riverside.org.uk

Ten days without heating in sub-zero temperatures. I felt abandoned in my own home

I wish I could say things have improved since my last review, but writing this feels heartbreaking rather than surprising.At the end of December, water began leaking from my flat into the property below. A contractor attended while I was out and spoke to me through my doorbell, telling me the leak appeared to be coming from the boiler and that I needed to get home urgently and switch the boiler power off. When I arrived home, the boiler was actively leaking water. I had no choice but to shut it down completely. In that moment, I lost all heating.What followed was ten days without heating during documented sub-zero winter weather, with local recorded temperatures dropping as low as −7°C. This wasn’t a mild inconvenience or a short delay. It was the middle of winter, during freezing conditions.During that time, the job was marked as “complete” while my boiler was still broken. No one verified whether the heating was actually working. I received no proactive welfare contact and no offer of interim heating or practical support, despite Riverside being aware of my vulnerabilities.Living without heating in those conditions was frightening and exhausting. My home stopped feeling like a place of safety. Sleeping was difficult. Washing was uncomfortable. Every day became about trying to stay warm enough to function. The cold gets into your body and your head and slowly wears you down.When the repair was finally completed, it turned out to be a major, multi-hour job. That only reinforced how serious the problem was, and how unacceptable it felt to have been left without heating for so long.What makes this harder to accept is that much of the harm could have been avoided with simple, basic actions. A welfare check, a phone call to explain what was happening, or the temporary provision of heaters while parts were delayed would have made an enormous difference. Clear communication and follow-up to confirm whether heating was actually working should be standard, especially during winter and when vulnerabilities are known. Small, human interventions like these would have turned a frightening experience into a manageable one.Riverside presents itself as a caring social landlord. My lived experience has been the opposite. I felt abandoned in my own home during an emergency, at the coldest time of the year.I am sharing this because these problems are still happening. If this is how emergencies are handled for me, I worry about how many other residents are quietly going through the same thing without being heard or offered practical and meaningful help.

Date of experience: Dec 30, 2025