Blackpool's rogue landlords could be hit where it hurts over mould and dangerous homes
Plus - what's going on at Bispham High School, an e-bike fire at a skip and our recommendations for the week ahead
Hello to all those who subscribe to The Blackpool Lead and welcome to our first ever Sunday edition.
As a reminder to everyone, you will now receive The Blackpool Lead twice per week with the Sunday edition including our curated recommendations for the week ahead as a bonus for paying subscribers.
We rely on paying subscribers to keep this wheel turning but we want to keep as much of our in-depth journalism as possible free to access so it can have the biggest impact possible.
Before we start - a quick note to say Labour took an extra seat on Blackpool Council with victory in a by-election in Bispham. It was close, with Reform just 12 votes from a win. More on that here.
Today we focus on an issue that has rarely been far from our minds since we first launched The Blackpool Lead - problematic housing.
A housing enforcement project found 500 properties in Blackpool would not meet the Decent Homes Standard with many suffering from mould or damp.
Earlier this year we told Jade’s story - her children were living in a property riddled with black mould and noted that - even if it wasn’t - she wouldn’t want them going up the sodden stairs to get there.
She didn’t feel safe in her home - and her family-of-five were confined to one room.
Or Michelle’s story, she believes she contracted pneumonia as a result of the damp and mould in her privately rented home.
She told The Blackpool Lead at the time:
“I’ve had a leak into the front lounge from the bathroom, which has been ongoing for years. The damp is so bad in my kitchen I can’t cook in there, I have to make food on a camping table in the hallway.
“I have a paper trail of evidence, but when I raise it, I get nothing back. I just get arrogant comments saying that I am damaging the house. It’s just horrendous.”
But we could see at least some positive change on the matter starting from Monday.
Rogue landlords in Blackpool could face fines of up to £30,000 in future if they fail to provide adequate housing for their tenants.
Blackpool Council is set to introduce the fines as a civil penalty which would replace the current system whereby bad landlords are prosecuted through the courts.
The council’s executive committee is being recommended to agree to the new enforcement approach when it meets on Monday November 11.
Local housing authorities have had the power to impose civil penalties since April 2017, with fines potentially rising to £30,000 depending on the severity of the offence.
Fines can be imposed on individuals and organisations, acting as or on behalf of private sector landlords as an alternative to prosecution for certain offences under the Housing Act 2004. Rent Repayment Orders have also been extended to cover a wider range of offences.
A report to the executive says: “Blackpool’s intelligence led, targeted approach to housing enforcement means the council is well placed to competently detect and investigate possible offences and, where appropriate, impose a civil penalty as an alternative to prosecution.”
Situations where a fine could be imposed include failure to comply with an improvement notice, mismanagement of accommodation which is licensed as a HMO (housing in multiple occupation) and overcrowding.
All fines collected must be retained by the council and ring fenced for use by the housing enforcement team.
A £1.2m housing enforcement project in Blackpool recently found 500 properties in Blackpool would not meet the Decent Homes Standard with many suffering from mould or damp.
A scrutiny committee report published in July this year said 679 initial inspections were carried out as part of the project, and of those 454 inspections identified at least one Category 1 hazard, while in total there were 792 Category 1 hazards identified. Category 1 hazards include serious mould or damp, or issues such as dangerous stairs or electrical equipment.
The council has received £90m of government funding towards tackling poor housing conditions in inner areas where former holiday accommodation has been converted to permanent homes that are of poor quality.
Consultation is currently taking place into the project with the first phase due to focus on areas between Chapel Street and Rigby Road to Park Road, and the Promenade and Central Drive corridor, which form some of Blackpool’s most deprived areas.
Bispham school site finally brought into use 10 years after closure
It was a place of learning for many years, but 10 years after its closure the site of the former Bispham High School is now being transformed for 21st century living.
Developer Rowland Homes is now underway with building 200 houses on the land on Bispham Road after securing planning permission in November 2023.
The scheme, which is called Royal Gardens, is made up of 87 three-bedroom homes, 73 four-bedroom homes and 40 two-bedroom homes, with the latter designated as affordable housing.
There are 56 homes earmarked for land north of existing housing at Regency Gardens, 42 homes for the south of the existing housing fronting Lorne Road and Headfort Close and 102 homes for the eastern part of the site, accessed from Bispham Road apart from six fronting onto Kylemore Avenue.
Tip fire triggered by e-bike battery sparks warning to residents
People are being urged to ensure they dispose of batteries responsibly after an e-bike sparked a blaze which closed down Blackpool’s tip.
Thick black smoke billowed from the Bristol Avenue Household Waste Recycling Centre in Bispham after flames broke out in one of the skips at around 2pm on Tuesday (November 5).
Crews from Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service extinguished the fire using foam and were at the scene for three hours. They returned later that night after the fire reignited at about 10pm to put it out again.
Paul Preston, site manager for Enveco which operates the tip for Blackpool Council, said thankfully no-one was hurt as a result of the blaze, with all staff and members of the public quickly evacuated.
He is warning people to take more care when disposing of batteries, especially lithium ion batteries found in e-scooters and e-bikes, which if they catch fire are difficult to extinguish.
A tale of two images - fireworks and AI
Bonfire night - and the fireworks that come with it - is always a time for brilliant photography but there’s nowhere that’s more true than in Blackpool.
Special kudos to Lisa Pool for such a special image captured this week.
But looking instead at the more nightmare-inducing, one reader sent us this manifestation of pain generated by AI in response to the idea of a Blackpool arena being in the news last week.
We reported on the quotes from Chris Webb but they come with the caveat that those plans don’t really exist at the moment. This is nothing more than an idea. However, one thing we can be confident of, is that it won’t look like this.
It will be interesting to see what discussion takes place over the next few months. It’s not just Blackpool that lacks an arena - but Lancashire as a whole (for the purposes of this point, Liverpool and Manchester do not count).
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to The Blackpool Lead to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.