Latest news with #AruneeLeerasiri
BBC News
2 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Kirkby residents at unsafe flats 'set to lose everything'
A woman who has been told she must leave her flat after the building was ruled unsafe said she is "set to lose everything".Arunee Leerasiri bought her flat in a Willow Rise in Kirkby, Merseyside in 2023 and works from this year the flats, along with another block Beech Rise, were declared unsafe after failures by the building's management companies and agents to carry out required works led to Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service issuing an enforcement notice against the buildings' Responsible as the prospect of eviction hangs over her, Ms Leerasiri said she is "broken" and overwhelmed by the crisis. Residents at the flats, which are comprised of both rental tenants and homeowners, were told they must leave in a private development, Knowsley Council had stepped in to fund a "waking watch" service, where the flats were patrolled 24 hours a day to keep residents safe - at a cost of £3,000 a leader Graham Morgan said the council had little control over the building and the cost to the council was has now asked the government for financial help for flat owners who were at risk of losing half of the 160 households had already left, 80 flats were still occupied, mostly by people who owned them or had mortgages on them. "I am losing both my home and my work place" Ms Leerasiri said."I feel unsafe being here, but I don't know what to do and I don't know what the future holds."It's hard not knowing when I will have to move out and who is going to cover my costs."I have home insurance but they say because the problem is not with my flat but with the communal areas, I am not covered." 'Traumatic' Ms Leerasiri said she invested her life savings into the property."The stress has been overwhelming. I am not classed as homeless yet so it's hard to find help. How are we expected to live like this?" she said."Everything is being taken away from me. Being told to leave so suddenly without any guarantees is traumatic."Speaking on BBC Radio Merseyside Mr Morgan said it was an "absolutely horrendous situation" and said the council had met with the Minister for Housing, Communities and Local Government Alex Norris who was "very sympathetic" and was assessing the said a multi-agency meeting was set to take place this week after which residents would be updated. Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
'I am losing both my home and my workplace'
A woman who has been told she must leave her flat after the building was ruled unsafe said she is "set to lose everything". Arunee Leerasiri bought her flat in a Willow Rise in Kirkby, Merseyside in 2023 and works from home. Earlier this year the flats, along with another block Beech Rise, were declared unsafe after failures by the building's management companies and agents to carry out required works led to Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service issuing an enforcement notice against the buildings' Responsible Persons. Now as the prospect of eviction hangs over her, Ms Leerasiri said she is "broken" and overwhelmed by the crisis. Residents at the flats, which are comprised of both rental tenants and homeowners, were told they must leave in June. Although a private development, Knowsley Council had stepped in to fund a "waking watch" service, where the flats were patrolled 24 hours a day to keep residents safe - at a cost of £3,000 a day. Council leader Graham Morgan said the council had little control over the building and the cost to the council was unsustainable. He has now asked the government for financial help for flat owners who were at risk of losing everything. While half of the 160 households had already left, 80 flats were still occupied, mostly by people who owned them or had mortgages on them. "I am losing both my home and my work place" Ms Leerasiri said. "I feel unsafe being here, but I don't know what to do and I don't know what the future holds. "It's hard not knowing when I will have to move out and who is going to cover my costs. "I have home insurance but they say because the problem is not with my flat but with the communal areas, I am not covered." Ms Leerasiri said she invested her life savings into the property. "The stress has been overwhelming. I am not classed as homeless yet so it's hard to find help. How are we expected to live like this?" she said. "Everything is being taken away from me. Being told to leave so suddenly without any guarantees is traumatic." Speaking on BBC Radio Merseyside Mr Morgan said it was an "absolutely horrendous situation" and said the council had met with the Minister for Housing, Communities and Local Government Alex Norris who was "very sympathetic" and was assessing the situation. He said a multi-agency meeting was set to take place this week after which residents would be updated. Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230. 'Becoming homeless from unsafe flats catastrophic' Tower block flats costing £3k a day to keep safe Flats evacuated after firework sparks blaze Knowsley Council
The Guardian
12-06-2025
- General
- The Guardian
‘We've been left in this mess': residents of condemned Merseyside blocks face eviction
Residents of two Merseyside tower blocks who have been ordered to leave after the buildings where they live were deemed unsafe say they feel 'stuck' and 'left behind'. Hundreds of people living in Beech Rise and Willow Rise, which stand beside each other in Kirkby, were issued a prohibition notice by Merseyside fire and rescue service in May. It is the latest revelation of the poor conditions of many privately rented dwellings and tenants' apparent lack of rights. Residents in Beech Rise and Willow Rise have been allowed to stay temporarily due to a 24-hour 'waking watch' of trained personnel carrying out inspections on the properties. The watch is expected to end any day, however, meaning that residents do not know how much time they have left in their homes. Once the watch is over, returning to their homes will be illegal. Aside from the odd sign of life the towers already look abandoned, with large puddles of water coming from behind locked doors, pipes hanging through holes in the ceiling and rubbish piling up in the hallways. Neither building has had a working lift for the past year, and residents had complained that the combination of constant leaks and bad wiring presented a constant fire risk. As a result, some flats had their supplies cut off, leaving many without power or water for months. Arunee Leerasiri bought her duplex flat in Willow Rise two years ago. Now the flat, which she sank her savings into, is practically worthless with no recourse to compensation. 'This is my home. Well, it used to be,' Leerasiri said through tears. 'I thought I'd found my forever home. I paid to fix everything, the bathroom, the ceiling, everything. And now that's all gone.' She says the building's problems were severe enough for her to try to move, but with the notice to leave in place, she was unable to sell. While the council have told her she will be rehoused temporarily, they have not said when this will happen. 'I knew that I had to move out one day because of all these problems in the building, I knew, but I can't sell now. The building is not safe as a seller,' she said. 'I can't sign and lie to say, 'yeah, it's safe to sell', so I'm stuck.' Leerasiri has been forced to rely on the kindness of her employers to store her heavier belongings, meaning many of the things she needs for day-to-day life are no longer in her flat. With the waking watch ongoing and no money for temporary accommodation or news of when she may be rehoused, she has been forced to stay in the flat, sleeping on the floor as her bed and mattress are already in storage. The watch costs the council about £3,000 a day and, since taking over the responsibility to fund it from the previous management company on 21 May, it has spent more than £50,000 in order to continue it. This process does nothing to make the building itself safer, allowing only for people to be evacuated more quickly in the event of an emergency. One fire marshall on the watch described the buildings as 'incredibly dangerous', and said that in his opinion, 'nobody should have been here for a while'. Chris Penfold-Ivany who has rented in Willow Beech for more than 15 years, said the buildings 'are not fit for purpose' and that the residents had been let down. 'The companies that have ran these buildings, one after the other, have let this place fall apart,' he says. 'And now it's so far gone it would cost them millions to fix it, so we've just been left behind in this mess, and someone needs to take responsibility. Whoever these are, cannot be allowed to just leave this.' Penfold-Ivany has cancer and is taking medication to treat it as well as dealing with the after-effects of a liver transplant. His medical needs have made it hard for him to move his possessions from his 13th-floor flat, and he has resigned himself to the fact that, without help, he will have to leave much of his life behind once he is forced to move. Though he says the council have told him they will be able to house him somewhere, he is wary of the prospect of leaving the area as his family, who are based in Kirkby, help him with the day-to-day chores that are are made more difficult because of his ill-health. Anneliese Midgley, the Labour Knowsley MP, has said that the council is doing everything it can to address a 'deeply distressing situation that has left 160 households in my constituency at risk of homelessness through no fault of their own', and that she intends to bring the situation to national attention. 'The immediate priority must be to ensure everyone is safely rehoused,' she said. 'The private companies responsible must be held to account. It's encouraging to see the government engaging with this issue and exploring ways to help.'
