Housing discrimination?

Coolcar98

Hi all, I’m a 27 year old carer for my mum who is disabled. I care alongside working full time. 

My mums care needs relate to Osteoarthritis in her knee and spine, diabetes, asthma, anaemia, high blood pressure. She also suffered from trauma relating to childhood and has chronic anxiety and depression. Her general wellbeing has also gone down since my dad died in 2021 from Covid. 

Due to my mums care needs in November 2022, we put in for her to go on the council list for a sheltered living facility which would take the pressure off me and provide her with a space to mingle with other people like herself. Due to her needs she was subsequently placed on band B medical. we only bid on certain properties but she wasn’t coming in very high. 

in March she was offered a section 21 of the family home for 15 years. No issues The landlord just wants to sell it. we went to the council and were advised they wouldn’t push us down the private route due to mums needs as landlords don’t provide what she needs. We’re also on the list for multiple housing associations who provide that type of housing, 

 However there was a 6 week wait to start to get help. We were bidding none the less and mum was always coming up second or third. 

We just knew once the application went in she would get band A because it was in the policy. 

After six weeks we were given a case worker who wasn’t very nice. He kept stating that mum had destroyed the property which caused the section 21. This was not true and even the letting agents said it was not true, it was just going to be sold. we complained and I got a telling off from the council for supposed harrassment. The case worker backed away, two days later we were given a senior one who awarded band A immediately. It put us in prime position. 

Unfortunately there were no suitable properties in that weekly bidding cycle. 

The week following the perfect property came up. A sheltered place right near to all mums amenities, we were hoping this place would come up. We bid on it and came first. the council called us and said that they would do all the checks asb (both personal and area) affordability that sort of thing. They told us everything came back fine, and invited us for a viewing.

Due to the type of property we were told that the OT and the sheltered manager would need to attend to assess it which was fine. We went to the appointment in my car, so obviously mum couldn’t take the mobility scooter. I had to rush off back to work after it too, and I work out of town so can’t use public transport. 

The OT saw mum and said she “didn’t look disabled.” We advised them that she very much was and in fact she was in pain, but learns to tolerate it on her better days. That was one of those days. She’s abit like me and she masks situations with humour. I have a real chronic need to be overly nice in horrible situations. 

We subsequently met with other people whilst at the viewing. i suffer from OCD, and what they did scared me. They told me there were only a couple of people attending and that we were going to sign up that day. Instead there were about 8 people all doing their own thing treating us like an exhibit. We didn’t know who they were. 

even with a dual working policy (if one exists, there was more people than needed. 

I have to speak on mums behalf and I seriously got pulled side to side by these people. I don’t believe I was able to speak to them coherently, once one person got their answer we were cut off and jumped in. We never really got the chance to speak. 

mum was a little in high spirits but in fairness to her, she thought she was going to get the place she’s wanted for ages. I think they have taken this as not needing help seeing her all happy. 

I think they forget we have absolutely been through it with this section 21. Like I say I have OCD, my mum has all them disabilities and my sibling who is 23 is partially sighted. We were of the belief that it was all finally over. 

I saw two of them mouthing to each other in another room and I could sense it that something was not right and I told mum to calm down. The sheltered person came in, and she said to us that actually “they don’t think the property is right for mum as she is too vulnerable.” 

They said they would have offered it but there is one key problem, it is rife with anti social behaviour of the worst kind. Drgs violence, sex crime, you name it. Apparently they don’t want to offer it even to an able person because it’s that bad, police are involved and everything. Apparently it’s been going on 18 months. 

This property is classed as a sheltered accommodation signed for vulnerable people over the age of 55. Who is in there? 

At first I joked thinking it was a bit of light use, so I said “we’ve lived on x street a couple of blocks away for 15 years now, were used to it, we don’t get involved. What people do in their homes has nothing to do with us.” 

im 27, let’s just say my attitude towards certain ones is abit more modern based on medical science. I’ve never done it, and I still think it’s bad, but I know it has its place. Others; bad, full stop! 

At that meeting the sheltered manager said she is in charge of lots of places across the city, and they could be more beneficial. I said it’s okay making that statement, but it’s a case of if and when they come available, time is not of the essence. At the time we had two days before the section 21 ended. 

There was also a strange moment when we were walking through the communal area when we saw a group of nice looking residents, three people who looked about mums age. Two men and a woman. The sheltered manager joked that they must be desperate to see her and wanted to get away and now I realise why. 

The sheltered manager also said that she put an elderly couple in the same apartment and they were hounded to high heaven, they became more vulnerable. Because of that they didn’t want mum in there nor anyone. Why they advertised it I do not know. 

I understand their reasoning but I’m still annoyed that they absolutely misled us. Why this place which is designed for vulnerable people is so bad, I don’t know. Where is the duty of care. 

We left after she said they will be in touch. We didn’t have high hopes. I knew then and there it was not good news. Our only option was to go back into the system and bid again for the third time round. (Previously an offer was withdrawn due to the time scale of major works because it had rats) Sadly no properties came up this week. 

Yesterday, we received that call. It also coincided with the day the section 21 officially ended, we are on borrowed time now. They said what we were expecting. But we had kind of moved on in a way. 

However, not only have they declined us, but the OT has said she does not believe mum has higher medical needs and believes she can manage. These are the people who said she was way to vulnerable to live in that property because of her mental health, childhood trauma based PTSD. 

The only reason the OT was there was due to the bath situation, mum can’t get out of the bath very well as it involved putting weight on her knee. The advert said that it was a bath, the allocations team told me it was a bath. Everyone walked in and in union kind of said “wait there’s a shower.” 

The OT inspected it and said that’s me sorted then, a couple of handrails and you will be sorted. She stayed to talk to us. At one point she said to us, “mum doesn’t want to be in here, it’s for old people.” I said “mum wants to be in here because it’s got more old people.” She will be safe, or so we believed. (After dad died she doesn’t feel safe in her home. 

About a year ago she was also attacked by someone who threw her to the ground fracturing her shoulder) Police did nothing as you’d expect. She’s felt vulnerable since, her arm is still not right. 

A sheltered place is supposed to help her by keeping her behind locked doors in a facility. (Yes I know she can be attacked in public, but unfortunately nothing can be done there) it’s just another step to make her feel more confident. 

I can see why they made the vulnerability distinction, I just don’t understand why a place like that is so bad. 

Anyway, the OT has said now that it’s all been done she’s closed everything, she can no longer take our calls. 

However, the loss of the medical banding has collapsed everything. 

In my local council a single priority is classed as band b. Homelessness unless it’s to someone with higher needs, I.e DV, disability, moving out of care/hospital. General needs is not classed as band b. 

Two band Bs make a band A.

Because mum was already a medical priority she was give a second medical priority band B homelessness creating the band A. 

Because the medical priority has been taken away, it has hit the second band b taking it down with it. At present she cannot bid at all because there is no longer a banding. 

There is only one way we can get a single band B back and that’s through medical needs but we have to submit medical stuff from the GP. We don’t believe the go will provide them in time. 

We have got a place now lined up with a housing association for the short term and are looking to get mum in an over 60s facility else in the long term. 

I’m not sure of my rights here. They have taken away all the medical stuff. Do I have a case to present to the government over discrimination?