London Borough of Southwark (18 011 999)

Statement Upheld Homelessness 27-Sep-2019

Summary: Ms C says the Council failed to accept she was in priority need of housing under s.195A of the Housing Act 1996 as it should have done and, as a result, placed her in unsuitable accommodation which caused her distress. The Council was at fault both for a failure to recognise it owed Ms C a s.195A duty and for placing the family in unsuitable accommodation but the former fault did not cause the latter. The Council has agreed to pay her £900.

Westminster City Council (19 003 747)

Statement Upheld Homelessness 26-Sep-2019

Summary: Mr B complained about the way the Council dealt with his homeless application in September 2018 and from April 2019. We found there were delays by the Council in interviewing Mr B to obtain full information about his circumstances. This delayed the provision of interim accommodation by approximately a month. The Council has agreed to pay Mr B £300 and to review its procedures.

London Borough of Waltham Forest (19 006 641)

Statement Closed after initial enquiries Homelessness 26-Sep-2019

Summary: Mr X complained about the Council’s decision on his homeless application in 2014 and 2015. The Ombudsman should not exercise his discretion to investigate this complaint. This is because the complaint was received outside the normal 12-month period for investigating complaints and he made a previous complaint to us in 2017 about this matter.

London Borough of Waltham Forest (19 007 134)

Statement Closed after initial enquiries Homelessness 26-Sep-2019

Summary: Ms X complained about the Council placing her in rented accommodation outside the Council’s area in 2018. She says she cannot bid for housing because it renewed her private rented tenancy for another year. The Ombudsman cannot investigate this complaint. This is because she could have appealed the Council’s homeless decision in 2018 and because there is no evidence of fault in its assessment of her current housing situation.

London Borough of Brent (18 016 033)

Statement Upheld Homelessness 25-Sep-2019

Summary: Ms X’s representative complained about the way the Council handed homelessness applications made by Ms X and the suitability of the accommodation the Council offered her. The Council was at fault when it failed to offer Ms X two rights to a review, placed her in unsuitable accommodation, including bed and breakfast placements, and delayed at times in its communications with her. The Council has agreed to make a financial payment of £3,225 and make procedural changes to remedy the distress and frustration this caused Ms X and her family.

London Borough of Lambeth (19 001 761)

Statement Not upheld Homelessness 24-Sep-2019

Summary: Mr C complains that the Council failed to assist him with his homelessness problem. I have completed my investigation on the basis that there was no fault in the way the Council dealt with the issues Mr C has raised. Furthermore, Mr C had the opportunity to appeal the Councils homelessness decision in court.

London Borough of Hillingdon (18 015 052)

Statement Upheld Homelessness 23-Sep-2019

Summary: The Ombudsman found fault by the Council on Ms L’s complaint about the way it dealt with her application to join the housing register. It failed to explore information she provided or approach health professionals. The allocation policy makes no mention of general discretion when considering a failure to meet its 10-year residency requirement. It failed to consider exercising discretion following her application and appeal submissions. The agreed action remedies the avoidable injustice caused.

London Borough of Enfield (19 003 888)

Statement Upheld Homelessness 23-Sep-2019

Summary: Miss X complains about the Council’s handling of her homeless application. Miss X complains the Council did not process her application when she applied in February 2017, closed her application without telling her, and failed to update her on the progress of her application. The Ombudsman finds fault with the Council for its handling of Miss X’s homelessness application and complaint. The Council has agreed to apologise and pay Miss X a financial remedy.

Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council (18 018 114)

Statement Closed after initial enquiries Homelessness 19-Sep-2019

Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Mr B’s complaint about the way a housing company, acting on behalf of the Council, treated him when he was homeless. This is because there is insufficient evidence the injustice Mr B has described is a result of fault in the housing allocation process and it was not unreasonable to expect Mr B to seek a review and then go to the county court if he wished to challenge the suitability of the property offered to him.

London Borough of Lambeth (19 001 440)

Statement Upheld Homelessness 17-Sep-2019

Summary: There was fault in how the Council managed reports of disrepair in temporary accommodation. This meant the complainant and her son had to live with fixable problems for several years. The Council has agreed to offer a financial remedy to reflect this, and contact other residents of temporary accommodation to review how repairs have been handled.