Residents have reported major problems living in Lancashire Hill.
07:16, 29 Dec 2025Updated 07:21, 29 Dec 2025
Lancashire Hill is based in Stockport, just outside the town centre (Image: Sean Hansford / MEN)
It’s morning and Martha Machiek wakes up after spending the night sleeping on the couch with her three-year-old son.
The family of nine lives in The Bentleys building on Lancashire Hill, an area ranked the most deprived in Greater Manchester. They have three bedrooms and one toilet to share.
The family came to the UK after fleeing war in South Sudan. They moved to a refugee camp in Kenya, and then to England in a resettlement programme.
Ms Machiek, 29, has lived on Lancashire Hill since 2021, and shares her home with her four children, aged three, 10, 12, and 14, her two brothers, sister and niece.
“Life is really hard on Lancashire Hill,” she said. “One of my sons who has medical issues can’t share a room with anybody, he has the box room.
“Another one of my son’s is 12 and is sharing with my niece and sister in one room, and my three-year-old baby and I sleep on the couch.
“We have just one toilet, the children have to fight to use it, they are very stressed.”
Martha Machiek said life is difficult living in Lancashire Hill (Image: Sean Hansford / MEN)
Flats at Lancashire Hill are managed by Stockport Homes, a social housing provider which is owned by the council but operates independently as an arms length management organisation.
The family of nine said they’ve faced numerous issues in their flat, which they feel have not been resolved.
“Last year the heating system was changed, and now it’s been a year and we don’t have hot water because we can’t afford it,” Ms Machiek said.
“If I put £20 in the children just go to brush their teeth and it’s gone, I couldn’t afford it so I just stopped, we only use it for a shower.”
They also shared images of mould patches on the ceiling of their flat, and on windows.
Ms Machiek, who works as a carer, said she has reported the problem to Stockport Homes who have tried to help, but the mould has not gone away.
She explained: “The room is still the same, the windows are still the same, we’re using spray on the window from Amazon because the children can’t breathe at night.
“They just keep booking an appointment, people come here and just do bit by bit, they focus on the bathroom, but I showed them my living room wall is leaking on the roof, but there’s no change or anything, it looks all black [mould].
“I’ve had so many problems on Lancashire Hill over the years, we’ve experienced bullying, racial abuse, my children can’t play on that park. I’m so depressed, I’m off work now because I’ve been seeing my doctor about the whole situation.
“Stockport Homes don’t have empathy for me, since I moved here our lives became miserable. I was breaking down at work, I just keep crying.”
The Lancashire Hill estate is in the most deprived area in Greater Manchester according to new deprivation date (Image: Sean Hansford / MEN)
The Lancashire Hill estate opened in the late 1960s, and Stockport, like other parts of the country, is facing huge demand for social housing.
Stark data shared by the council at the end of last year revealed that some face a 12-year wait for social housing, with thousands of people on the housing register.
Adding to Stockport’s challenges, the council missed out on a slice of the government’s £600m recovery grant at the start of 2025 – cash that was distributed based on deprivation levels and council tax income.
Stockport Homes said it is aware of the issues facing residents on Lancashire Hill, and takes action when problems are reported.
A spokesperson said: “We know that some residents on the Lancashire Hill estate are experiencing real challenges, and we’re sorry to hear how difficult this has been for people living there. Everyone deserves to feel safe, supported and listened to in their home.
“Where issues are reported, including reports of damp and mould, they are investigated and action is taken within statutory timeframes, and support is available for residents who are struggling or need additional help.
“Our focus is on supporting residents, improving day-to-day living conditions, and being open about the challenges while we work towards longer-term solutions.”
Mould in Martha’s flat on the Lancashire Hill estate in Stockport.
Stockport Homes explained that it has been supporting Ms Machiek and her family since February 2025 to find suitable housing, but because demand for larger homes far exceeds supply in Stockport, it has been a challenge.
The social housing provider also said that it will contact Ms Machiek to provide guidance and explore wider support with the cost of her heating.
Others living on Lancashire Hill have faced problems too, but many say they could not imagine living anywhere else.
Stephen Bennett, 70, lives in the 22-storey Hanover Towers, and said there are loads of positives about the community.
Residents Stephen Bennett (L) and Rebecca Pywell at Lancashire Hill (Image: Sean Hansford / MEN)
He told the Manchester Evening News (MEN): “If you come around here you won’t get any trouble, there are good people. I wouldn’t move from here unless I was forced out.”
Mr Bennett explained that while life can be tough on the estate, people are looking out for each other on the whole.
But frustration is growing over repeated problems, such as broken lifts in his high-rise block.
He added: “What’s out of order is the amount of it, there’s just not enough [being done].
“I’ve been in the lift while it’s broken, I’ve walked 16 floors because of the lifts not working. It needs rebuilding, but it’s all down to investment.”
Stockport Homes confirmed that there have been four lift breakdowns in the last six months, and all of these were resolved ‘within required timeframes’.
Broken lifts have also been an issue for mum-of-four Jayne Warner, who lives in an 11th floor property in Pendlebury Tower.
She contacted the MEN in the summer after her newborn son was born with complex medical needs, including a cleft palate, and had a tube in his nose to help with breathing at the time.
Ms Warner said the broken lifts had left her worried about being trapped in a medical emergency.
Months later, she’s still living in the same flat in the high-rise tower. She said: “I’m still in the same flat, and after the article Stockport Homes never reached out to me.
“There are still issues with the lifts, they’ve only just been repaired after being broken. Only my housing officer was trying to support me to get me a new flat.”
Ms Warner is a key part of the community and has helped organise events to bring people together at Lancashire Hill, but she said she’s finding it harder all the time.
“There is a lot of anger about the state of Lancashire Hill. We’re trying to make it better for the community, but we’re getting to the stage where we feel like what’s the point.”
Rebecca Pywell, 41, lives in neighbouring Hanover Towers. She said she has witnessed homeless people sleeping on the estate, including inside buildings.
She added: “The lifts are always breaking down, so I have to walk down the stairs with a pram with my eight-month old. It happens all the time, I’ve been stuck in the lift twice.”
The issues at Lancashire Hill are a regular topic of debate at Stockport council meetings.
The area falls into the Reddish South ward, and Green Party Councillor James Frizzell is known to many of Lancashire Hill’s residents and staff at Stockport Homes.
Coun James Frizzell has been supporting residents on Lancashire Hill (Image: Sean Hansford / MEN)
He regularly highlights concerns from residents, and has worked with local volunteer groups to try and make improvements around the estate.
But he explained that people feel frustrated at seeing the changes taking place up the road in Stockport town centre, where a £1bn regeneration project is moving ahead, while they face regular problems at Lancashire Hill.
Coun Frizzell said: “You’ve got everything surging ahead just down the road, you’ve got £20m investment in Brinnington over 20 years’ time, but time and time again Lancashire Hill missed out and that’s why people feel angry.”
One of the projects Coun Frizzell pointed out is a community area behind the Stonemill Terrace building, where new seating and planting was put down.
He said he asked Stockport Homes several times for months to help with the cleaning of some black grime on the wall, and to paint the doors, but so far the work has not happened.
“We’ve got a community here, people who have lived here a long time and really care,” he told the MEN.
“What we need is for there to be investment by Stockport Homes and the council so people don’t feel forgotten about, and have a nice place to live and feel proud of.
“It’s been let go too far, making life difficult for the people who live here. It’s a social crisis as far as I’m concerned, is it being treated as such? I have to say at the moment not.”
Stockport Homes said this work at the community space behind Stonemill Terrace will take place, and has been booked in for early 2026.