review CCTV footage recorded in the early hours of Tuesday in case it captured anything of significance.
Drivers with relevant dashcam footage are also urged to come forward.
CI Bruce added: “We are continuing to speak to people who know Eliza and Henrietta and we urge anyone who has seen them or who has any information regarding their whereabouts to please contact 101.”
Glasgow has been a city crying out for solutions to a devastating drugs epidemic that is ravaging people hooked on deadly narcotics.
We have spent time with vulnerable addicts in recent months and witnessed first-hand the dirty, dangerous street corners and back alleys where they would inject their £10 heroin hit, not knowing – or, in many cases, not caring – whether that would be the moment they die.
“Dying would be better than this life,” one man told me.
It was a grim insight into the daily reality of life in the capital of Europe’s drug death crisis.
Scotland has a stubborn addiction to substances spanning generations. Politicians of all persuasions have failed to properly get a grip of the emergency.
But there is a new concept in town.
From Monday, a taxpayer-funded unit is allowing addicts to bring their own heroin and cocaine and inject it while NHS medical teams supervise.
A dirty needle thrown less than 100 metres from the new injection centre
It may be a UK-first but it is a regular feature in some other major European cities that have claimed high success rates in saving lives.
Glasgow has looked on with envy at these other models.
One supermarket car park less than a hundred metres from this new facility is a perfect illustration of the problem. An area littered with dirty needles and paraphernalia. A minefield where one wrong step risks contracting a nasty disease.
Drugs paraphernalia in a supermarket car park in Glasgow, near the new facility
It is estimated hundreds of users inject heroin in public places in Glasgow every week. HIV has been rife.
The new building, which will be open from 9am until 9pm 365 days a year, includes bays where clean needles are provided as part of a persuasive tactic to lure addicts indoors in a controlled environment.
There is a welcome area where people will check in before being invited into one of eight bays. The room is clinical, covered in mirrors, with a row of small medical bins.
Clean needles are provided to lure addicts to inject in a controlled environment
There are eight bays users can inject in
We were shown the aftercare area where users will relax after their hit in the company of housing and social workers.
The idea is controversial and not cheap – £2.3m has been ring-fenced every year.
The aftercare area
Read more: ‘Dying would be better than my £1,000 a month heroin addiction’
Authorities in the city first floated a ‘safer drug consumption room’ in 2016. It failed to get off the ground as the UK Home Office under the Conservatives said they would not allow people to break the law to feed habits.
The usual wrangle between Edinburgh and London continued for years with Downing Street suggesting Scotland could, if it wanted, use its discretion to allow these injecting rooms to go ahead.
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The stalemate ended when Scotland’s most senior prosecutor issued a landmark decision that it would not be in the public interest to arrest those using such a facility.
One expert has told me this new concept is unlikely to lead to an overall reduction in deaths across Scotland. Another described it as an expensive vanity project. Supporters clearly disagree.
The question is what does success look like?
The big test will be if there is a spike in crime around the building and how it will work alongside law enforcement given drug dealers know exactly where to find their clients now.
It is not disputed this is a radical approach – and other cities across Britain will be watching closely.
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