'They don't care about me' says Derby pensioner left without heating for a month

An elderly Derby woman has described a month of pain and suffering after being left without heating in her home since early December. Dorothy Boyle, who has lived in her flat at Highgates - a retirement home off Wilmot Street in Derby city centre - for half a decade, says she has been left with a runny nose and flu-like symptoms after living in a freezing flat since mid-December.

Ms Boyle is 79 years old, deaf, and has no children. She says she feels "neglected" by the housing association and fears that others are living in the same conditions. She first reported the issue to Stonewater, a social housing provider with offices in Leicester, after she noticed a problem with her central heating on Wednesday, December 18.

She said she was told there was a fault with the outside heating tank, but when an engineer came to fix it, they were unable to do so. She was given a small electric heater to warm her entire home over the Christmas period, but she says conditions were "so bad" that she had to move to a friend's house for a few days when it became "unbearable".

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She says she eventually "gave up" after urging them to fix the problem and she was forced to endure last week's -5C temperatures with just a small heater. "The radiators never really chucked much heat out in the first place, to be honest.

"They would always send people over, but nothing was ever done - they always seemed to think they were alright and never did anything to fix it, but I managed," Ms Boyle said. "When they fully stopped working, it changed the matter completely - I was cold and shivering all the time, so much that I'm aching from all the tension.

"It's caused me so much pain and I feel so stiff. It seemed as though nothing was ever going to be done." Derbyshire Live contacted Stonewater for comment on Monday (January 13) after Ms Boyle said she felt she had been "cut off completely".

Within two days, Ms Boyle had been delivered two more heaters - bringing the grand total up to three - and an engineer was arranged to visit her flat and fix the issue on Monday (January 20). Despite being "grateful" that the issue was due to been fixed, she can't help but wonder how many other people are in the same situation.

She added: "I've been left to fend for myself during what's been one of the coldest winters in recent years. It's not on, I'm nearly 80 and I feel like these housing associations have a duty to look after us.

"The kitchen was like a fridge and everything you touched was cold in the flat. I just felt like no one wanted to hear what I had to say, like I wasn't important enough to get the attention I needed. I just hope they aren't letting anyone else suffer like I have."

Stonewater is aware of Ms Boyle's issues and has opened an investigation. A spokesperson for Stonewater said: “We’re aware of the issues Mrs Boyle has been having with the heating at her home and appreciate how difficult this must be.

"An engineer visited Mrs Boyle’s home in December and found a fault with the external heat pump, which needed a replacement circuit board. Unfortunately, obtaining the replacement parts has taken longer than we expected, delaying the issue being fixed. We have therefore raised an order for a replacement air source heat pump unit to be installed next week.

“Continuing our contact with Mrs Boyle, we have now arranged for oil-filled heaters to be delivered as an alternative to electric heaters originally offered. As well as reimbursing any additional costs, we have opened a complaint to investigate the issue fully.”