Tragic, preventable deaths happen even in advanced countries with strong institutions. Sometimes the only conclusion to be drawn is that someone didn’t do their job. But often there are uncomfortable lessons for government in there, too.
Awaab’s family had complained to the landlord, Rochdale Boroughwide Housing repeatedly. In 2017, his father, a recent immigrant from Sudan, was told to paint over the mould. By 2020, he had started a legal proceeding, but the association’s rules meant it sat on the sidelines while that slow-motion process played out. “We didn’t recognise the level of risk to a little boy’s life from the mould in the family’s home.
Governments exist precisely because people need protection from such instances. “How in the UK in 2020 does a two-year-old child die as a result of exposure to mould?” asked coroner Joanne Kearsley. A better question is probably how many other Awaabs are there? And here’s where Awaab’s tragic death fits into the broader challenge facing Rishi Sunak as he tries to steer a shrinking British economy to a better place. Awaab was also failed by a health service struggling with staffing shortages and backlogs, and public services that are disjointed. But getting housing right is fundamental to both a civilised society and a thriving economy.
And health expenses were estimated to be only about 40% of the total cost to society from poor housing conditions. Others come from energy leakage, underperformance at school, absenteeism, social exclusion and mental health problems. The savings from one-off costs to improve housing exceeded the costs of repairs.