 investigated her complaint A woman in a wheelchair was left "dragging herself upstairs using her hands" after being put in an upstairs council flat without a lift. This meant she could not get in and out, even in the event of a fire. She has been awarded more than £9,000 in compensation after a North London council's delay in getting her a new home. She says the four-year-long ordeal has had a significant impact on her mental health, reports My London. Brent Council was forced to pay the woman, referred to as 'Miss X', £9,200 after the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) investigated her complaint. The report states the council "did not make efforts to try and ensure a vulnerable disabled person was offered alternative accommodation to suit her needs". In 2017 Miss X complained that the council had left her "effectively homeless" as she could not get into the property via the stairs using her wheelchair. She was forced to drag herself up using her hands, which caused her a great deal of pain. Once inside, she could not use all the rooms or escape in the event of a fire. The complaint was upheld by the LGO after Brent Council confirmed it couldn't adapt the property for her needs. It was required to urgently find suitable accommodation and pay Miss X £2,000. Miss X was forced to complain again in June 2021 as, since the original LGO ruling, she had not received any suitable offers for housing and could not make bids herself as there were no properties that were appropriate for wheelchair users. Miss X said the delay caused her "extreme distress and suffering" and claimed she sometimes slept in her car, used her benefits to pay for other accommodation, or stayed at her friends or family's home. However, the investigator didn't see sufficient evidence to conclude that she paid for somewhere else to stay or that she slept in her car. The council didn't resp){kind=link}
Brent Council was forced to pay the woman, referred to as âMiss X’, £9,200 after the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) investigated her complaint
A woman in a wheelchair was left “dragging herself upstairs using her hands” after being put in an upstairs council flat without a lift. This meant she could not get in and out, even in the event of a fire.
She has been awarded more than £9,000 in compensation after a North London council’s delay in getting her a new home. She says the four-year-long ordeal has had a significant impact on her mental health, reports My London.
Brent Council was forced to pay the woman, referred to as âMiss X’, £9,200 after the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) investigated her complaint. The report states the council “did not make efforts to try and ensure a vulnerable disabled person was offered alternative accommodation to suit her needs”.
In 2017 Miss X complained that the council had left her “effectively homeless” as she could not get into the property via the stairs using her wheelchair. She was forced to drag herself up using her hands, which caused her a great deal of pain.