THE PROBLEM of homes plagued by mould and overcrowding in Reading is being worsened by the lack of new housing stock in the area, the town’s council leader has said.

An insight into how the council aims to tackle the issue of overcrowding and mould proliferation at homes in Reading has been addressed by council leader Jason Brock.

Case studies covered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) have revealed a problem of overcrowding and mould in many homes in Reading.

Earlier this year, the LDRS spoke with the Boateng family, made up of a couple and their five children, who are sharing a two bedroom home in Newcastle Road.

The LDRS also spoke with a dad who lives with his wife and six children in Brackstone Close, Caversham.

In both cases, the homes were badly afflicted with mould.

READ MORE: Dad complains about mould and overcrowding as eight share a two bed Reading home

The LDRS confronted Jason Brock (Labour, Southcote) the leader of the Reading Borough Council, asking what it is doing to tackle the widespread issue.

Councillor Brock said: “Let’s be entirely clear, there is a national housing crisis. And it is felt very acutely in areas like Reading and we have a housing waiting list that is far longer than we are going to be able to readily accommodate.

“So it’s absolutely imperative that we deliver more council homes and we’ve got 400 in the pipeline.

“And we’re looking to increase those numbers and it’s imperative that we deliver more affordable homes by whatever other mechanisms, housing associations, contributions on private developments, and so on, so that we are able to offer as many people as possible, a safe, secure, affordable family home here in Reading.”

READ MORE: Mum blasts Reading council over cramped crisis housing

The council leader dubbed Reading a ‘land-strapped borrower’, as the town has little readily available open space or brownfield sites to develop into homes.

He said: “What we are doing is identifying wherever we do have those available sites and looking to build new council homes.

“Schemes are coming forward such as Coley, obviously already under development, and new schemes in the pipeline at Dwyer Road and Amethyst Lane in Southcote, Battle Street and Hexham Road, providing those new options and opportunities to try and get people out of overcrowded accommodation.”

The council has projects to build  46 homes in Coley, 30 in Dwyer Road, 38 in Amethyst Lane, 62 in Battle Street at the old Central Pool site and 42 in Hexham Road.

However, councillor Brock also stressed private housebuilders have a fundamental role to play.

He said: “We need to work with the private sector it’s the only way we’re going to deliver anywhere near the volume of homes required.

“So some of our flagship projects like Minster Quarter – the old Civic Centre that is a partnership with the private sector to deliver new homes, including affordable homes there, so that we’re able to get to grips with that issue.”

The council is seeking a developer to deliver its vision for 618 flats, 30 per cent of which would be affordable at Minster Quarter.

Cllr Brock continued: “As I’ve said, and it does have to be acknowledged, this is a national crisis and we do you need government to really get on board with the fact that delivering homes requires commitment from government to delivering homes.

“Instead, we’ve got a government that continues to prevaricate around this and has made matters worse by scrapping local housing targets, which means that some of our near neighbours who could play a really important role in this agenda, are now able to just sit back and engage in NIMBY politics and avoid delivering the homes so desperately needed.”

READ MORE: Reading man claims council 'shamed' him over family-of-five living in two berooms

But it’s not only overcrowded homes that can become badly afflicted with mould.

Elaine Parry-Taylor from Corwen Road in Tilehurst also raised the alarm over mould at her one-bed council flat, among other long-term problems.

Addressing the issue, cllr Brock said: “The challenges around damp and mould are something that we’re very alert to when we’re conducting a review of our stock. And we’re asking all of the other partners in private landlords housing associations, to review their stock as well.

“And it’s incumbent on our repair service to ensure that there are no structural issues.

READ MORE: Thousands of complaints about leaks, damp and mould in social housing

“We know in some cases, there are things that need to be remedied we get on and we remedy them.

“We don’t have a sort of particularly profound problem around the stock here in Reading compared to the challenges some other places have doesn’t mean that it’s something that we’re complacent about, we know that we’ll look into problems as they arise, and we’ll do our best to fix them.

“I’ve been in  correspondence with residents in my ward and elsewhere about some of the challenges that they’re having.”