Summary: Miss X complained the Council placed her in unsuitable emergency accommodation, delayed moving her from that accommodation, allowed the landlord to enter the accommodation without notification and moved her to another property which was unsuitable as it was unfurnished. The Council delayed addressing the issues with the suitability of the first accommodation, delayed moving Miss X to new accommodation and failed to consider the suitability of a male entering Miss X’s accommodation when she had fled domestic abuse. There is no fault in the remainder of the complaint. Miss X has suffered distress. An apology, payment to Miss X and guidance to officers is satisfactory remedy.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Miss X, complained the Council:
• placed her in unsuitable emergency accommodation;
• failed to move her from that accommodation before her second child was born, as it had agreed to do;
• failed to act when she was discharged from hospital to the accommodation which did not have any hot water or heating;
• allowed the male landlord to enter her room without notification; and
• moved her to a second property which was unsuitable as it did not have a bed or washing machine.
2. Miss X says the Council’s actions have caused her significant distress.

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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. When considering complaints we make findings based on the balance of probabilities. This means that we look at the available relevant evidence and decide what was more likely to have happened.
5. 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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How I considered this complaint

6. As part of the investigation, I have:
• considered the complaint and Miss X's comments;
• made enquiries of the Council and considered the comments and documents the Council provided.
7. Miss X and the organisation 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

The Homelessness Code of Guidance

8. Paragraph 17.2 says where a housing authority discharges its functions to secure that accommodation is available for an applicant the accommodation must be suitable. This applies in respect of all powers and duties to secure accommodation, including interim duties. The accommodation must be suitable in relation to the applicant and to all members of their household who normally reside with them, or who might reasonably be expected to reside with them.
9. Paragraph 17.4 says space and arrangement will be key factors in determining the suitability of accommodation. However, consideration of whether accommodation is suitable will require an assessment of all aspects of the accommodation in the light of the relevant needs, requirements and circumstances of the homeless person and their household. The location of the accommodation will always be a relevant factor.
10. Paragraph 17.7 says accommodation that is suitable for a short period, for example accommodation used to discharge an interim duty pending inquiries under section 188 of the Housing Act 1996 (the Act), may not necessarily be suitable for a longer period, for example to discharge a duty under section 193(2) of the Act.
11. Paragraph 17.8 says housing authorities have a continuing obligation to keep the suitability of accommodation under review, and to respond to any relevant change in circumstances which may affect suitability, until such time as the accommodation duty is brought to an end.
12. Paragraph 17.12 says accommodation will not be suitable for a household with children under the age of 2 if there is not adequate space for a cot for each child aged under 2.
13. Paragraph 21.41 says there are a number of potential accommodation options for victims of domestic abuse, and housing authorities will need to consider which are most appropriate for each person on a case by case basis taking into account their circumstances and needs. This may include safe temporary accommodation and/or a managed transfer.
14. Paragraph 21.44 says housing authorities should consider whether mixed gender accommodation is appropriate and seek to provide single sex accommodation where this is required and available. Some victims may find it traumatic to share facilities with members of a particular gender and may be the case particularly for some women who feel safer sharing with other women.

What happened

15. Miss X was fleeing domestic abuse and presented to the Council as homeless on 28 August 2024. Miss X was pregnant and had a young child under the age of 2. The Council placed Miss X in self-contained accommodation which consisted of one room and a bathroom.
16. Between 28 August and 19 December Miss X and her social worker contacted the Council often to raise concerns about the suitability of the accommodation. Both Miss X and her social worker referred to the size of the room and raised concerns about how she could manage safely when she gave birth to her second child.
17. The Council contacted Miss X on 23 December and offered her alternative temporary accommodation which was not available at that point. The Council told Miss X the accommodation was unfurnished.
18. Miss X gave birth to her second child early in January 2025. When Miss X returned home from hospital she found out the property did not have any heating or hot water. Miss X says she contacted the Council but it did not provide her with a heater until she contacted the Fire Brigade.
19. The Council arranged an appointment for a tenancy signup for the new property on 27 January. The Council provided Miss X with information about how to apply for a grant for furniture and told her the property only had a cooker and curtains. Miss X moved into the property on 3 February. The Council ordered Miss X a new bed and mattress but as it was not available immediately the Council provided her with an air bed.
20. In response to my enquiries on the complaint to the Council accepted it had failed to respond to communications from Miss X. The Council offered a financial remedy of £750.

Analysis

21. Miss X says the Council placed her in unsuitable emergency accommodation in August 2024. Miss X says the Council placed her in a small room when she had a young child and was heavily pregnant.
22. I am satisfied when placing Miss X in the first accommodation the Council carried out an assessment of her circumstances. I am also satisfied though Miss X and her social worker contacted the Council repeatedly between August 2024 and December 2024, raising concerns about the suitability of the accommodation. I have seen no evidence the Council considered the concerns Miss X and her social worker raised before 23 December. That delay is fault.
23. Miss X says there was a further delay making alternative accommodation available to her when she gave birth to her second child. Miss X says the Council agreed to provide her with alternative accommodation before her second child was born. The evidence I have seen satisfies me the Council offered Miss X alternative temporary accommodation on 23 December 2024. I understand the accommodation was not ready to move into. I do not have any documentary evidence though to suggest the Council told Miss X it would move her to the new accommodation before her baby was born.
24. As I said earlier though, Miss X had repeatedly raised concerns about the suitability of the accommodation she was staying in. Both Miss X and her social worker had also raised concerns about the size of the room and how Miss X would manage safely with a newborn child and a child under 2 in such a small space. The Council has not said whether it considered the original accommodation suitable. I appreciate the accommodation was small. However, I consider it likely, on the balance of probability, if the Council had properly considered the suitability of the accommodation when Miss X raised concerns it would likely have decided it was suitable until she gave birth to her second child. I therefore do not consider it likely the Council would have agreed to move Miss X between August 2024 and December 2024.
25. I consider it likely though, on the balance of probability, if the Council had properly considered the suitability it would have decided the accommodation was unsuitable once Miss X had given birth. As Miss X had to stay in the accommodation for almost a month with two children I therefore consider Miss X has suffered an injustice. The Ombudsman normally recommends between £150 and £350 per month when a person is living in unsuitable accommodation. Given the size of the accommodation and the fact Miss X had a newborn child I consider £350 appropriate for the delay providing alternative accommodation between January and February 2025. I also consider the Council should apologise to Miss X and pay her an extra £400 to reflect the distress she experienced because of the delay responding to her repeated contacts in 2024. That makes a total financial remedy of £750.
26. I further recommended the Council provide guidance to officers dealing with homeless applications around how to consider the suitability of interim accommodation for homeless applicants with children under the age of 2 and for those fleeing domestic abuse. The Council has agreed to my recommendations.
27. Miss X also says she returned to the accommodation after her caesarean in January 2025 to find it did not have any hot water or heating. I do not consider it likely the Council knew about that until Miss X reported it. Miss X says the Council referred her to another council’s area as that is where the accommodation was based. Miss X also says the Council only provided her with a heater when prompted to do so by the Fire Brigade. I do not have any documentary evidence around the advice given to Miss X in January 2025. I therefore cannot reach a safe conclusion about what the Council said.
28. Miss X has concerns about the safety of the accommodation first provided to her because the male landlord entered the room without notice while she was partly dressed. I recognise the Council carries out occupation checks and tells homeless applicants it has the right to enter the accommodation. However, in this case the Council knew Miss X had fled domestic abuse and was therefore vulnerable. I would have expected the Council to take that into account when arranging accommodation checks. The Council says it tells its officers to knock loudly on the door before accessing accommodation but Miss X says that did not happen in this case.
29. Given Miss X had fled domestic abuse I am concerned the Council did not give any consideration to the circumstances under which it would be appropriate to enter Miss X’s room. Nor have I seen any evidence the Council considered whether it would be appropriate for a male to enter the room. I therefore recommended, as part of the remedy for this complaint, the Council apologise to Miss X and provide guidance to officers on carrying out occupancy checks for homeless applicants fleeing domestic abuse. The Council has agreed to my recommendations.
30. Miss X says the Council moved her to a second property which was unsuitable as it did not have any furnishings. Miss X says the Council did not tell her that before she moved in. The evidence I have seen though satisfies me when telling Miss X about the new accommodation in December 2024 the Council also told her it was unfurnished. I am satisfied the Council repeated that information when it arranged an appointment for Miss X to sign up for the property in January 2025. I therefore could not say the Council failed to properly inform Miss X.
31. I am also satisfied the Council ordered Miss X a new bed and mattress, although I appreciate that did not arrive in time for Miss X moving in. I am satisfied though the Council provided her with an air bed in the intervening two days. Given all of that I have no grounds on which I could criticise the Council.

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Action

32. Within one month of my decision the Council should:
• apologise to Miss X for the distress she experienced due to the faults identified in this decision. The Council may want to refer to the Ombudsman’s updated guidance on remedies, which sets out the standards we expect apologies to meet; and
• pay Miss X £750;
• provide guidance to officers on:
1. the suitability issues they should consider before allocating interim accommodation to those with children under the age of 2;
2. the suitability issues they should consider before allocating interim accommodation to those fleeing domestic abuse;
3. access to interim and temporary accommodation by males when the homeless applicant is fleeing domestic abuse.
33. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Final decision

34. I find fault causing injustice. The action the Council will take is sufficient to remedy that injustice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman