A mum of a three-month-old baby was left 'terrified' when smoke started pouring into her seventh-floor flat after a bin chute in her building caught fire. 

Lauren Perry lives in Radnor House, in Stockport, and claims the block is plagued by anti-social behaviour that leaves her 'panicked and afraid' for her daughter Trixie's welfare. Shortly after Christmas, Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service were called to the address after reports of a blaze inside the waste disposal shaft. 

"I could smell something burning and at first I thought it was my Christmas lights starting to get a bit warm," Lauren told the LDRS. "But when I got up to turn them off, I saw there was smoke pouring in from beneath the door in the hallway. 

"I froze and thought: What the F is going on?

"All of a sudden one of my neighbours was banging on the door. I could make out that there was somebody there [through the peep hole] but I couldn't make out who it actually was until I physically opened the door, it was that smoky.

"That's when the panic set in."

Fire service operators advised Lauren to stick to her building's 'stay put' advice – but with 'plumes of smoke' rushing through gaps in a 'badly installed' fire door, Lauren was gripped by fear. 

She said: "I went and stood by the balcony with the window wide open. The baby's wrapped in a blanket and I'm just sobbing down the phone because I have no idea if I'm going to look at my front door and it'll just be in flames. I'm just hoping that one of the firemen will come and get me."  

When Lauren's partner Luke Kelly, a charity worker, heard of the incident while out at Hazel Grove snooker club with a friend, he sped back to her apartment to retrieve Lauren and his daughter. 

"The air was thick with smoke," he said. "I spoke to fire crew before I went in – but I just thought I have to get them out of there." 

Holding baby Trixie under his jacket to protect her from smoke inhalation, Luke sprinted down the seven flights of stairs – dodging past 'rubbish, drug paraphernalia, and old clothes' littered on the steps. 

"It's just pure blind panic as we're running down," Lauren said. "It was absolutely horrifying. I've never been so scared in all my life – not for myself but for this tiny little baby that shouldn't even be in this building." 

Fire crew were able to put the fire out quickly after attending the scene, and no one was harmed. But the incident was just the latest in a series of 'scary' and ongoing issues plaguing the building. 

"We get a lot of squatters, a lot of drug users. A lot of people smoking what I can only guess is crack or heroin in tinfoil and leaving it in the stairwells," Luke said. "I've had bottles narrowly miss my head at the entrance when someone threw them out the window, I've been punched for trying to confront someone who didn't belong here.

"There's constant littering of things like clothing being thrown out the windows. I even identified the flat causing that and no action is taken. It's just a nightmare." 

And despite numerous reports to Stockport Homes, the housing association that manages the building, the pair say 'no action' is being taken to address their concerns. 

"There's no CCTV in the building, and when we report issues, they either do nothing – or they'll come out weeks later when it's too late to take any action," Luke claimed. Stockport Homes have stated they take residents' concerns about anti-social behaviour 'seriously'. 

But for Lauren, the problems leave her fearful to speak to her neighbours and worried she's raising Trixie in a dangerous environment. 

"I feel awful because my daughter is here," the mum said. "The fire made me realise I really have no power when it comes to this place. It's just absolutely awful. 

"The fact that my fire door was supposed to be secure and it's not – and it's letting smoke into my flat and I've got this baby. And the stairs are covered in tripping hazards and nothing is done. How does this stuff fly?" 

A spokesperson for Stockport Homes said they were 'sorry for the distress caused to residents' by the blaze. 

They said: "Any fire in a block is frightening, and we understand why people are concerned. The fire was contained, and along with recent safety checks, we've completed repairs and are continuing our routine checks of the fire doors throughout the block." 

Regarding the anti-social behavior, they added: "We understand how upsetting this is and take the family's concerns very seriously. No one should feel unsafe in their home, and we do not accept rough sleeping, fly-tipping or antisocial behaviour in or around our properties.

"Our teams are taking action to support people sleeping rough, strengthen security and work with the family to complete outstanding repairs."

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