WAVERLEY Borough Council has been accused of showing a “complete disregard for life” after it was revealed shoddy repairs to a council house in Farnham have put a vulnerable family in mortal danger for some three years.

Rebecca Harms, a 49 year old former accountant, moved into her current home in Waynflete Lane, Farnham, in 2016 with her two sons – the youngest of which, Josh, now aged 12, has profound physical and learning disabilities and requires constant care.

She immediately ran into difficulties as the house, located at the top of a steep, muddy bank, failed to meet Josh’s needs – but was hopeful last October when Waverley Borough Council contractor MPS began constructing a new wet room for her son.

Hope soon turned to horror, however, as the contractor only half-completed the work – leaving sewage leaking from a badly-fitted pipe onto her unsealed bathroom floor and live electric wires exposed above her shower unit, and in direct contact with water.

Concerned that her son, who “likes to pull things and the colour red”, might electrocute himself – and frustrated by the council’s inaction – Rebecca splashed £550 on her own independent electrician to inspect the work.

Sean Mulholland, of SH Electrical (Basingstoke) LTD, subsequently visited the home last Friday, and couldn’t believe what he found – issuing a danger notice to the council requiring an immediate fix to the bathroom’s electrics, but also identifying a new, potentially fatal fault with the home’s “uncovered” fuse box.

According to company secretary, Charlotte Mulholland, a live wire was hanging so low from the fuse box, that Rebecca’s son “could have swung from it”. And yet this was apparently signed off as safe before the family moved in by another council repairs contractor Mears.

Charlotte added the home’s electrics were the worst the company has “ever seen in a local authority home” and accused the council of showing a “complete disregard for life”.

Waverley subsequently arranged for another electrical contractor to check the home’s electrics on Tuesday, and has since vowed to “take the necessary action to ensure any issues are rectified as soon as possible”. A council spokesman apologised to the family, and added: “We will also ensure we identify what happened and why, and apply any lessons we learn to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”

In a joint statement, Mears and MPS also apologised to the family, and confirmed a “full investigation” is under way.

Rebecca, though, has been left “appalled” by the episode, has lodged a formal complaint against the council and has vowed to take the matter further on behalf of other Waverley housing tenants.