Brighton student's safety fears after six week ceiling leak

Ruby Crockett, 19, first reported the leak at her Brighton flat to her estate agent on September 23.

Six weeks have since passed and the leak has got steadily worse, spreading across most of the room.

It has left Ruby unable to turn her light on and she told The Argus that she feels as if there is no end in sight.

Ruby has been forced to leave the city several times and take refuge at her family home out of the county, as well as fork out for hotels.

This has meant the songwriting student at BIMM Institute has fallen behind with her studies.

The leaks has caused most of the ceiling to be flooded (Image: The Argus)

She said the situation has taken a huge toll on her and is “ruining her life”.

“It’s flooded most of my ceiling,” she said. “It’s caused cracks, there’s mould growing and it’s all over the place.

“It’s really disrupted my life.

“My bed is getting wet, I’ve been moving it all around to find somewhere that avoids the drips but there’s nowhere left to go.

“The floor’s wet, I’m using pots and pans to collect the water, but they can’t get it all.

“I’ve had to remove all my belongings.

Ruby has had to use pots and pans to collect the water (Image: The Argus)

“It’s hard to get on with my life because everything’s all over the place.

“It’s horrible, I keep being dripped on.

“It’s really stressing me out.

“I’m scared for my safety in this room because there are so many issues.

“It’s coming through the light fixture, it pours out.

“I haven’t been able to turn my light on for the whole time this has been happening.

“I’m really worried with the continued heavy rain and the cracks that it’s going to fall on my head.

“I really don’t know what to do, it’s getting worse really quickly.”

Ruby's room in Brighton is damp and full of mould (Image: Ruby Crockett)

Video captured by Ruby also shows water now coming through the light fitting in the flat’s stairwell.

Richard Redfern, property manager at Jacksons Properties, which is responsible for the block of flats in Cambridge Road, said that since the leak was reported in September builders and scaffolders had attended the building and attempted to fix the leak several times.

However, due to scaffolding on the building for other work to the roof and bouts of bad weather it had initially been hard to locate the source of the leak, to then install a lead flashing to divert water away from the identified crack, and then for the crack to be repaired.

The company is currently waiting for the top level of scaffolding to be removed for a full repair, this was supposed to happen at the beginning of this month but the weather was deemed "too dangerous".

Pots and pans collecting water in the Brighton flat (Image: The Argus)

He said insurers have been notified to rectify the damage to Ruby’s room after a repair has been completed.

He said he understood Ruby’s frustration and said it was his “absolute top priority to get this resolved”.

Marius Foster, director of Ruby's estate agents John Hiltons, said that as the letting agents the company did not have the authority to authorise a repair and that their “hands were tied”.

He said he has been “stressing the urgency” of the situation to Jacksons, has covered the cost of alternative accommodation for Ruby and will look to reclaim expenses once the “fiasco” is resolved.

“This has been a very frustrating situation and we really feel for Ruby and are extremely keen to get the issue sorted out for her,” he said.

But Ruby feels she has been “forgotten about”.