Summary: Ms X complained the Council housed her in unsuitable bed and breakfast accommodation and delayed fixing her problems with bidding on the housing register. Whether the interim accommodation provided was self-contained or a bed and breakfast is a matter of law better considered by the courts and we have not investigated it here. There was no fault in the Council’s actions regarding the issues with the housing register.

The complaint

1. Ms X complains the Council:
1. Housed her and her children in unsuitable accommodation for too long;
2. Failed to resolve issues she was having bidding on the housing register;
3. Delayed reviewing its decision about whether the family were intentionally homeless; and
4. Asked them to leave the accommodation with no alternative housing in place.
2. Ms X says the Council’s actions have caused her and the children to have to sofa-surf and have caused them all avoidable distress and frustration.

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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. We cannot question whether a council’s decision is right or wrong simply because the complainant disagrees with it. We must consider whether there was fault in the way the decision was reached. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)
4. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone could take the matter to court. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to go to court. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(c), as amended)
5. We do not start or may decide not to continue with an investigation if we decide there is another body better placed to consider the complaint. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
6. 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(i), as amended)

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What I have and have not investigated

7. I have investigated complaints 1a and 1b.
8. Complaints 1c and 1d relate to an intentional homelessness decision by the Council and a subsequent review process. Ms X was not the main applicant for this decision or review and Ms X has not returned our consent form to enable us to investigate these matters on the other person’s behalf. As a result I have not investigated complaints 1c and 1d.
9. I have investigated the key events in this complaint between 10 April 2023 and 10 April 2024. Any events after 10 April 2024 are new matters which the Council has not yet had the opportunity to respond to through its complaints process.

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How I considered this complaint

10. I considered the information provided by Ms X and the Council.
11. I considered the relevant law and guidance as set out below.
12. I considered our Guidance on Remedies.
13. I considered all comments received from Ms X and the Council on a draft decision before making a final decision.

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What I found

Law and guidance

Homelessness

14. 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.
15. 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)

Intentional homelessness

16. The Council can end its main duty if an applicant is intentionally homeless from accommodation the council has provided to meet the main housing duty. An applicant will be intentionally homeless if they do, or fail to do, something which results in them losing accommodation they would otherwise have been able to continue to live in. (Housing Act 1996, section 191(1))
17. People are entitled to a statutory review of a council’s decision that they are intentionally homeless.

Accommodation pending review

18. Applicants may ask a council to provide accommodation pending the outcome of a review. Councils have a power, but not a duty, to accommodate certain applicants and members of their household. (Housing Act 1996, sections 188(3), 199A(6), 200(5))
19. The law says councils must ensure all accommodation provided to homeless applicants is suitable for the needs of the applicant and members of their household. This duty applies to interim accommodation as well as accommodation provided under the main housing duty. (Housing Act 1996, section 206 and Homelessness Code of Guidance 17.2)

Bed & breakfast accommodation

20. Wherever possible, councils should avoid using bed and breakfast accommodation. (Homelessness Code of Guidance paragraph 17.33)
21. Bed and breakfast (B&B) accommodation can only be used for households which include a pregnant woman or dependent child when no other accommodation is available and then for no more than six weeks. B&B is accommodation which is not self-contained, not owned by the council or a registered provider of social housing and where the toilet, washing, or cooking facilities are shared with other households. (Homelessness (Suitability of Accommodation) (England) Order 2003 and Homelessness Code of Guidance paragraph 17.35)

What happened

22. Following a homelessness application made by Ms X, the Council accepted a prevention and then a relief duty to Ms X, her partner and her two young children.
23. The family moved into interim accommodation in late August 2023. Ms X was pregnant when she moved into the accommodation and the Council was aware of this.
24. The Council used its discretionary power to provide the interim accommodation, pending its review of the decision that Ms X’s partner had become intentionally homeless.
25. The property was one room with sleeping space for all family members in that room. It had an ensuite bathroom and private access within the room to a kettle, a microwave oven and a fridge. The family also had access to a main kitchen and laundry room which was shared with other residents. Around two weeks before Ms X’s due date, the Council moved the family to a larger room in the same building.
26. The accommodation was in a different council area and was just under twelve miles from where one of Ms X’s children went to nursery. This was accessible by bus or train from the public transport stops near the interim accommodation. Ms X continued to receive support from her social worker and midwifery team.
27. In March 2024 Ms X complained to the Council. She said the family had been living in the accommodation for more than the six weeks allowed in law for B&B accommodation and it was too far from her child’s nursery and her support while pregnant. Ms X also complained she had been experiencing problems bidding on the Council’s housing register for several months.
28. The Council responded to say that the six-week limit on B&B accommodation for families did not apply in this case because the accommodation was self-contained. It acknowledged it was outside Basildon but said this was due to a lack of suitable accommodation within the Council’s own area.
29. Regarding the issues bidding, it said it had most recently asked her to send screenshots of the issues in December 2023 but these were not provided. This is reflected in the case records from this time.
30. Ms X asked the Council to consider her complaint at stage two as she was unhappy with its response regarding her bidding, which it did. By the time the Council responded, it said it was pleased to note the issue with bidding was now resolved.
31. The Council’s records show it was in regular contact with Ms X to try and resolve the technical issues with her bidding between October 2023 and April 2024.
32. The Council told the Ombudsman it considered the accommodation was suitable due to it being self-contained – not a B&B – and due to the public transport links to Ms X’s support network and the children not being of compulsory school age.

My findings

Complaint 1a) Unsuitable interim accommodation

33. The Council used its power under section 188(3) of the Housing Act to provide Ms X and her family with interim accommodation pending review. It decided the accommodation it provided was suitable due to the ages of the children and the distance from Ms X’s support network. The Council considered the law and regulations in making this decision. The Council was not at fault.
34. The Council also decided the accommodation was not a B&B, because the room had its own bathroom and contained its own cooking facilities – a microwave oven, a fridge and a kettle.
35. The basis for the Council’s decision about whether this was self-contained is a matter of legal interpretation. The role of the Ombudsman is to decide whether the Council acted with fault. It is not for the Ombudsman to decide if the Council’s interpretation of the law is correct. The court is best placed to decide such questions of law. I have therefore stopped my investigation into this part of the complaint.

Complaint 1b) Issues with bidding on housing register

36. The Council stayed in contact with Ms X to resolve the issues with her bidding on the housing register. Ms X did not return the documents requested for several months. Once these were provided, the bidding was restored. The Council made the efforts we would expect to resolve the issue and was not at fault.

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Final decision

37. I have completed my investigation. I have found no fault in the Council’s actions.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman