Summary: Miss X complained about how the Council dealt with her brother’s (Mr X) housing register and homelessness applications. We found fault with its handling of both matters. The Council agreed to apologise to Mr X, reconsider its decision not to backdate his housing register application and make him a payment in recognition of the injustice caused to him. It also agreed to check its records to see if Mr X would have been the first placed bidder on any suitable properties offered by the Council between January 2024 and August 2025, when Mr X’s bidding number was activated.

The complaint

1. Miss X complained the Council failed to reinstate her brother’s (Mr X) housing register application after he moved out of the borough in 2022. Miss X also complained the Council did not assign him a Housing Officer or housing register bidding number, took too long to provide him with temporary accommodation and communicated poorly with her.
2. Miss X says the Council’s actions left her brother without accommodation for longer than necessary, prevented him from bidding for permanent social housing and caused him distress which has impacted his physical and mental health.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused significant injustice, or that could cause injustice to others in the future we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
4. If we are satisfied with an organisation’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(1), as amended)

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What I have and have not investigated

5. I have investigated matters which have occurred since our previous investigation into Miss X’s complaint. I have not considered matters which we investigated as part of our earlier investigation.

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How I considered this complaint

6. I considered evidence provided by Miss X and the Council as well as relevant law, policy and guidance.
7. Miss X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments before making a final decision.

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What I found

8. Part 7 of the Housing Act 1996 and the Homelessness Code of Guidance for Local Authorities set out councils’ powers and duties to people who are homeless or threatened with homelessness.
9. Councils must complete an assessment if they are satisfied an applicant is homeless or threatened with homelessness. Councils must notify the applicant of the assessment. Councils should work with applicants to identify practical and reasonable steps for the council and the applicant to take to help the applicant keep or secure suitable accommodation. These steps should be tailored to the household, and follow from the findings of the assessment, and must be provided to the applicant in writing as their personalised housing plan. (Housing Act 1996, section 189A and Homelessness Code of Guidance paragraphs 11.6 and 11.18)

Duty to arrange interim accommodation (section 188)

10. A council must secure interim accommodation for an applicant and their household if it has reason to believe the applicant may be homeless, eligible for assistance and have a priority need. (Housing Act 1996, section 188)

The relief duty

11. Councils must take reasonable steps to help to secure suitable accommodation for any eligible homeless person. When a council decides this duty has come to an end, it must notify the applicant in writing (Housing Act 1996, section 189B)

The main housing duty

12. If a council is satisfied an applicant is homeless, eligible for assistance, and has a priority need the council has a duty to make accommodation available (unless it refers the application to another housing authority under section 198). But councils will not owe the main housing duty to applicants who have turned down a suitable final accommodation offer or a Housing Act Part 6 offer made during the relief stage, or if a council has given them notice under section 193B(2) due to their deliberate and unreasonable refusal to co-operate. (Housing Act 1996, section 193 and Homelessness Code of Guidance 15.39)

Housing Allocations

13. Every local housing authority must publish an allocations scheme that sets out how it prioritises applicants, and its procedures for allocating housing. All allocations must be made in strict accordance with the published scheme. (Housing Act 1996, section 166A(1) & (14))
14. Councils must notify applicants in writing of the following decisions and give reasons:

• that the applicant is not eligible for an allocation;
• that the applicant is not a qualifying person;
• a decision not to award the applicant reasonable preference because of their unacceptable behavior.
   

15. The Council must also notify the applicant of the right to request a review of these decisions. (Housing Act 1996, section 166A(9))
16. Housing applicants can ask the council to review a wide range of decisions about their applications, including decisions about their housing priority.
     

Tower Hamlets Borough Council Allocations Scheme

17. This states that applicants to its housing register need to have lived in the borough continuously for the last three years to join the register. It says that applicants must remain living in the borough to preserve their registration. However, it says that in exceptional circumstances it is acceptable for an applicant to move out of the borough for short period of time and not lose their registration.

What happened

Background

18. Mr X has lived in the Council’s area since childhood. He has a diagnosis of a progressive and severe medical condition.
19. In 2011 Mr X applied to the Council’s housing register. The Council accepted his application.
20. In June 2022 Mr X had to move from his shared accommodation because of his health needs. Unable to find suitable accommodation in the Council’s area he moved outside its boundaries.
21. In September 2022 Mr X left his accommodation. He told the Council about the change in his circumstances and that he was homeless.
22. In November the Council told Mr X he was not eligible to remain on its housing register because he had not lived within its area continuously for the last three years.
23. Miss X complained to the Council about its handling of Mr X’s housing register application and his homelessness. She was unhappy with its reply and complained to the Ombudsman. Our investigation found the Council:
• failed to properly consider Mr X’s request to remain on its housing register, which it refused because he moved out of its area briefly in 2022.
• failed to invite Mr X to make a homelessness application when he told it that he was homeless.

The Council agreed to reconsider its decision not to allow Mr X to join its housing register and to invite him to make a homelessness application.

Current complaint

24. In early January 2024 the Council invited Mr X to make a homelessness application. He did so.
25. On 11 January the Council completed a homelessness assessment for Mr X. It issued him with a Personalised Housing Plan and accepted the relief duty to him.
26. The Council offered Mr X interim accommodation. Mr X refused saying he would continue staying with family and friends while the Council completed an assessment of his medical needs.
27. The Council also accepted Mr X on its housing register due to him being owed a reasonable preference because he was homeless. The Council included him on its housing register from the date of his homelessness application. It gave his application a priority band of 2B but did not provide him with a bidding reference number.
28. In March the Council completed a review of its decision not to allow Mr X to rejoin its housing register. It said Mr X moved out of the borough in June 2022 and so he has not lived in the borough for the last three years, as required by its allocations policy. It said the tenancy agreement for the property Mr X moved to was for six months and the tenancy would continue year on year. Therefore it said Mr X’s move from the borough was not temporary and so it would not reinstate his housing register application from 2011. It also said Mr X had not provided any evidence that his move out of the borough was necessitated by poor health.
29. The letter also explained the Council had accepted a new housing register application from Mr X in January 2024. It did so because it had accepted his homelessness application. The new application was not backdated to reflect Mr X’s previous housing register application.
30. In April the Council’s independent medical assessor completed the medical assessment for Mr X. It found Mr X had a progressive and severe medical condition. It said he required self-contained accommodation with a bathroom.
31. In May Mr X complained to the Council. He complained about the Council’s decision not to backdate his housing register application to 2011. He explained it should do so because he moved out of the borough due to his medical needs.
32. In June the Council replied to Mr X’s complaint. It reiterated the explanation given to Mr X in its review decision. It did not uphold his complaint.
33. In June the Council referred Mr X’s case to a new caseworker. Mr X’s caseworker found him temporary accommodation suitable for his needs, and he moved in that month.
34. In July Mr X asked for his complaint be considered at the second stage of the Council’s complaints process. His grounds of complaint remained the same.
35. In September the Council replied to Mr X’s stage two complaint. It upheld its previous decision.
36. In December the Council referred Mr X’s homelessness application to its backlog team as a decision on his application was still outstanding.
37. In July 2025 the Council gave Mr X’s homelessness case to another caseworker to complete the outstanding enquiries needed to decide his application.
38. In August the Council activated Mr X’s housing register bidding number so he could bid on suitable available permanent accommodation.
39. Unhappy with the Council’s handling of Mr X’s case, Miss X complained to the Ombudsman on his behalf.
40. We made enquiries of the Council. In response it provided a copy of Mr X’s housing file. It also:
• apologised for the delay in deciding Mr X’s homelessness application.
• recognised that it took 2 months to act on the medical assessment and provide Mr X with interim accommodation.
• explained technical issues have prevented Mr X receiving a bidding number to bid for suitable permanent accommodation.

In recognition of the frustration and stress caused to Mr X by these delays it offered to make him a symbolic payment of £1300.

41. The Council’s reply also reiterated that it does not consider there are grounds to backdate Mr X’s housing register application to 2011. It also said it considered it had communicated appropriately with Mr X and Miss X.

Finding

Homelessness application

42. The Council accepted Mr X’s homelessness application in January 2024. At the time of replying to our enquiries the Council was yet to decide his application. The Ombudsman expects the Council to decide a homelessness application within 57 days of receiving the application. The Council has far exceeded this timescale. This is fault.
43. The identified fault has caused Mr X uncertainty, frustration and distress. Miss X and Mr X have also been put to avoidable time and trouble in following the matter up with the Council.

Interim accommodation

44. The Council offered Mr X interim accommodation in January 2024 when it accepted his homelessness application. Mr X refused the offer and said he would stay with family and friends until it had assessed his medical needs. This was Mr X’s choice, and I do not find fault by the Council up to this point.
45. The Council received the result of its assessment of Mr X’s medical needs in April 2024. However it did not act on the assessment and make Mr X a new offer of interim accommodation until June 2024. This is fault which resulted in Mr X being deprived of suitable interim accommodation for two months.

Housing register application

46. The Council allowed Mr X to join its housing register in January 2024, when it accepted his housing register application. However it did not provide Mr X with a bidding number until August 2025. This a significant delay of 19 months.
47. This fault meant Mr X could not bid for properties between January 2024 and August 2025. This caused Mr X frustration and put him and Miss X to the time and trouble of following up the matter with the Council. Additionally Mr X may also have missed out on the chance to bid for suitable permanent accommodation. This is injustice.

Housing register application

48. As part of the resolution of Mr X’s earlier complaint the Council agreed to reconsider its decision not to reinstate his housing register back to 2011. The Council did so and advised Mr X of the outcome. I do not find fault by the Council up to this point.
49. In May 2024 Mr X complained about the Council’s consideration of his review. The Council’s reply reiterated the reasons given in its review response. Its reply did not consider the outcome of the medical assessment for Mr X which it received in April 2024. The assessment found Mr X needed his own self-contained accommodation with a bathroom. The assessments conclusions support Mr X’s reasons for needing to move out of the borough to secure accommodation to meet his medical needs. The Council should have considered the result of the assessment when considering his complaint.
50. The Council’s failure to consider the outcome of Mr X’s medical assessment when considering his complaint is fault. As a result there is uncertainty his complaint was properly considered, and the correct decision made.

Communication

51. Mr X and Miss X say communication with the Council has been poor and they have been left without updates or information about Mr X’s case. I agree. I have seen no evidence of regular communication from the Council to Mr X explaining what action it is taking regarding his homelessness application or providing him with a housing register bidding number. This is fault which has put Mr X and Miss X to the avoidable time and trouble of following the matter up with the Council. This is injustice.

Agreed Action

52. To remedy the injustice set out above the Council will carry out the following actions within one month of my final decision:
• send Mr X a written apology for the injustice caused to him by the identified fault. We publish guidance on remedies which sets out our expectations for how organisations should apologise effectively to remedy injustice. The organisation should consider this guidance in making the apology I have recommended in my findings.
• make Mr X a symbolic payment of £1300 in recognition of the uncertainty and frustration caused to him by the fault I have identified. This payment, which was suggested by the Council, is in keeping with our guidance on remedies.
• reconsider its decision not to reinstate Mr X’s housing register to 2011 making sure it considers the outcome of the Council’s medical assessment when doing so.
• check its records to see if Mr X would have been the first placed bidder on any suitable properties offered by the Council between 11 January 2024 and August 2025. If the Council finds Mr X would have been offered a suitable property it should agree to make him direct offer of the next suitable property that becomes available.
• make a symbolic payment of £100 to Miss X in recognition of the time and trouble caused to her pursing updates on Mr X’s housing register and homelessness applications.
53. Within three months of my final decision the Council will:
• review its technical processes for issuing housing register bidding numbers to ensure bidding numbers are issued without delay. It will also check if the technical issues identified in this complaint have affected other housing register applicants.
54. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Decision

55. I find fault causing injustice. The Council has agreed actions to remedy the injustice.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman