Council admits 'mistakes' as family live in 'unsuitable' temporary housing for five years

An ombudsman ordered Haringey Council to pay the family £1,450 in compensation, reports Grace Howarth, Local Democracy Reporter

A family received £1,450 in compensation from Haringey Council after waiting five years in “unsuitable” temporary accommodation.

A report from the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman showed the council had not “kept up to date” or “fully understood” the family’s circumstances while reviewing their housing issue.

Different council officers had dealt with specific issues meaning “no officers had considered all available information overall” which the ombudsman described as a “shortcoming”.

In response to the case, Sarah Williams, the deputy leader and cabinet member for housing and planning, said: “We take the findings from this report very seriously and have apologised for the mistakes made.”

The watchdog found the council had accepted main housing duty for the tenant – referred to as Miss X – and her family “many years ago”. Miss X was also put onto the housing register and had her housing needs assessed as priority band B.

Four years later Miss X complained to the ombudsman that the property was unsuitable and one year into her stay she was told by the council the property was in fact suitable.

Two years into her stay, Miss X hired solicitors who agreed with her assessment and informed the council the property was unsuitable and this time the council recognised it “should have reviewed” the property.

The watchdog said the council’s “failure” to take an overview of the case and to “properly engage” when “first made aware” of changing circumstances which included Miss X’s health worsening was a “fault” and the delay an “injustice”.

The council added it should have recognised the property was not “long term ideal accommodation for a growing family”.

Miss X also asked for her banding to be reviewed but the council assessed she was still band B.

Miss X asked for another review, which tenants have the right to do, but a “lack of available housing” and “more applicants” asking for reviews led to months-long delays.

Despite the council saying it was trying to get more officers in place it took several months for Miss X to get a response while the report noted her “health was worsening”.

Ultimately the council retained its band B assessment as the family were moved to a second property in the interim.

Despite the move the ombudsman said: “My investigation found fault causing injustice and not suitably addressed before the council made its review decisions and moved Miss X to property two.”

As a remedy the council was ordered to apologise and pay a symbolic payment of £1,450.

Cllr Williams added: “We have made a number of changes as we learn lessons from this case which include upskilling and recruiting staff to speed up the review of decisions and deliver a more responsive and holistic service.

“Like all London boroughs, we are dealing with a serious homelessness crisis while our options for temporary accommodation are limited, but we remain fully committed to improving how we deal with these issues.

“Despite the challenges we face from unprecedented demand on our housing services, we will continue to work hard to get this right and are keeping the ombudsman updated on our progress.”

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