Council workers were shocked to discover 28 people crammed into a four bedroom home as they carried out an early morning raid on an unlicensed property.

Enforcement officers from Harrow targeted the home in Mollison Way, Edgware, after a complaint of overcrowding above a commercial property.

They found the tenants living in appalling, cramped conditions and that they were all sharing a single bathroom.

Every bunk bed-filled room was lacking a working smoke alarm and there was “damp and dirt everywhere”. One small room was being used to house a family of five.

The property’s backyard was also in a terrible state; covered with rubbish and infested with rats.

The backyard was in a disgusting state

Harrow Times:

Cllr Graham Henson, responsible for the environment at Harrow Council, said: “Can you imagine being crammed into a house with more than twenty people?

“What a horrible way to live. And how the landlord did not know about this is shocking. It’s unsafe, unsanitary and exploits people who really want a decent place to live.

“As it’s the landlord’s responsibility to check on their property, we will be forcing him to make repairs, deal with the overcrowding and get it licenced or face a big fine.

“Our licensing scheme is there to ensure incidents like this don’t happen. We’ll continue to carry out raids and seek to prosecute anyone found flouting the rules and operating illegally.”

The landlord has submitted his application for an HMO licence so will now serve notice on his tenants to leave.