 which was significantly less than housing benefit, the tribunal ruled. Image: Manchester Evening News) Manchester Evening News) They had "lost pretty much everything" in the fire which also damaged several neighbouring homes,Manchester Evening News reports. Judge Jenny Lester-Ashworth ruled in favour of Mr Steinhart in the absence of the Salford city council presenting officer who could not be reached on the phone by the court. She told Mr Steinhart: "The council was wrong to end your entitlement to housing benefit and should've made a decision which would've been a closed period supersession [a temporary change in benefit for a fixed period after which entitlement to benefit would restart]." Judge Lester-Ashworth said that beca){kind=link}
Sam Steinhart, his wife and five children were rendered homeless in June 2021 when the blaze gutted their home in Broughton, Greater Manchester
A family of seven who were made homeless due to a fire at their family home will get the £5,000 they lost in housing benefit after a judge ordered a city council to put things right.
Sam Steinhart, his wife and five children were rendered homeless in June 2021 when the blaze gutted their home in Broughton, Greater Manchester.
The family initially went to stay with close relatives before being rehomed, but the Steinharts, who had been in receipt of housing benefit, had it stopped by Salford City Council.
Cash was deducted from Mr Steinhart’s wages under an attachment of earnings arrangement to collect what the city council claimed was overpaid benefit.