MULTI-STOREY blocks of flats seemed a quick and easy way to house lots of people using comparatively small amounts of land when they shot up all over the country in the 1960s.

Today, except in major cities where prices are sky high, such high rise homes are no longer most people's idea of a good place to live.

They quickly fell into a bad state of repair, suffered badly at the hands of vandals and left many residents feeling isolated, lonely and vulnerable.

Many blocks around the country have been demolished while others have been used to accommodate students or asylum seekers.

Some, however, have been transformed by forward-thinking landlords into places where people do enjoying living.

The idea is that thoughtful modernisation and the installation of effective security and lighting plus careful selection of tenants produce a place where people can live together as a community.

Such a scheme has been put into effect at St Michael's Court, Blackburn, where many of the tenants seem to be elderly, disabled or both.

For that reason, it seems astonishing that people like 72-year-old George Brown, who has no legs, has been unable to get out of the building more than three or four times since the lift he would use broke down a fortnight ago.

Mr Brown has to manoeuvre himself down flights of stairs to the working lift - a procedure he, not surprisingly, finds exhausting.

Although tenants say the broken lift was reported two weeks ago, Twin Valley Homes say they have been waiting for a part to be delivered before they can fix it and a solution is near.

In future, they should ensure a stock of spare parts is carried so that repairs are immediate and tenants are not subjected to such unacceptable humiliation and distress.