A west London mum who was moved into a Travelodge by her housing association says a man tried to grab and kiss her twice in the temporary accommodation.
Kelly Butler, 38, who has waived her right to anonymity, which is automatically granted due to the alleged assaults being sexual in nature, was in the Travelodge on Chiswick High Road to allow for repairs to be completed to her Ravenscourt Park flat.
As previously covered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), Ms Butler and her partner, Ashley Dudman, 42, were urging their landlord Notting Hill Genesis to fix up their home having faced months of leaks, damp and mould. After our story the family was moved out of the home so repairs could commence, first to the Chiswick Travelodge.
Ms Butler told the LDRS a stranger, who was also a Notting Hill Genesis tenant temporarily housed there, had tried to grab and kiss her while she stood outside.
“He basically walked past me, he grabbed my hand and was like trying to pull me in and was like, ‘can I kiss you?’, and I was like ‘woah, what are you doing?’,” she said. “I left it, I told Ashley… but then when we was in the breakfast area the next morning he did the same thing.”
Kelly Butler's home in Hammersmith and FulhamFacundo ArrizabalagaMs Butler is sharing her experience to highlight the issues faced by London social housing tenants who are either left in mouldy or defective homes and constantly fighting for repairs, or placed in unsuitable temporary accommodation when issues are addressed.
The man was reported to the Met Police and removed from the hotel by Travelodge.
Ms Butler and her family were then moved to a flat in Hounslow on June 30 as a supposedly more suitable form of temporary accommodation. They had been told in an email from Notting Hill Genesis – seen by the LDRS – that it was on the ground floor.
However, upon arrival, Ms Butler said the property was on the second floor, which posed problems for Mr Dudman.
“On top of the property being entirely misrepresented to us, upon arrival it became immediately clear that the surrounding area was unsafe,” she said. “My partner and I genuinely feared we were going to be attacked and robbed. With our daughter present we had absolutely no choice but to leave. We cannot return to that property.
“We contacted the emergency team in the early hours… who arranged for us to be checked into another hotel. This is now our third location in 24 hours.”
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The family are currently staying in another Travelodge in Acton having made clear they would not be returning to the Hounslow property.
At the heart of Ms Butler and her family’s frustrations is the lack of progress repairing their home, which was only agreed after the LDRS reported on her situation. She claims a lot of the essential repairs have yet to be started and that on one occasion she found little work other than painting taking place.
“Why is it I’ve got to wait when they should be doing the work now? The whole idea is we’re out of the property, everything’s been emptied, all of our stuff is in a storage unit. They should be in there doing the work to the standard it should bloody be.”
Mr Dudman in particular was put at risk by the condition of the flat due to health conditions including scleroderma, an autoimmune condition that affects his immune system and connective tissue and means he has a lung capacity of just 50 per cent.
Things escalated in May when the pair’s daughter had to be rushed to A&E with respiratory issues, which they fear may have been due to the condition of their home. An Occupational Therapist (OT) report also concluded the flat was unsuitable for Mr Dudman, and so a decant to the Chiswick Travelodge was arranged on May 14.
A Notting Hill Genesis spokesperson said: “Repair work on the heating system [was] due to begin Tuesday [July 7], and once that is complete, wider work can begin on improved ventilation and window repairs. Our surveyors have kept Ms Butler informed throughout and will continue to do so. It is a complex project, and we are sorry this work has taken longer than anticipated.
“Once the family left the hotel, we found them alternative accommodation quickly. The property we offered to them was suitable as it was a like-for-like two-bedroom home. While Ms Butler’s permanent home is on the third floor, with no lift, we were aware of her preference for a ground floor home. We had been incorrectly advised that the alternative was on the ground floor, and we apologise to Ms Butler for this administrative error.
“Ms Butler initially accepted the offer, and we arranged for her essential furniture to be delivered, but Ms Butler later advised she did not feel safe in this area. We have now arranged for the family to stay at another hotel until they can return home following completion of the repairs.
“As well as funding their alternative accommodation, we are also covering Ms Butler’s reasonable expenses, so she is not out pocket. This is in line with our relocation policy.”
A Travelodge spokesperson said: “The safety and security of our guests and colleagues is our absolute priority, and we take any allegations of inappropriate or criminal behaviour within our hotels seriously.
“Following an allegation brought to our attention, we investigated and removed the individual from the hotel. We also cooperated fully with the police investigations, who were in agreement with the actions taken by our colleagues and did not find grounds to investigate further.”