ARMY families say they are making about 1,000 complaints a week over poor
service from the private firm charged with maintaining and repairing their
homes.
And nearly 7,500 people have signed a petition calling for contractor
CarillionAmey to be stripped of its multi-billion pound MoD deal.
A Sun probe has found families living in squalid and unsafe housing — where
problems included months without cookers, no running water and holes in the
ceilings.
Lance Corporal Christopher Chell said his family had to stay in a
“disgusting” home full of black mould — even though his ten-year-old son has
cancer.
News of the troubles comes weeks after The Sun exposed joint venture group
Carillion- Amey
for failing to fix dirty water and broken heating at the UK’s top rehab
centre for war wounded, Headley Court.
In 2014 the Army Families Federation was contacted 2,808 times over
accommodation issues –— a 23 per cent increase on 2013.
Last year the number almost doubled with 2,552 families contacting the
AFF about housing issues from January to June alone.
Catherine Spencer, chief exec of the Federation — an independent group
representing the needs of Army families — said in its latest report:
“Housing has persistently been top of families’ concerns. 2015 has seen
significant issues with the new CarillionAmey (CA) contract.”
Defence Secretary Michael Fallon vowed to look immediately into The Sun’s
dossier showing how thousands of heroes and their families are being let
down.
He said: “I am deeply concerned by these reports and want them looked into as
a matter of urgency. It is simply unacceptable that our brave service
personnel and their families — who offer this country so much — have to put
up with such poor service.
“I’m going to call in the chief executives of CarillionAmey to identify what
can be done to improve this as soon as possible.”
L/Cpl Chell blasted the way his family have been forced to live.
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Son Kyle, who has been fighting cancer for three years, suffered two fungal
lung infections and pneumonia while at the mould-covered council house
assigned to the family in Exmouth, Devon.
Married dad-of-five Christopher, 35 — who is in the medical corps — said: “By
his bed and all up the side wall was black mould. It was disgusting and
right where he was breathing.” The family were eventually moved to a new
property in Aldershot, Hants. But Christopher added: “It took far too long.”
Wives, husbands and partners of Our Boys and Girls — sick of the shoddy
service — signed the petition urging Mr Fallon to act.
It reads: “Why is it that the MoD employed a company like CarillionAmey to
maintain the accommodation of service personnel?
“CarillionAmey are not being held accountable for their mistakes and are not
upholding the contract they signed with the MoD.”
An MoD spokesman said: “Service accommodation is a matter of huge importance
to the MoD and it is not acceptable that CarillionAmey’s performance has
fallen short of our expectations.”
Carillion alone boasts annual revenues topping £4billion, according to its
latest figures.
Richard Howson, chief executive of Carillion Group, has a £1.1million property
in Skipton, North Yorks, and a salary, bonus and pension deal topping £1.2m
a year.
CarillionAmey managing director Daniel Easthope said: “We do not underestimate
the challenges of this work and where there have been problems we are
working hard to address them.”
House is full of rats
A MUM whose husband is a Marines colour sergeant claims their pad is still
rickety and rat-infested despite hundreds of calls to CarillionAmey.
Liz Phoenix also says a bust boiler made it so cold when they moved in in
December 2014, they had to get a hotel. It was not fixed for weeks.
The mum of four ins-ists the firm has made just 15 repairs to their pad in
Uxbridge, West London, despite visiting 110 times in a year.
Liz, 46, now taking legal action, added: “They don’t give a damn about service
families.”
Made sick by mould
A SOLDIER was medically downgraded at work after he became ill due to an
infestation of black mould in their home, his wife claims.
She says CarillionAmey dismissed hundreds of calls, suggesting they just “open
a window” or wash it with bleach.
The angry woman, who asked not to be named, said: “The spores got so bad that
my husband and I started to have chest problems.”
The firm finally moved them from the two-bed flat at Marchwood Military Port,
Hants, after 18 months’ complaints.
Pad is so bad I quit
A ROYAL Fusilier insists he is leaving the military after a health visitor
warned his mouldy Army home was too dangerous for his newborn son.
The man, who has served for almost ten years, said: “It is not safe to live
here any more. I have to do what is right for my family.”
His wife, 28, added: “My son has been sick a few times. There was mould all
the way up the walls of his room.”
But she says CarillionAmey has done nothing despite 18 months of complaints
about the home in Salisbury, Wilts.