Summary: Ms X complained there were failings in the way the Council dealt with her homelessness application and offered her unsuitable interim accommodation causing distress and impact onto her family’s health. We found fault by the Council as it delayed accepting a relief duty towards Ms X and she remained in unsuitable interim accommodation. The Council has agreed a suitable remedy for the injustice caused so we have completed our investigation.

The complaint

1. Ms X complains there were failings in the way the Council dealt with her homelessness application and offered her unsuitable interim accommodation. Ms X says this has caused her and her family distress and impacted onto their health.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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)
3. 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

4. I have investigated events between June 2024 when the Council provided Ms X with interim accommodation and November 2024 when Ms X was offered permanent accommodation. I have referred to events in 2023 to provide background to Ms X’s complaints.

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered evidence provided by Ms X and the Council as well as relevant law, policy and guidance.
6. Ms 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

Relevant legislation and guidance

7. 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.

The prevention duty

8. If a council is satisfied an applicant is threatened with homelessness and eligible for assistance, it must take steps to help the applicant keep their home or find somewhere new to live. In deciding what steps to take, a council must have regard to its assessment of the applicant’s case. (Housing Act 1996, section 195)
9. A Council will often secure interim accommodation for an applicant while it considers their application.

The relief duty

10. 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

11. 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. (Housing Act 1996, section 193 and Homelessness Code of Guidance 15.39). The accommodation a council provides until it can end this duty is called temporary accommodation. (Housing Act 1996, section 193)
12. 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 and temporary accommodation. (Housing Act 1996, section 206 and Homelessness Code of Guidance 17.2)
13. The duty to provide suitable accommodation is immediate, non-deferrable, and unqualified. Elkundi, R (on the Application Of) v Birmingham City Council [2022] EWCA Civ 601

What happened in this case

14. The following is a summary of key events relevant to my consideration of the complaint.
15. Ms X approached the Council in July 2023 as her landlord was due to take action in October 2023 to evict her from her private rented accommodation. Ms X lived there with her two children – Y and Z. The Council dealt with Ms X under the prevention duty to see if she could remain at the accommodation and drew up a Personal Housing Plan (PHP). This explained what action the Council and Ms X would take to secure accommodation for her. The landlord and Ms X did not wish for her to remain at the property because it was considered unsuitable for her youngest child, Z who had been diagnosed with autism.
16. In October 2023 Ms X provided medical information about Z’s medical needs. The Council sent the information to its Medical Adviser for advice on whether Ms X was vulnerable and if out of borough accommodation would be suitable for her. The medical adviser said Ms X did not suffer any medical problems. But Z’s medical needs meant Ms X was vulnerable as the child was in her care. The medical adviser said Ms X needed ground floor accommodation, no internal stairs and a shower.
17. Ms X sent a letter from an OT advising her privately rented property was unsuitable and she needed rehousing due to Z’s medical needs. The Council noted Ms X’s tenancy agreement was to end In December 2023 and a bailiff warrant issued for her to leave around February 2024.
18. Ms X made a housing register application in December 2023. The Council allocated Ms X Band B for overcrowding.
19. In January 2024 the housing case worker added information from the medical adviser about Ms X’s housing situation. Due to Z’s age the medical adviser did not consider a separate bedroom was medically essential for them.
20. Ms X received a possession order in February 2024 which ended in early April 2024. In May 2024 Ms X told the Council she was due to be evicted on 27 June 2024 but had not heard from her housing officer.
21. The Council accepted a homelessness application from Ms X in June 2024. After being evicted on 28 June 2024 the Council placed Ms X, Y and Z into interim accommodation pending an investigation into her homelessness. The accommodation was a one bedroomed self-contained flat with three bed spaces.
22. The Council’s assessment form for Interim accommodation/Temporary accommodation refers to Ms X’s concerns about her current property being unsuitable, the eviction and information about Z’s medical needs. The Council says it considered the interim accommodation was suitable for one adult and two children when allocated.
23. In August 2024 Ms X provided medical information about Z and OT information about their needs. Ms X complained her current interim accommodation was not safe as Z could open doors to get outside, had no sense of danger and be injured if fell. Ms X said the neighbours were complaining about the noise caused by Z due to their autism.
24. On 22 August 2024 Ms X provided a letter from an OT in support of her need for a property. It said Z needed their own bedroom, the family to have age-appropriate sleeping arrangements, access to a secure outside garden area and adaptation such as secure windows and door locks. The OT recommended accommodation with ease of safe access to the property, ground floor and away from or distanced from main roads.
25. Ms X complained to the Council her housing officer was not returning her calls and a general lack of communication from the Council. Ms X also complained the interim accommodation was unsuitable because:
• She was having to sleep on the floor.
• Her children were struggling in the accommodation with Z keeping Y awake at night due to their autism.
• The accommodation was a distance from the children’s schools as outside of the Borough, and she was having to drive many miles each day because of this.
26. The Council responded in September 2024 at stage 1 of its complaint procedure. It asked Ms X to provide medical information from her GP and hospital consultant explaining why the interim accommodation did not meet Z’s medical needs on temporary basis. And information about her children’s schools. Once received the Council said it would assess the suitability of her interim accommodation.
27. The Council explained due to a lack of temporary accommodation it had needed to place her into a different Borough. But it would work to bring her back into the Borough as soon as it could. It suspended her housing register application until it decided her homeless application. It would then allocate her an appropriate banding, priority date and lift the suspension. The Council advised Ms X to also look for a two bedroomed accommodation in the private sector as it could help her with a deposit and rent in advance.
28. Ms X made further complaints the interim accommodation was unsuitable and unsafe. Ms X said the accommodation was causing her anxiety affecting her mental health. Ms X referred to Z’s medical needs due to autism and now epilepsy. Ms X complained again about difficulties in speaking to her housing case worker.
29. The Council responded at stage 2 of its complaint procedure. It acknowledged Ms X’s request for settled accommodation, and she was unhappy with the lack of communication form two housing officers. The Council apologised for the lack of contact Ms X received. The Council allocated a new housing officer to Ms X’s case to review the application and complete a suitability assessment of her current accommodation. It confirmed the housing team were still looking for a suitable and affordable, settled or Council managed temporary accommodation for her.
30. On 10 October 2024 the Council’s case notes recorded the ‘case is a mess’. This was because the relief duty in Ms X’s case had not been followed through. It noted Ms X should have been in relief. The case worker said they would do the relief duty retrospectively, review Ms X’s PHP and accept a main housing duty towards her. The Council accepted a relief duty towards Ms X on 11 October 2024. It said it would carry out an assessment and review the PHP.
31. The Council also responded to Ms X’s complaint at stage 2 of the complaint procedure. It noted Ms X wanted a new housing officer to deal with her case and for settled accommodation that meet the medical needs of her family. The Council apologised for the lack of communications from her two previous housing officers. It had allocated a new housing officer to Ms X’s case. The new housing officer would do a thorough review of her application, a suitability assessment of her accommodation and Ms X’s needs for any future accommodation the Council offered her. The officer would provide advice, information and advice on the next steps for Ms X. The Council confirmed its housing team were looking for suitable and affordable accommodation for Ms X. This would either be settled or Council managed temporary accommodation.
32. The housing officer carried out a suitability assessment of Ms X’s interim accommodation in October 2024. The officer noted the property was one bedroomed so not suitable for a family of three, one of whom had extreme autism. The officer said they had not seen the property but did not consider it suitable due to its condition and referred to the OT report of August 2024.
33. On 14 October 2024 the Council accepted a main housing duty towards Ms X following her homeless application made in September 2023. The Council explained it had a duty to make her a final offer of accommodation. The Council noted Ms X was in interim accommodation which would now become temporary accommodation. It told Ms X she had a right of review of the decision. The Council also sent Ms X a letter ending its relief duty towards her.
34. On 26 November 2024 the Council made Ms X an offer of a three bedroomed property as settled accommodation. Ms X viewed and accepted the offer. The Council ended its main duty towards Ms X as she accepted the offer of the property.

My assessment

35. The documents provided show the Council failed to accept relief duty towards Ms X in June 2024 and notify her of this with her appeal rights. This is fault by the Council. The Council should have accepted a relief duty towards Ms X as she was evicted from her previous property. The Council failed to make a decision about its relief duty until 11 October 2024 by which point it had also accepted a main housing duty.
36. The Council’s relief duty usually lasts for 56 days. If the Council had accepted the relief duty in June 2024 when Ms X approached it then 56 days would have ended on 22 August 2024. This is the date by which we would have expected the Council to have accepted a main housing duty. So, a delay of almost two months until it did so in October 2024.
37. The injustice caused to Ms X because of Council’s delay with accepting the relief duty has been somewhat limited by it offering her one bedroomed interim accommodation out of the borough. This was while it assessed whether she was eligible, homeless and in priority need.
38. The Council says the interim accommodation was assessed as suitable. The documents show it sought advice from its medical adviser who said Z did not need their own bedroom. So, the decision to move Ms X to the interim accommodation was one the Council was entitled to make. There is no evidence of fault by the Council in allocating Ms X the interim accommodation.
39. However, the Council has a duty to ensure all accommodation provided to homeless applicants is suitable for the needs of the applicant and members of their household. Ms X provided information from an OT in August 2024 which explained the accommodation Ms X required for Z. Ms X also complained the interim accommodation was unsuitable. There is limited evidence the Council reconsidered the suitability of interim accommodation, apart from asking Ms X to send in further information. Ms X did so but the Council took no further action until October 2024 when did a suitability assessment. This is fault by the Council as it should have reconsidered the suitability of the interim accommodation before then following Ms X’s complaints and OT information. The Council has acknowledged that was a lack of contact by Ms X’s housing officers to her correspondence. This will have added to the injustice suffered by Ms X and caused her frustration and distress.
40. The suitability assessment concluded the accommodation was unsuitable due to bedroom need. It was one bedroomed instead of three bedroomed to meet the severe autism related needs of Z. And it was also unsuitable based on Ms X and Z’s medical needs. This was referred to the information provided by the OT in August 2024. Therefore, Ms X and her family had been living in unsuitable interim accommodation between August 2024 and November 2024 when the Council offered Ms X suitable permanent accommodation. This has caused an injustice to Ms X. She had been living in unsuitable accommodation for three months causing distress and impacting on the health of all the family.
41. To remedy the injustice caused to Ms X the Council will apologise to her for failing to accept a relief duty in June 2024, delaying her appeal rights and accepting a main housing duty. It will also apologise to Ms X for failing to move her from the unsuitable interim accommodation until November 2024. The Council will make Ms X a payment to recognise the impact of living in unsuitable accommodation. Our Guidance on Remedies recommends a Council makes payment of between £150 to £350 a month to homeless applicants for being deprived of suitable accommodation. I recommend therefore the Council pays Ms X £300 a month for the three months (£900) she was without suitable accommodation. This is in recognition of the impact the accommodation had on Ms X, Y and Z due to Z’s medical needs and distress caused.

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Agreed Action

42. To remedy the injustice I have identified in paragraphs 37, 39 and 40 the Council will within a month of my final decision:
• apologise to Ms X for failing to accept a relief duty in June 2024, delaying her appeal rights and accepting a main housing duty. It will also apologise to Ms X for failing to move her from the unsuitable interim accommodation until November 2024. 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 a payment of £900 to Ms X in recognition of the impact living in unsuitable interim accommodation had on Ms X and her family for three months.
43. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Decision

44. I find fault causing injustice. The Council has agreed to the recommended actions to remedy the injustice identified in this case.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman