Tower Hamlets Town Hall. Pic: Megan Rickard  

A man in Tower Hamlets has been awarded £10,000 after the council took too long to aid him in seeking accommodation after being evicted from his home, forcing him to sleep in his car for several weeks. 

The man, known as Mr X, has disabilities and complex physical and mental health needs, which the council failed to support after he was evicted from his private rented home. 

The council was found to be at fault in causing “considerable stress and worry”, which further impacted his physical and mental health. 

The Ombudsman’s investigation revealed that the council failed to find accommodation for the man on the day he was evicted, so a housing charity found him and his carer a place to stay overnight. 

The Ombudsman provides a channel for people to submit complaints against intuitions.  

The council pledged to apologise to the man and pay him a combined £11,728 for their failures as a result of the investigation findings. 

A spokesperson for the council said: “We fully accept the report and its findings, and we apologise to Mr X for the stress and worry we caused. These findings came at a time when we were facing unprecedented demand for housing and homelessness services.” 

While the investigation found that Mr X had received some level of care from the council, this was insufficient in accommodating for his disabilities and needs. 

Ms Amerdeep Somal, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman said: “This case is an awful example of the dire consequence of council department not working together properly to support the most vulnerable member of their communities.” 

During the period where Mr X was homeless, it was found that the council persistently placed him in unsuitable accommodation. This included unsuitable washing facilities, meaning his care workers were unable to help him wash properly as well as a lack of proper kitchen facilities, meaning he could not make his own food. This caused him disruption in taking his medication as required. 

Additionally, at another accommodation provided by the council, Mr X was forced to sleep in his car overnight after he was left feeling unsafe there.  

Mr X needs a machine to help his breathing but being in his car and due to his ongoing health issues, he regularly soiled himself as he had no access to a bathroom or help to change incontinence pads. 

On another occasion, due to not receiving the appropriate reminders from the council about his interim accommodation coming to an end, Mr X was left to sleep in his car again over a weekend period, where he did not receive any care calls and was unable to take his medication. 

Mr X eventually ended up going to hospital. 

Ms Somal also commented saying, “When dealing with complex cases like this councils need to have the channels in place to assure themselves, they are meeting their duties to both house and care for disabled people who call on them for assistance. 

“I hope the changes I have asked Tower Hamlets council to make will ensure other homeless people with complex needs get the help and support they are owned.”