A FED up pensioner has told how she asked housing officials for a plank of wood on which to stand buckets to fix a water leak.

Bett Silverwood, 74, said she was so frustrated with Bradford Council's failed attempts to repair the leak that she decided that a plank and buckets was the only solution.

Her flooding nightmare began at the beginning of December when water started pouring from her kitchen ceiling due to a leaking roof. But she was horrified when council workmen simply replaced the piece of plaster board.

"The council came to re-plaster my kitchen ceiling but this didn't work, because it's the roof which is causing the problem when it rains heavily," she said.

"I used to wake up and my kitchen floor and counter would be flooded.

"It was so obvious that it was seeping through from somewhere.

"I got so frustrated that I asked the council to bring me a plank so I could at least stop the water reaching the rest of the kitchen."

Mrs Silverwood told the Herald she was fed up with reporting faults to Bradford Council's housing department about her home in Gloucester Avenue.

"After nine years I just think I'm wasting my time," she said.

"I keep telling them until we're sick of telling them."

Mrs Silverwood is just one of a number of residents who have complained about leaking roofs on their Gloucester Avenue homes.

The houses were originally built by the Ministry of Defence and have flat roofs which are prone to collecting rain water. Tenants have recently formed an action group in a bid to get the repairs carried out.

A spokesman for the Keighley housing office said they were aware of the roofing problem.

"This is an ongoing problem with the houses at Gloucester Avenue," he said.

"We are working closely with the recently formed tenants' group to try and obtain funding to improve the situation."

The spokesman added that temporary repairs to Mrs Silverwood's roof had been carried out this week.

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