Mould will be removed and a housing block repaired, but one politician has criticised the timeline for the works.

A terrace of 14 houses in Penniwell Close, Edgware, has seen the last family be moved so that works can start on repairing the roofs and removing mould from the housing.

Barnet and Camden Greater London Authority member Andrew Dismore, criticised the housing association, Family Mosaic, now part of the Peabody Housing Association after a merger earlier this year, for initially blaming the problems on residents and not getting to work to fix the problems earlier after he says they contacted him in February with their plans.

He said: "They have taken months to do anything, and are now likely to be very delayed in finishing the work and getting families moved back in.

"I don’t believe the work will be done before Christmas, given they had previously said they thought it would take six months to complete.

"They have handled the whole situation appallingly badly and should be ashamed of themselves."

Family Mosaic, however, say they made it a "priority" to fix the homes, which were built in 2008, as soon as they identified it, and assigned the reason for the delay as due to the complexity of the work.

A spokesperson said: "We have been working hard to carry out repairs to the homes at Penniwell Close. Due to the complex nature of the works, it has been necessary to find alternative accommodation for residents. It has taken longer than we anticipated to work with each of the families to find an alternative home that is suitable.

"We recognise this has been a difficult time for them and are grateful for their patience while our contractors fix the problem and improve their homes."

The spokesperson also issued an invitation to Mr Dismore to visit the site to discuss the sequencing of the works programme with him, confirming works have been progressing since July and their target is to get people back in the homes by Christmas, as long as the weather allows them to carry out all necessary works.

They added: "Family Mosaic is investing in these homes for the long-term. We are committed to providing high quality homes at a rent that people can afford. Unfortunately, there have been problems with these homes, but once these were identified we made it a priority to resolve them.

"We would like to assure our residents that, together with the London Borough of Barnet, Building Control Authorities and the National House Building Council, we will do all we can to get them back into their improved homes as soon as possible."