Summary: The Council’s failure to take a homeless application when Miss X said she was at risk of domestic abuse is fault. The Council is also at fault for failing to provide interim accommodation at the earliest opportunity. The Council has agreed to apologise, pay Miss X £1,500, and take action to improve its services.

The complaint

1. Miss X complains that the Council failed to take a homeless application or provide interim accommodation when she fled her home due to domestic abuse.
2. As a result, Miss X says she was sofa surfing with her young baby for several months and was separated from the rest of her children, who were also sofa surfing.

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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 an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
4. If we are satisfied with a council’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I spoke to Miss X about the complaint and considered the information she provided.
6. I made written enquiries of the Council and considered its response, along with relevant law and guidance. This includes the Housing Act 1996, as amended, the Homelessness Code of Guidance for Local Authorities, and the Domestic Abuse Act 2021.
7. I referred to the Ombudsman’s Guidance on Remedies, a copy of which can be found on our website.
8. Miss X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments received before making a final decision.

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What I found

Relevant homelessness law and guidance

9. Part 7 of the Housing Act 1996 and the Homelessness Code of Guidance for Local Authorities (the Code) set out councils’ powers and duties to people who are homeless or threatened with homelessness.
10. Councils can suggest alternative solutions in cases of potential homelessness where these would be suitable and acceptable to the applicant. However councils must not do this to avoid their legal duties, especially the duty to make inquiries into the applicant’s homelessness. The Ombudsman has criticised councils for ‘gatekeeping’ practices, for example, failing to take a homelessness application at the earliest opportunity. (Homelessness Code of Guidance for Local Authorities, paragraphs 2.3 and 6.4)
11. If a council has ‘reason to believe’ someone may be homeless or threatened with homelessness, it must take a homelessness application and make inquiries. The threshold for taking an application is low. The person does not have to complete a specific form or approach a particular council department. (Housing Act 1996, section 184 and Homelessness Code of Guidance paragraphs 6.2 and 18.5) 
12. 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)
13. After completing inquiries, the council must give the applicant a decision in writing. If it is an adverse decision, the letter must fully explain the reasons.  All letters must include information about the right to request a review and the timescale for doing so. (Housing Act 1996, section 184, Homelessness Code of Guidance 18.32 and 18.33)
14. A council must secure interim accommodation for applicants and their household if it has reason to believe they may be homeless, eligible for assistance and have a priority need. (Housing Act 1996, section 188)

Domestic abuse and homelessness

15. If there is evidence that gives a council reason to believe an applicant may be homeless as a result of domestic abuse, it should make interim accommodation available to the applicant immediately whilst it investigates. (from 5 July 2021, Homelessness Code of Guidance paragraph 21.25)
16. Councils should recognise that injunctions ordering a person not to molest (non-molestation orders), or not to live in the home or enter the surrounding area (occupation orders) may not always be effective in deterring some perpetrators from carrying out further violence, abuse or incursions, and applicants may not always have confidence in their effectiveness. Consequently, applicants should not be expected to return home on the strength of an injunction. (Homelessness Code of Guidance paragraph 21.39)

What happened

17. To protect Miss X and her children’s anonymity, I have set out only the most relevant dates and events, with minimal detail.
18. In April 2021, Miss X emailed the Council about her continuing fears of violence from her ex-partner, whom I shall call Mr Z. She said the police had visited about renewed threats. In her email, she asked about increasing her priority on the Council’s housing register.
19. In response, the Council advised her to contact her Resident Services Officer, and copied this officer into the correspondence. Miss X emailed the Council again later that month to say she had not heard anything from the Officer.
20. In May, Miss X emailed the Council again to say that she was at risk in her home. She explained that Mr Z had assaulted one of her children, whom I shall call B, who was now afraid to leave the house.
21. Miss X and her children left the property. Miss X and her youngest child stayed with a friend. Her older children, one of whom has special education needs, went to stay with different family and friends.
22. In June, Miss X got legal help to apply for a non-molestation order against Mr Z. Emails from the police show that his whereabouts were unknown. There were also several outstanding warrants for his arrest.
23. This same month, the Council told Miss X that she wasn’t homeless because she had a council tenancy.
24. It also said that it had considered the risk and decided there was no immediate risk to Miss X and her children staying in their home and so no need for emergency accommodation. It said that to help Miss X feel safe in her home, the Council had fitted new locks to the windows of the property. Miss X says the Council did not do this.
25. The Council said it asked the police for more information and would review the risk again on receipt.
26. In early July, the person with whom Miss X was sofa surfing told the Council she could no longer accommodate Miss X. The Council responded to advise that Miss X return to her tenancy.
27. In July, Miss X asked the Council to provide her emergency accommodation. The Council offered Miss X emergency accommodation in an area Miss X did not think was safe. The Council agreed to make another offer of accommodation.
28. Miss X says this accommodation was in an extremely poor state such that she did not feel it was safe for her young baby. She said the room had a strong smell of urine and the carpet and beds were sticky and stained. Miss X contacted the Council’s out of hours service and it arranged alternative accommodation for the rest of the weekend.
29. The Council says it does not agree the accommodation it offered was uninhabitable. It says it offered Miss X accommodation, which she refused.
30. In late July, the social worker for one of Miss X’s children wrote to the Council’s housing department. The letter said Miss X and her children were unsafe at their address and this was having a direct impact on the children’s wellbeing.
31. Miss X told the Council that she was pursuing legal action about its failure to provide interim accommodation. In response, the Council said it would now complete a homelessness assessment.
32. In August, the Council offered Miss X a transfer to a new home after a meeting of its Exceptional Needs panel agreed to the move.
33. Miss X moved into this new property later that month.

My findings

Homeless application

34. The Council told Miss X that as she had a tenancy, she could not be homeless. This is fault. The Code of Guidance says an applicant is homeless if they have accommodation, but it is not reasonable for them to continue to occupy it.
35. Miss X told the Council she did not consider her home to be safe for her and her children. In other words, that it was not reasonable for them to continue to occupy. If the Council has reason to believe that someone is homeless. It must take an application.
36. The information Miss X provided in April and May 2021 about the risk from Mr Z and his assault on B was sufficient to trigger the low threshold to take an application. Not to consider whether Miss X was homeless in April and again in May was fault.

Interim accommodation

37. Where the Council has reason to believe someone is homeless and in priority need, it must provide interim accommodation. Miss X has dependent children, which means she is in priority need. The Council should have provided interim accommodation in April while it investigated whether Miss X was homeless.
38. The Council’s records show that because Mr Z had not committed any recent violent acts at Miss X’s home, it did not consider the property was unsafe. However, there is no evidence the Council considered the impact of Mr Z’s assault on B. Mr Z knew where the family lived. He had recently assaulted B. B was afraid to leave the house, and Miss X says B missed several exams as a result. The letter from B’s social worker confirms these concerns. Not to take this into account in assessing risk at the property is fault.
39. The Council told Miss X that it would revisit the risk once it had more information from the police. However, the Code of Guidance says that where a council has reason to believe an applicant may be homeless, it should make interim accommodation available to the applicant immediately. This means the Council should have provided interim accommodation while it waited for the information from the police. Failure to do so was fault.
40. As a result, Miss X spent four months sofa surfing. She had to send her older children to stay with various friends and relatives. This is an injustice to Miss X and to the children.

Suitability of interim accommodation

41. In July, the Council offered Miss X emergency accommodation. The Council says it was suitable. Miss X says it was not habitable. There is no evidence of the Council’s consideration of the suitability of the property. There is no evidence the Council agreed to any repairs or asked Miss X for details of the issues at the property. Failure to consider the suitability of interim accommodation is fault.
42. In the absence of any records about the property from the Council, I can only rely on the evidence provided by Miss X about its condition. Miss X has provided photographs of the property which show it to be in a poor state of cleanliness and disrepair.
43. The Council’s out of hours service accepted the accommodation was not suitable and provided alternative accommodation over the weekend. On balance, therefore, I think the Council would have decided the emergency accommodation was unsuitable had it properly considered the matter.
44. The Council should have acted to make the accommodation suitable or provided alternative interim accommodation. Instead, Miss X and her children returned to sofa surfing. This is an injustice to Miss X and her children.

Conclusion

45. The Council is at fault for:
• Failing to take a homeless application in April 2021, and again in May.
• Failing to provide interim accommodation at the earliest opportunity.
• Failing to consider the suitability of interim accommodation.
46. The faults I have identified caused Miss X and her children significant injustice. While sofa surfing, Miss X had to separate her children across several households. This added avoidable distress, for both Miss X and the children, at an already difficult time.
47. Miss X had to go to significant time and trouble to get the Council to take her concerns seriously. Eventually, she had to threaten legal action before it arranged to take a homeless application. This is an injustice to Miss X.

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Agreed action

48. To remedy the injustice to Miss X from the faults I have identified, the Council has agreed to:
• Apologise to Miss X in writing
• Pay Miss X £300 for each month she spent sofa surfing, a total of £1,200
• Pay Miss X a further £300 for her avoidable time and trouble
49. The Council should take this action within four weeks of my final decision.
50. The Council should also take the following action to improve its services:
• Ensure frontline staff are aware that a homeless application can be made to any department. Provide guidance or training as necessary.
• Share this decision with staff in the relevant departments.
• Provide evidence of the Council’s changes to policy and practice since the Domestic Abuse Act 2021. This should include evidence of any training or guidance for staff.
51. The Council should tell the Ombudsman about the action it has taken within three months of my final decision.

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Final decision

52. I have completed my investigation. The Council is at fault. The action I have recommended is a suitable remedy for the injustice caused.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman