Summary: Mr X complained the Council allocated his family a property which is unsuitable for their medical needs. Mr X says his parents’ physical and mental health have deteriorated due to their current living conditions. We have found the Council at fault. To remedy the injustice caused the Council has agreed to apologise, make a symbolic payment and ensure all necessary equipment is in full working order before allocating properties in future.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained on behalf of his parents, Mr and Mrs C, that the Council has allocated his family a property which is unsuitable for his parents’ medical needs as it did not check essential equipment prior to offering the property. Mr X says his parents’ physical and mental health have deteriorated due to their current living conditions. Mr X would like the Council to rehouse the family in accommodation which is suitable for his parent’s medical needs.

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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 the Council’s actions prior to allocating the property up to the point it was determined a stairlift was no longer suitable for Mrs C’s needs. This is because any injustice caused by the Council failing to ensure the stair lift was in working order ended when a stair lift was no longer deemed suitable.

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How I considered this complaint

5. I discussed the complaint with Mr X and considered the evidence he provided.
6. I made enquiries of the Council and considered its response.
7. Mr X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on the draft decision. I considered any comments I received before making a final decision.

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What I found

Legal and Administrative Background

8. Every local housing authority must publish an allocations scheme that sets out how it prioritises applicants, and its procedures for allocating housing. All allocations must be made in strict accordance with the published scheme. (Housing Act 1996, section 166A(1) & (14))
9. An allocations scheme must give reasonable preference to applicants in the following categories:
• homeless people;
• people in insanitary, overcrowded or unsatisfactory housing;
• people who need to move on medical or welfare grounds; or
• people who need to move to avoid hardship to themselves or others.
  (Housing Act 1996, section 166A(3))

What Happened

10. This section sets out the key events in this case and is not intended to be a detailed chronology.
11. In July 2013 Mrs C submitted a housing register application to the Council for herself and her family. At this time there were no medical or special needs detailed on the application.
12. Following a change to Mr and Mrs C’s medical needs an Occupational Therapy assessment took place in late 2017. The report said, due to her medical needs, Mrs C required reasonable preference for a 3-bedroom property with a stairlift and level access shower.
13. The Council updated Mrs C’s housing application to reflect the information included in the Occupational Therapy report and the application was awarded reasonable preference for an adapted property.
14. Mrs C was briefly removed from the housing register however, her application was reinstated with reasonable preference for an adapted property in October 2021.
15. In June 2023 Mrs C’s application was matched to an available property which had a level access shower and stairlift. Mr X viewed the property and was advised the stairlift was not working but would be fixed once the family had moved into the property. Mr X told us he raised various concerns with the Council regarding the condition and suitability of the property, however the Council advised him it felt the property was suitable and the family would be removed from the housing register if they did not accept this property offer. The family moved into the property in June 2023.
16. Evidence shows an engineer completed a property visit in late June 2023 and determined the stair lift had rusted beyond repair and needed to be removed as it was not safe to use. There is no evidence to show the Council took steps to ensure the suitability of the stair lift prior to allocating the property to Mr and Mrs C.
17. In July 2023, Mr C was assessed by his consultant psychiatrist who provided a letter which states Mr C’s health has been impacted by his current housing situation. The letter states Mr C has been sleeping downstairs as he is unable to access the bedroom, he is unable to move around the property safely due to the narrow corridors and the kitchen door has caused him to fall.
18. Mrs C was assessed by an occupational therapist and this assessment was completed in August 2023. This assessment recommended the family required a property with a level access shower which is either single story or has a through-floor lift adaptation if multi-story. This assessment determined a stair lift was no longer suitable or safe for Mrs C’s medical needs. After receiving the Occupational Therapy report the Council created a new housing application for Mrs C.

Analysis

19. The Council failed to ensure the stair lift was working prior to allocating the property to Mr and Mrs C. This means the property offered to Mr and Mrs C was not suitable for their assessed needs at the time the property offer was made. This caused injustice to Mr and Mrs C as they were unable to use the stairs in the property and were living and sleeping downstairs. Although the upstairs of the property remains inaccessible to Mr and Mrs C, a stair lift is no longer suitable for their needs and therefore there is no continuing injustice for the stair lift being unavailable. However, the lack of a working stair lift at the point of moving in caused distress to Mr and Mrs C so the Council should remedy this injustice.
20. The Council has created a new housing application for Mrs C and awarded her reasonable preference based on her medical needs. We do not find fault with the Council for failing to rehouse the family as it has correctly prioritised the new application according to its published lettings scheme policy.

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Agreed action

21. Within one month of the final decision the Council will:
• Apologise to Mr X and Mrs C for the faults identified.
• Make a symbolic payment of £600 in total to Mr and Mrs C in recognition of the distress caused by the faults identified.
• Make its voids team aware that all necessary equipment must be in full working order before a property is allocated.
22. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Draft decision

23. I have found the Council at fault. The Council has agreed to remedy the injustice caused by the faults identified.

Investigator’s final decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman