Families were left without hot running water for four weeks and struggled with faulty heating as the winter nights drew in, until the Recorder intervened.

It’s the second time this year that residents in Nebula Court, Plaistow, have had no hot water for at least a month and they say they are angry that the problem has happened again.

One Housing Group, which owns the block of 57 flats, said in a statement that it was “aware that there have been issues” that it had sent engineers to fix the problem on Thursday after the Recorder got in touch about residents’ concerns.

Married dad-of-four Imran Ali, who lives in the block, said: “I had to take my kids to my sister’s house to get showered. It has been very difficult. We have had our life and routine turned upside down.”

Mr Ali, 38, and his son have psoriasis, a skin condition that can cause itchy or sore patches on the body.

“The doctor says I need to shower twice a day – and so does my son – otherwise it starts to become itchy. I can’t even imagine how he feels.”

He said it was “disgusting” that the flats had been left without hot running water for the second time this year, adding: “The Recorder has really helped us and I cannot say thank you enough. Without the Recorder, I wouldn’t have known what to do.”

Another resident, Shah Nawaz, said his wife and three children have been struggling to stay warm with heating working only intermittently over recent weeks.

His eldest son suffers from epilepsy and a learning disability known as global developmental delay.

Said Mr Nawaz: “If the hot water is not on, my son is exposed to the cold. He is coughing a lot. The winter is on us and we are cold and we have kids.”

A spokeswoman for the housing association said: “We are aware that there have been issues and we have worked hard to resolve them. Engineers have been on site today and will stay on site for the next four days.

“If any of the residents would like to speak to anyone we have people on standby and they will be on standby over the weekend.”

She added: “We will be installing a magnetic filter which we expect to prevent this problem in the future.”