'We should all feel a sense of shame': Heartbreak and anger after boy, 2, living in damp-ridden flat dies

Politicians have expressed anger and grief after the Manchester Evening News revealed the death of a two-year-old boy that had been living in a damp-ridden property. Awaab Ishak died in December 2020, with Rochdale Coroners' Court hearing how his post-mortem established a medical link between the conditions he was breathing in and his death, just days after his second birthday.

Readers reacted with anger after the news broke this week, with an M.E.N. investigation exposing similar conditions that tenants on the same Freehold estate in Rochdale are still living in even now, more than 18 months after Awaab's death. Families spoke of taking their young children to hospital with breathing problems, while some had received letters from GPs calling on them to move home.

The M.E.N. asked Rochdale Council on Tuesday for an interview with its leader, Coun Neil Emmott, about Awaab's death and the findings of the Freehold investigation. The council said Coun Emmott would not be available for interview but would respond to written questions, which the M.E.N. submitted the following day. Those questions are yet to be answered.

READ MORE about the tragedy surrounding Awaab Ishak's death:

Make no mistake - for a child to die this way is a stain on Greater Manchester

A two-year-old is dead and other children are struggling to breathe

During a press conference this week, Andy Burnham described Awaab's death as an 'appalling state of affairs', telling reporters he had 'nothing but sympathy and concern' for his family. The mayor of Greater Manchester added: "Nobody, certainly no child should grow up in a home that's cold, that's damp, that's unfit for human habitation.

"Where are we going as a country? This is just disgraceful