Oldham: Care home residents suffer in 'freezing cold'

Oldham Council has insisted alternative heating was provided "immediately" on Saturday, January 21, and reiterated to The Oldham Times that the problem had been adequately resolved.

Sisters, Shelley and Andrea Davis, as well as their dad Gerard, regularly visit their 76-year-old mother, Brenda Davis, at Oldham Total Care in Chadderton.

While Brenda, who has Alzheimer's, has lived at the home for years without any issue, the family say she has been "freezing cold" for "at least a fortnight" after a boiler and air conditioning unit broke at the same time.

Get the latest news delivered straight to your inbox by signing up to The Oldham Times’ morning and evening newsletters as well as our breaking news alerts 

The council said a boiler at the unit was at fault and alternative heating was arranged "immediately" while back-up boilers were put in place to ensure constant heat in the building.

The local authority added: "Throughout this time residents were checked regularly and small heaters and blankets were provided as a precaution."

However, the family claim the Saddleworth Suite was "still cold" after this and that the repair work only "stuck a plaster" over the problem.

Earlier this week, the family said "none" of the radiators were on, and that their mother was "freezing".

Shelley and her mum, Brenda (left) (Image: Shelley Davis)

Shelley continued: "The radiators were tepid. They're not hot, they're not warm.

"My mum has still got her fleece coat on. Her hands are freezing.

"My poor mum has worked all her life in the cotton mills in Delph and paid her dues to put up with this. It's heartbreaking.

"That building, by law, should be 60 degrees [15C] and it's nowhere near that, especially in their rooms."

Shelley said she was told numerous times that the home was "waiting on a part and a price" for the repairs to be completed as the main boiler "is beyond repair" while its back-up heat sources also failed.

She continued: "Over the last few weeks, we've been given three maybe four different days - 'they're coming on Tuesday', 'they're coming tomorrow', we've been told different days of when they're coming.

"The air conditioning system that blows out hot air which circulates around that part of the building is still broken.

"The main boiler is beyond repair and the backup boiler is broken.

"The system is not working to its full potential.

"It's not circulating properly - you can feel the cold coming into the main room from outside."

The family also said the dementia unit is divided into two and residents have been "congregating" in the slightly warmer side of the building to keep warm but that all of them still have coats and blankets on.

Meanwhile, the family claims staff are wearing hoodies and cardigans as they are also reportedly "absolutely freezing" which Shelley said has confused some residents as they cannot see the uniforms.

However, she stressed staff are "amazing" at the unit and can not fault the care her mother has received over the years. 

The family say they are 'heartbroken' and 'angry' over the situation (Image: Shelley Davis)

She added: "We've had no problems with the staff or the home whatsoever - this is down to Oldham Council."

Councillor Barbara Brownridge, who visited the home to check the heating, said to Shelley in an email that she has since "established exactly what happened".

Cllr Brownridge said the main boiler broke on January 21 and an engineer was "unable to mend it" at the time, finding that it needed to be replaced.

In addition, she found one of the backup boilers was "not working to full capacity", meaning the area of that home, including the Saddleworth wing, "was not as warm as it should have been".

She added: "At the same time and completely coincidentally, the air conditioning failed."

Shelley claims this catalogue of broken heating sources and lack of action from the council to adequately fix the matter has left residents "suffering".

The mother said: "The residents think they are going out when they're given their coats.

"It's disgraceful and shameful for the council to leave vulnerable people and their carers like this.

"We've had snow - it was -9C in Delph the other day.

"My mum is cold in summer but she is mobile and can get about. A lot of the residents aren't mobile so they have no way of walking about and warming themselves up.

"The majority are non-verbal so they can't physically say 'I'm cold' either.

"If they get in bed and kick the covers off in the night, which they do and can't cover themselves back up, their bedrooms are cold.

"My mum's non-verbal, she just babbles but you can get the odd word out of her every now and then.

"When something's really bothering her, she has no problem. And she said today, 'I'm cold'.

"Can you imagine when they get out of the shower? They must be freezing."

Brenda has been wrapping up in coats and layers to try to keep warm in the home (Image: Shelley Davis)

In the past two weeks, the family have called on Oldham Council and the Care Quality Commission to take urgent action but claim that they did not receive a response prior to press involvement.

The family said the situation has left them "heartbroken" and "angry".

Shelley added: "I'm angry and upset. 

"There are some residents there that don't have families, who don't have visitors, they've got nobody to speak up for them.

"It's just appalling for the residents and the staff.

"It's just not good enough.

"The situation is far from resolved and a brand new boiler needs putting in so that the backup boilers can be used for what they are designed for.

"I won't give up until all those residents are safe and warm."

When contacted by The Oldham Times, Cllr Brownridge, Cabinet member for Health and Social Care, said: “On Saturday 21 January a boiler at Oldham Total Care was deemed to be needing a replacement due to a fault.

"Engineers were called to the home on the same day whilst alternative heating and access to hot water were arranged immediately. Back-up boilers were in place during this period and at no time was there no heating in the building.

"Throughout this time residents were checked regularly and small heaters and blankets were provided as a precaution.

“I’m pleased to say the issue has been resolved with minimal disruption to residents.”

A CQC spokesperson also said: “We are aware of heating and temperature issues at Chadderton Total Care in Oldham.

"We have been in touch with the provider and relevant stakeholders to assure ourselves that leaders are taking action to ensure rooms are of a suitable temperature.

"We continue to review information and are aware the provider has already taken steps to ensure the heating issues are rectified as a matter of urgency.

“Our main priority is always the safety of people using health and social care services, and if we have concerns, we will not hesitate to take action in line with our regulatory powers.”

Do you have a housing, health or community concern? Email me at Olivia.bridge@newsquest.co.uk or message me on Twitter @Livbridge