"It's just so cold for them": Elderly residents at sheltered housing in Northampton left without heating

"I am just really worried, not just for my dad but for everyone. It's just so cold for them"
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A daughter of an 84-year-old Northampton resident staying at Simon de Senlis Court sheltered housing in Roberts Street in the town centre has complained about the broken boiler at the site.

Juliette Maher, from Market Harborough, said she speaks to her dad everyday and for the last 10 days the boiler has been broken, leaving residents feeling the cold.

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She said: "I speak to him everyday, it's been like this for at least 10 days. People have come out and had a look at the boiler but nothing has been done.

Simon de Senlis Court is located in Roberts Road opposite The Hope CentreSimon de Senlis Court is located in Roberts Road opposite The Hope Centre
Simon de Senlis Court is located in Roberts Road opposite The Hope Centre

"The residents pay a high rent being there and part of the bill is heating. Residents are using temporary heaters for now but now their bills are going up. We had the same issue last winter.

"The excuse Hyde Housing is giving residents is because of Covid they can't come in and repair it. There's a 92 year-old who has just come out of hospital and she has no heating. It is just really poor, really poor.

"My dad doesn't feel the cold but he said he was freezing the other night. The whole place is just cold. The last thing you want with how things are at the moment is to be taken to hospital. I am just really worried, not just for my dad but for everyone. It's just so cold for them."

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This newspaper got in touch with the accommodation's owners, the Hyde Group, for a response.

The company's director of property services Mark Batchelor said some of the boiler system has been repaired.

Mr Batchelor said: “We are sorry that there has been a problem with the heating at the scheme again, especially during this cold spell. On Friday, we have been able to restore the system to around 70 per cent of full capacity and ensured that everyone in the building has heating.

"We have also delivered heating fans to everyone in case there are any further problems. We are expecting parts to fully repair the boiler next week and will do all we can to make the system fully operational as soon as possible. It is increasingly difficult to get parts so we are looking at replacing the whole system this year."