• The complaint
• The Ombudsman’s role and powers
• How I considered this complaint
• What I found
• Agreed action
• Final decision

The Ombudsman's final decision:

Summary: The Council failed to provide suitable accommodation for Ms B and her family when they were homeless. It placed the family in bed and breakfast accommodation for 32 weeks, 26 weeks over the maximum time such accommodation can be used for homeless applicants with dependent children. The Council has agreed to make a payment to Ms B to remedy her family’s injustice. It has also agreed to make service improvements.

The complaint

1. Ms B complains that the Council has placed her family in unsuitable accommodation since they became homeless in March 2023. She says that her family had to live in bed and breakfast accommodation for over seven months, where she shared a room with her elderly mother and child. She says they had limited access to kitchen facilities and because of this, they had to regularly eat takeaways which were unaffordable and affected their health.
2. Ms B also complains about the suitability of the accommodation provided in October 2023. It is a homeless centre with shared facilities which Ms B considers to be unsuitable for her elderly mother, who has care and support needs.

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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 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)
4. 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

5. I have:
   • considered the complaint and the documents provided by the complainant;
   • discussed the issues with the complainant;
   • made enquiries of the Council and considered the comments and documents the Council has provided; and
   • given the Council and the complainant the opportunity to comment on my draft decision.

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What I found

Relevant legislation and statutory guidance

6. 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.

Assessments and Personal Housing Plans

7. Councils must complete an assessment if they are satisfied an applicant is homeless or threatened with homelessness. The assessment should include:
   • the circumstances that have caused them to be homeless or threatened with homelessness;
   • their housing needs, and what accommodation would be suitable for them, their household and anybody who might reasonably be expected to live with them; and,
   • the support that would be necessary for them, and anybody who will be living with them, to have and sustain suitable accommodation. (Homelessness Code of Guidance, paragraph 11.7)
8. Councils should work alongside applicants to identify practical and reasonable steps for the council and the applicant to take to help the applicant retain or secure suitable accommodation. These steps should be tailored to the household, and follow from the findings of the assessment, and must be provided to the applicant in writing as their personalised housing plan. (Homelessness Code of Guidance, paragraph 11.18)

The main housing duty

9. Under the main housing duty, councils must ensure that suitable accommodation is available for the applicant and their household until the duty is brought to an end, usually through the offer of a settled home. (Housing Act 1996, section 193(2))

Suitability

10. 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)
11. Applicants can ask a council to review its decision that the accommodation offered is suitable. A request for a review must be made within 21 days, or longer if allowed by the Council. (Housing Act 1996, sections 202, Homeless Code of Guidance, paragraph 19.3)

Bed and breakfast accommodation

12. Bed and breakfast (B & B) accommodation can only be used for households which include a pregnant woman or dependent child when no other accommodation is available and then for no more than six weeks. B & B is accommodation which is not self-contained, not owned by the council or a registered provider of social housing and where the toilet, washing, or cooking facilities are shared with other households. (Homelessness (Suitability of Accommodation) (England) Order 2003 and Homelessness Code of Guidance, paragraph 17.35)
13. When a council secures B & B accommodation for an applicant with family commitments, it should notify the application that the council will be unable to continue to secure B & B accommodation for such applicants any longer than 6 weeks, after which the authority must secure alternative, suitable accommodation. (Homelessness Code of Guidance, paragraph 17.36)

Key events

14. The Council placed Ms B, her 7-year-old daughter and 82-year-old mother in bed and breakfast (B & B) accommodation in March 2023 when they became homeless. They had an ensuite room and shared a kitchen with other families.
15. In April, the Council accepted the main housing duty to Ms B. Its letter explained that Ms B had the right to request a review of the suitability of the accommodation.
16. A charity contacted the Council on Ms B’s behalf in June. It complained that the family had been living in B & B type accommodation for more than six weeks. It said the accommodation was unaffordable, overcrowded and was having an impact on their health and wellbeing.
17. The Council placed the family in a homeless centre in October. The family was provided with two rooms, each with their own bathroom and toilet. It had a kitchen and communal area which they shared with up to three other families.
18. In the Council’s response to the charity’s complaint, it apologised for the length of the family’s stay in B & B accommodation and made an offer of financial redress. It offered to make a payment of £2500 for 25 weeks excess stay in B & B accommodation between 27 April and 24 October 2023. It said that it may offset the payment against any rent arrears.
19. Ms B accepted the Council’s offer and received a payment of £1440.31, which was £2500 minus rent arrears of £1059.69.
20. Around a month after Ms B’s family was placed in the homeless centre, Ms B requested a review of its suitability. The Council told Ms B that it would investigate her concerns but would not be carrying out a review because she had not made the request within 21 days.

Analysis

21. When Ms B approached the Council for assistance, it carried out an assessment and provided her with a personalised housing plan (PHP). The assessment should include information about the housing needs of the applicant and their household, and what accommodation would be suitable for them. This section of Ms B’s PHP was not completed. I am not satisfied that the Council identified that Ms B’s mother had care and support needs.
22. The Council’s temporary placement policy states that if a member of the household receives significant care, consideration will be given to the location of the accommodation to attempt to minimise any disruption to their care. The Council did not do so; this was fault. However, as there was no major disruption to Ms B’s mother’s care, I do not consider this caused any significant injustice.
23. The law says that B & B accommodation can only be used for households with dependent children when no other accommodation is available and then for no more than six weeks. Ms B’s family were living in B & B accommodation for 32 weeks, from 15 March until 25 October 2023. The Council breached its duties under the Housing Act 1996 by failing to provide suitable temporary accommodation. This was fault.
24. When the Council placed the family in B & B accommodation, it should have informed Ms B that it could only be provided for six weeks, after which it had a duty to secure alternative, suitable accommodation. It did not do so; this was fault. If there had been no fault by the Council here, Ms B may have approached the charity for assistance sooner.
25. The Council accepts that the B & B accommodation it provided between 27 April and 24 October was not suitable. It made a payment of £2500 (minus rent arrears) for 25 weeks excess stay in B & B accommodation.
26. I have considered whether the payment offered by the Council is sufficient to remedy the family’s injustice. Our remedies guidance says that where a family has had to stay in unsuitable B & B accommodation in excess of the six-week legal limit, we are likely to recommend a weekly payment in the range of £100 to £200. This payment is in addition to the reimbursement of any specific quantifiable costs that the homeless household incurred.
27. Ms B says that she had to depend on takeaways because she was often unable to access the kitchen. The B & B provider has confirmed that the kitchen was open between 7.30 am and 10am and between 3.30pm and 10pm. The family also had a fridge and microwave in their room. On balance, I do not consider Ms B incurred unnecessary expense on food because of the type of accommodation provided by the Council.
28. Ms B says she is not happy that the Council offset the compensation payment against her rent arrears. The Council’s letter to Ms B invited her to say why she did not consider the payment should be offset against the arrears or to make a housing benefit claim. Ms B did not raise any concerns about the Council offsetting the payment at the time. I have found no evidence of fault here.
29. The excessive length of the family’s stay in B & B accommodation would have caused the family inconvenience and distress. It would have been particularly difficult for Ms B’s mother, due to her care and support needs. I consider the Council’s offer to make a weekly payment of £100 was too low.
30. Ms B does not consider the homeless centre they moved to in October is suitable accommodation. The accommodation does not meet the legal definition of B & B accommodation because it is owned by the Council. The Council wrote to Ms B to inform her of her right to request a review of the suitability of the accommodation but it sent the letter to the wrong email address. This was fault. If the letter had been emailed to the correct address, I consider it likely that Ms B would have requested a review of the suitability of the accommodation within 21 days, and the Council would have carried out a review.
31. The Council’s temporary placement policy states that applicants may be placed on the Managed Move List if they are suitably accommodated but wish to move, or if the Council considers that their accommodation is likely to become unsuitable. Ms B has clearly stated that she wants to move and accommodation with shared facilities is very unlikely to be suitable for a family on a long-term basis. I consider the Council should place Ms B on the Managed Move List.
32. The Council took too long to respond to the complaints the charity made on behalf of Ms B. Its complaints procedure states that it will respond to stage two complaints within 20 working days. The Council took 62 working days to respond to Ms B’s stage two complaint. This delay was fault.

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Agreed action

33. The Council has agreed to place Ms B on its Managed Move List within two weeks of my final decision.
34. The Council has already made a payment of £2500 (minus rent arrears) to Ms B. Following my recommendation, it agreed to make an additional payment of £880 for the impact of being placed in unsuitable B & B accommodation between 27 April and 25 October. This figure is based on a weekly payment of £130 for 26 weeks. The Council will make this payment within four weeks of my final decision.
35. The Council has also agreed to take the following actions within four weeks of my final decision:
    • Provide training or guidance to relevant officers to ensure they are properly considering relevant matters when carrying out homelessness assessments, in accordance with the homelessness code of guidance, and that they are completing personalised housing plans appropriately.
    • Change its letter template to ensure that when the Council places a family with dependent children in bed and breakfast accommodation under the interim or main housing duty, it confirms that the Homelessness Code of Guidance states this should be limited to no more than six weeks.
    • Take action to ensure it is able to respond to complaints within the timeframes set out in its complaints procedure.
36. The Council has also agreed to carry out a review of the suitability of Ms B’s current accommodation with eight weeks of my final decision.
37. The Council has provided us with its updated B & B elimination plan which details the actions it is taking to reduce the time families are staying in B & B accommodation, which we are continuing to monitor.
38. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Final decision

39. I have completed my investigation and uphold Ms B’s complaint. There was fault by the Council which caused injustice. The action the Council has agreed to take is sufficient to remedy that injustice.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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