The Council will issue written reminders to staff who deal with housing reviews to ensure they give proper scrutiny to supporting evidence and explain their reasons for not relying on evidence where they decide not to.

The Council will review what happened to the Council’s records when the previous housing team was disbanded to ensure problems with record keeping and access to records is not repeated in any future restructure and identify any areas for improvement.The Council will remind staff completing reviews of the ongoing suitability of temporary accommodation they should be completed within eight weeks of the request.

The Council will provide the Ombudsman with evidence it has arranged training for officers dealing with homeless applications on:what the code of guidance and law says in relation to assessing homeless applications;how to assess whether it is reasonable for an applicant to remain living in their accommodation;when a prevention duty is owed;when a relief duty is owed;when interim accommodation should be considered;when any prevention duty, relief duty and PHP should be reviewed; andthe need to issue decisions with appeal rights in writing and to ensure PHP’s are completed.The Council will review the procurement policy to identify ways to expand the type of accommodation available to the Council to house homeless applicants to ensure there is sufficient self-contained accommodation available for applicants for whom shared accommodation is unsuitable.The Council will remind officers of the need to carry out a suitability assessment before placing a homeless applicant in shared or other temporary accommodation.

The Council will review its process for assessing housing register applications (including new applications, change of circumstances requests and review requests), and consider what further steps it can take to reduce current delays in addition to the implementation of its new database. This may include recruiting or redeploying and training additional staff to address the backlog. It will provide the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman with an action plan setting out the steps it proposes to take.The Council will remind relevant staff of the need to issue housing register decisions in writing, with reasons and any rights of review or appeal.

The Council has agreed to share a copy of this decision with staff in the relevant departments to identify learning from this complaint and then ensure directors in the relevant departments to implement and track the lessons learnt.The Council has agreed to remind relevant staff of the Council’s duties and powers to deal with anti-social behaviour and that the different standard of proof required to take civil action means the Council can act even if the police have not.The Council has agreed to remind relevant staff of the low threshold triggering its duty to make inquiries into whether someone is homeless or threatened with homelessness and that an applicant can trigger this duty by approaching any department in the Council.The Council has agreed to remind relevant staff that housing applications from existing tenants which indicate a need to move on reasonable preference grounds should be considered against the reasonable preference criteria and not only as a management transfer.The Council has agreed to provide an update on its progress against the action plan it agreed following a previous investigation about its delays assessing applications to the housing register.

The Council has agreed to provide guidance or training to staff conducting reviews of medical assessment decisions to ensure decisions explain how the Council has reached its decision, with reference to the evidence and the allocations scheme.The Council has agreed to remind relevant staff that if the Council will not be able to meet its 56-day timescale for responding to review requests, it should tell the applicant this before 56 days have passed.

The Council will review the template letters it sends to applicants to ensure they explain clearly whether the Housing Register assessment has been completed and whether a final decision has been made which carries review rights. The Council has already accepted the recommendation we made for wider service improvements following a recent investigation of another complaint. So there is no need to make further recommendations. It should provide us with evidence by 5 July 2023 that it has completed the review and prepared an action plan to reduce the significant backlog and delays in processing applications.

The Council should share its action plan, and provide an update, on its proposed improvements to address the delays in processing homeless applications. It should also explain how it will monitor the effectiveness of the new framework.The Council should implement a process to ensure the Council picks up and covers cases when an officer is off sick or on prolonged leave. It should communicate this to relevant staff.

The Council will remind its staff of the Council’s duty to provide advice and support to residents approaching its services regarding homelessness and access to the Council’s Housing Register. This includes properly considering eligibility for housing assistance for complainants who may already hold a tenancy, but believe the accommodation is unsuitable due to disrepair or rodent infestations.The Council will remind its complaints handling staff to respond to complaints in line with the timescales set out in the Council’s Complaints Policy. Including ensuring complainants are informed about delays in providing its responses and the reasons for such delays.

The Council has agreed to remind officers to fully consider what statutory duties the Council owes applicants who have been approved for a housing management transfer. In particular, the Council will remind officers to consider whether applicants are owed a homelessness duty, in cases where the Council has decided they cannot reasonably remain in their homes.The Council has agreed to put in place a procedure to document the actions it takes to monitor and progress applications approved for housing management transfers.The Council has agreed to review and update its Allocations Scheme, to clarify the rights afforded to applicants approved for housing management transfers. In particular, the Council will ensure its scheme clearly sets out if and when an applicant can request a review of the Council's decisions. It will also clearly set out any restrictions on the type and location of properties offered through management transfers.