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Army veteran says he goes camping to stay warm instead of staying in Moray Council bungalow in Buckie

Brian Beatens has endured months with no carpet on the floor of his Buckie home. Photo by Jason Hedges/DCT Media
Brian Beatens has endured months with no carpet on the floor of his Buckie home. Photo by Jason Hedges/DCT Media

An army veteran has spoken out about how he would rather go camping than spend time in his “shell” of a council home in Buckie.

Brian Beatens moved into the bungalow in Buckie on February 21 and has been complaining about it being full of problems ever since.

Mr Beatens, who served in the army, viewed the property on February 3 after being on the waiting list for a council home suitable to his needs.

He has psoriatic arthritis and uses a walking stick to get around outside. The 48-year-old was delighted to finally be offered a home close to his elderly parents in Portessie.

However, his happiness was short-lived after he was handed the keys and started to realise there were issues with the bungalow.

Moray Council says it is working with its tenant to resolve his concerns.

‘Just like sitting in a wind tunnel’

When he viewed the property there was no carpet but the underlay was still on the floor. However, when he was given the keys he went to the bungalow he discovered the underlay had been lifted in the meantime – exposing the floorboards.

There was a hole in the living room floor that he described as around the size of a “cigarette packet”, letting a draft into the house and a dark stain he had to scrub himself – mark he believes was a blood stain after his years in the army.

The hole was covered in March by a council workman who cut a rectangle out of the floor and replaced it with a sheet of chipboard. However, Mr Beatens explains this has not stopped the draft coming in, and he has since tried to seal the gaps with filler himself.

The patched-up hole on Brian Beatens’s floor. Photo by Jason Hedges/DCT Media

He said: “At the viewing, I was on cloud nine, because I thought I was actually getting a permanent address. I wasn’t looking at holes in floors and dodgy heating systems. You don’t know about that until you move in and start using it.

“The floor in this place is 12 to 18 inches off the ground, which I can’t understand.

“When the wind is blowing up like it is now, it’s just like sitting in a wind tunnel in this place, because there’s no insulation underneath, and that’s where the cold comes from, underneath.”

Dreads coming back to ‘shell of a home’ in Buckie

While waiting for a carpet to be fitted, Mr Beatens has been unable to move his furniture in. Since February he has been sitting on a single camping chair and eating from a camping table.

His cooker is also in his living room because he claims the kitchen has been “incorrectly fitted”. He says there is not enough space for his standard size cooker or washing machine, meaning he has not been able to cook or clean his clothes since he moved in at the end of February.

Brian Beatens has not been able to get a cooker to fit the space in his kitchen. Photo by Jason Hedges/DCT Media

Because of this, Mr Beatens has been travelling 34 miles to Elgin and back to take his washing to laundrettes and has been ordering takeaway which he says is “unsustainable”.

He said: “I just wanted to settle in, and get carpets down, get my settees in. Instead, I’m sitting on a camping chair, eating takeaway meals off a camping table, and having to put two or three towels on the floor because it’s that cold, I’ve got arthritis as it is.”

Mr Beatens often takes himself camping to get out of the bungalow, claiming he can keep himself warmer in a tent and sleeping bag.

He describes the west coast as his “happy place” and dreads coming back to his “shell of a home”.

“I just detest coming back here,” he explained. “My hands are just constantly freezing and I’ve got about four or five layers on.”

Moray Council working with tenant

Moray Council confirmed that a housing officer has looked into the issues Mr Beatens has raised and that some work has been carried out.

A spokeswoman said: “While we wouldn’t discuss specific tenancy agreements, we can confirm that, as with all tenancy concerns, our housing officer has looked into the issues raised.

“As a result, our trades personnel have attended the property to attempt pre-planned repairs and installations, this includes plumbers and joiners.

“The property was of an acceptable standard at the point of the tenancy starting and we’ll continue to work with the tenant to resolve any concerns they may have.”