Ombudsman criticises council after family in unaffordable flat denied right to appeal homelessness decision
A father who gave up his life abroad at short notice to look after his children was denied his housing rights by Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council, a Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman investigation has found.
The man had been living and working abroad when the courts removed his children from the care of his ex-partner in December 2012.
He returned to the UK to look after them and was placed in a three-bedroom, privately rented flat by the council. However, he was unable to afford the rent, initially £850 a month but which rose to £1,025. The operation of the benefits cap meant his housing benefit also reduced.
The man and his family have been living there ever since, and have been given no opportunity to appeal.
The Ombudsman’s investigation found that Basingstoke & Deane’s actions denied the father his rights as a homelessness person whom the council had a legal duty to help.
The LGO said the council’s records showed that when the father applied as homeless, it decided it owed him the full homelessness duty. It should have sent the father a notice explaining this, but instead arranged a six-month private let without explaining the consequences if he signed for the property.
Had the council acted properly, the LGO said, “the flat would have been temporary accommodation, and would have remained so till it made an offer of accommodation under its allocation scheme or settled accommodation under its homelessness duty.
“Until the council made a final decision on his homelessness application, it had a duty to provide the father and his family with interim accommodation.”
In 2017 and 2018, the family received notices seeking possession because of rent arrears.
The council offered the family one room in a hostel with shared bathroom and kitchen facilities. The father declined the offer.
Basingstoke & Deane has paid more than £10,000 to the landlord to cover the family’s housing benefit shortfall, but the family still lives in the unaffordable flat.
The Ombudsman has called on the council to:
- apologise to the father;
- place him top of the list for each eligible property he bids for until he makes a successful bid;
- pay the father £4,500 for failing to deal with his homelessness and housing applications correctly and the delay in rehousing his family to settled, affordable accommodation, and the stressful possession proceedings. This payment will also cover the arrears of £500 he still had after the council made discretionary housing payments and the time, trouble and distress the council caused him;
- tell people in its allocations scheme and housing register review decisions letters about their right to complain to the Ombudsman.
Michael King, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, said: “The council failed to discuss the ramifications of accepting the property to the family when it arranged the private let. The council should have either explained that by accepting the flat the council would no longer have a duty towards them, or it should have offered the flat as temporary accommodation, with all the review rights that entails.
“Instead, the council effectively acted as a gatekeeper, did not give the family a homelessness decision and denied them their review rights.”
The Ombudsman added: “Had the council acted properly in this case, it would not have had to pay a significant sum to the private landlord to make up the difference in the rent.
“I would now urge the council to consider my report and accept its findings.”
Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council’s Executive Director of Borough Services Rebecca Emmett said: “The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has issued a report following its investigation of a complaint against the borough council. The council must now consider the report and tell the Ombudsman what it proposes to do. We cannot comment on individual cases."
