Little Hulton pensioner’s home has ‘rats inside walls’

The 74-year-old has lived in the same social housing in Little Hulton for 40 years, and in that time has spent thousands to turn the place into a real home. But for the past two years, it’s felt like anything but. 

That’s because almost every night since early 2024, she’s heard ‘scratching and scraping’ inside her walls, she says. Behind the wallpapers and galleries of family photos, she’s convinced rats have the run of the home’s infrastructure. 

Her housing association, ForHousing, say they’ve found ‘no evidence’ of rats during several call-outs in the last few years.

The LDRS has heard recordings of the sounds taken by Christine and her neighbours in July, along with footage of the rats caught just outside their homes. 

“I’m frightened to death with it,” she said. “When it happens, I can’t sleep; I just hear this horrible scratching and scuffling sound for hours on end. It makes my skin crawl. 

“When it first started happening, I’d go and stay with my sister. It was wrong, because she was dealing with health issues herself, but I was just terrified.

“Now I’m just exhausted. It’s making me ill. I just can’t stand it anymore.” 

Her GPs have raised concerns about the impact it’s having on her health over the past two years.

Several doctor’s notes state the issue is ‘clearly exacerbating’ her stress and anxiety, as well as her physical wellbeing, and have recommended the pensioner be rehoused.  

Christine and her brother Michael, who visits her regularly, believe the rats come from the alleyway behind the row of terraced houses. A narrow path with trees and vegetation is a frequent fly-tipping hotspot, which the pair believe is attracting the pests. 

“We think they come in from outside, but they’re getting inside the walls somehow,” Christine said. “It’s worst when I have the heating on. They go mad, you can hear them scurrying and writhing. I’m dreading the winter; I really don’t know what I’ll do.”

Christine says she’s had conflicting information from building management and pest control, with some saying there were signs of disturbances on rat poison, while others disagreed.

She’s frustrated and feels her concerns aren’t being taken seriously – but ForHousing say they are working with her to figure out the problem. 

Martyn Hague, Executive Director of Customer at ForHousing, said: “We’re really sorry that this has been a frustrating and worrying experience for Christine. Over the last three years, we’ve visited her home multiple times to investigate reports of pest activity but we haven’t ever found evidence of an active infestation.

 “We’ve worked with the council and various specialist contractors to carry out treatments including bait traps, tracking powder, lifting the floorboards and installing wire meshing to seal potential gaps where pests might enter the home, and have kept in regular contact with Christine throughout.

 “After new reports of potential pests in her home this year, we arranged for a pest control company to carry out a further seven inspections. So far, they haven’t found any evidence of an active infestation. We are staying in regular contact with Christine to provide reassurance, are discussing her housing options with her, and we will continue to support her.”