LGO criticises council in overcrowding case, warns it could be prosecuted

The Local Government Ombudsman has roundly criticised a council for breaching the law by placing a homeless family in a property that was too small for them from the moment they moved in.

The LGO, Dr Jane Martin, said City of York Council could be prosecuted for the offence while the family of four continues to live in the property.

The family, which included two daughters aged nine and ten, had applied to York for housing on the ground that they were homeless.

York offered them a property with two bedrooms. However, according to the LGO, one of those rooms was too small by law for the children.

In his complaint to the Ombudsman, the father said the council had insisted he accept the property. He also accused York of failing to give him adequate priority on the housing register to allow him to move to a bigger property in a reasonable time frame.

Following an investigation, the LGO recorded a finding of maladministration causing injustice. The Ombudsman said she “expects the council to be aware of the law and carry out basic checks on the properties it lets to ensure it complies with its statutory obligations”.

Dr Martin also criticised York for maintaining its stance that it had acted within the law, even after the complainant, his MP and the Ombudsman’s office itself had raised the issue. As a result the family was forced to stay in unsuitable conditions for a further six months.

York increased the level of priority for the family, and backdated it to the date they accepted the tenancy.

The LGO has now advised that it should raise this to the highest priority. It added that while York was considering this, the father bid successfully on a three-bedroom property.

York has now agreed to pay the complainant £2,000 for the family’s “significant distress, frustration, time and trouble”.

The council will also “review its guidance to housing officers on its duties under overcrowding legislation and government guidance, and arrange refresher training for all housing officers involved in making offers of accommodation to ensure their knowledge and practice is up to date”.

Dr Martin said: “This has caused the family a serious injustice. They have been forced to live in overcrowded conditions for over two years and the two daughters, now aged 11 and 12, have had to share a bedroom barely big enough for two single beds.”