Ombudsman’s Foreword

A note on language: We recognise that Disabled people are not a uniform group. They are individuals whose housing needs and experiences vary depending on the nature of their disability, their background, and wider circumstances.

In this report we have tried to use language underpinning the Social Model of Disability, which is used by most organisations working with Disabled people. The model emphasises that people are disabled because of barriers put up by society, as opposed to any impairments or differences they may have. Usually a capital ‘D’ is used for Disabled in this context.

Everyone accepts England has a housing crisis.

Rocketing numbers of people are affected by it, and increasingly people who would not have expected to be impacted, until very recently. For example, dual income families in full-time work are now facing problems accessing housing which they may not have done 20 years ago.

But housing for Disabled people is an often-overlooked part of the wider housing problem.

Disabled people have always experienced additional barriers to finding a safe, secure and suitable place to call home. However, our casework shows those barriers are sometimes more difficult to overcome than they should be.

In the complaints we investigate about council housing support services, we have seen Disabled people suffering additional injustice simply because of their disability. They are being dealt a bad hand when the cards are already stacked against them.

We are highlighting these injustices through the stories of three fictional people: Adam, Jane and Karim.

They each follow a journey through the main areas of councils’ duties in relation to housing:

• Helping people who are at risk of becoming – or have become – homeless
• Managing applications for and allocating council housing
• Helping to adapt properties for Disabled people

These three stories are formed from multiple investigations. But by stitching them into three narratives, it helps to highlight the numerous touch points where things can go wrong.

Individuals complaining to us are unlikely to have experienced problems spanning the whole housing system. But over a longer period, it is sadly possible that a Disabled person could suffer injustice at every part of the journey.

I want to stress this report aims to be constructive. We know the housing crisis is a national issue requiring national solutions.

Councils are failing in their duties to homeless people across the country, and in increasing

numbers, because they cannot secure enough housing. The evidence from councils is that finding affordable properties that are adapted, or adaptable, for the needs of Disabled people is harder still. One council told us finding accommodation to meet the needs of a Disabled child was “an impossible task”.

However, while our stories highlight the local impact of national problems, some of the injustice is avoidable. The good practice we offer for councils is practical and achievable. Often this comes down to councils upholding good administrative practice – in other words, getting the basics right.

By doing this they can minimise the injustice Disabled people already experience accessing housing.

By launching this report, we hope to influence the way councils think about housing support for Disabled people by encouraging senior officers and politicians to give it the prominence and scrutiny it deserves. To help them, this report concludes with a selection of questions they can consider when reflecting on the performance of their services.

This report will be accompanied by a series of guides for housing officers doing the work on cases. These will provide more detailed learning, helping to ensure the day-to-day decisions they make have the best possible impact for Disabled people.

This report alone cannot even the odds for Disabled people in accessing housing. But by throwing the spotlight on the injustices we uncover, I hope we can add weight to the call to make things much fairer.

Amerdeep Somal

Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman

June 2025