A Denholme family claims its rented home is like “living in a cave”.

Problems at Hillcrest View include a hole knocked in the kitchen wall last spring in preparation for an extractor fan that was never installed, and almost every wall in the house riddled with damp and mould.

And the family has even been warned by electricians not to use lights in some rooms because of faulty wiring.

Sandra Halliwell, 58, her daughter Teri Leigh and son James moved into the property last April, and ever since have had major issues with the building, which is owned by the Home Group.

Now the group has apologised for the delays, and been warned Bradford Council could force it to carry out repairs.

Council officers visited the property on Friday to meet with Mrs Halliwell and a representative from the housing company, but no-one from Home Group attended.

Mrs Halliwell, who is unemployed, said: “It is like living in a cave – we can’t decorate because whenever work does get done it might all have to come down again.”

David Shepherd, assistant director of housing at the council, said: “An environmental health officer from the housing standards team has undertaken an inspection of Mrs Halliwell’s property and informed the landlord of the works required to address deficiencies identified.

“The officer has an on-site meeting arranged with Home Group for June 14 to assess progress. Although at this stage action taken is informal, if works are not completed to the satisfaction of the council, formal enforcement action will be considered.”

Mark Palmer, for Home Group, said: “We’re sorry we’ve fallen below the high standards we expect of ourselves. We’re meeting with Mrs Halliwell to plan a timescale for all repairs.”