Councillor calls for review of RBH cold weather response

Date published: 11 January 2010

New Deputy Leader of the Council, Councillor Dale Mulgrew wants Rochdale Boroughwide Housing to review its performance into its response to the recent severe cold snap.

Councillor Mulgrew has written to the chairman of Rochdale Boroughwide Housing, Ian Agnew, stating his belief that more could have been done to help Council tenants.

Councillor Mulgrew has followed the developments on the Kirkholt Estate over the duration of the severe cold spell, and feels that the handling of the snow has not been as good as it should be. He said: "I spent a significant part of last weekend talking for a number of hours to some of the elderly who live in the bungalow communities around the Kirkholt Estate.

“The common complaint from many pensioners was that they had not seen any assistance activity in response to the heavy snowfall from the estate's management team in three weeks, leaving them stranded, or reliant on relatives and family members for snow clearance activity.

"I realise we have had extreme weather conditions, but many senior citizens that I spoke to suggested that this was the first time in years that they had not seen a response to snow from the Council or Rochdale Boroughwide Housing.

"These bungalow clusters are not sheltered housing blocks, but are occupied by older people who are able to continue to live independently - some of these bungalows are perched on very hilly terrain, with stairways that lead from the front door out onto steep embanking down to the road. With the snow and ice making pathways hazardous, there has been a feeling of helplessness from these communities, as it is too dangerous for them to venture out.”

Mr Mulgrew believes that emergency planning for communities should be part of the estate management function and in times of heavy snowfall there should be a focus on ensuring that housing and estate resources are used so that the elderly can have access out of their front door.