Mum's open letter to Bournemouth council on 'discrimination' against her disabled daughter

Shena Milne says her daughter, who is disabled, has been unable to find suitable council accommodation as she is aged in her 40s, and suitable homes are too often restricted to the over-60s.

She told the Echo: "I feel so very strongly about this appalling state of affairs where a vulnerable woman being expected to survive in a hostel is the only way to obtain much needed help from the council, when there are suitable homes out there, but she is not entitled to apply for them simply because she isn’t old enough."

Councillor Robert Lawton, cabinet member for housing, to whom the letter is addressed, said age restrictions were "not unlawful or uncommon" in social housing, and that similar provisions apply to homes deemed suitable for disabled people.

Here are the letter and response in full:

Dear Cllr Lawton,

My daughter is in her forties, single, and lives independently in private rented accommodation.

Some time ago she was accepted onto the council housing register because the flat she has lived in for several years is very run down, quite frankly sub-standard and in some ways dangerously so, and this poses a substantial risk to her health which is already extremely poor due to serious medical issues.

During the whole time she has been on the council housing register, only one suitable property has ever come up which she was eligible to bid for – a ground floor flat with a garden, which she failed to secure.

Since then she has diligently applied herself to checking the Dorset Home Choice website at least twice a week in the hope finding a home that would be (a) suitable for her needs, and (b) which she would be eligible to bid for.

Despite the prospect of a long wait for a council property and the relentless health issues she faces every day of her life, my daughter still has the positive attitude that she is fortunate enough to have a roof over her head, in a locality where she feels safe, with outside space for her four legged (and only) companions, and she was optimistic that eventually something suitable would turn up.

However, the property where her flat is located recently changed hands, the flats are to be redeveloped and the new landlord has served her with notice to quit.

Through no fault of her own, my daughter has suddenly found herself with barely two months to find a new place to live. But not to worry, because she is registered with the council.

First stop, Dorset Home Choice website. Lo and behold, a one-bed house that she can afford to pay rent and bills on – not really suitable for someone who can’t climb stairs, but suitable for a stair lift to be fitted.

Because there isn’t anything else on offer and her need is so urgent she decides to go for it, only to find she can’t bid because she is under 60 years of age.

For a long time now, my daughter has been telling me that whenever she checks the housing website she sees many properties that would be perfect for her but bidding on them is restricted to 55+ or 60+ age groups.

Second stop, your council's housing office, accompanied by the eviction notice and various documents evidencing her medical conditions – which include heart failure (she will need a heart transplant in the not too far distant future), fibromyalgia, anxiety, and post traumatic stress disorder.

My daughter is a bona fide disabled person. She can’t walk very far and has to drive everywhere.

Her car is on the disabled register and she uses a mobility scooter.

She receives the highest level of DLA (now changing to PIP) benefit, which you have to be pretty damn fragile to qualify for.

You would think this makes her a vulnerable person in anyone’s book, and entitled to some sort of specialist help in a housing emergency wouldn’t you? Well, if you did think that, you would be wrong.

The housing officer she saw at the council offices, although extremely kind and understanding, made it very clear that my daughter has only two options.

You can place her in a hostel to be housed temporarily but it could be a year or longer before she could be offered permanent council accommodation, or she can rent in the private sector which would see her struck off the council housing register altogether and unable to apply for a council tenancy in the future.

Nobody in their right mind would even consider placing such a vulnerable woman in hostel accommodation, to live at close quarters with a number of strangers, in a place where she could take only her clothing and a few personal possessions but her furniture and other belongings would have to be left behind.

How on earth can someone who has to live on disability benefits afford the cost of long term storage, and manage the stress of living in a multi-occupancy building, and cope with the prospect of having to have her pets rehomed or more likely put to sleep?

Not to mention the fact that someone with such significant health issues would not survive long in hostel conditions.

When your council accepted my daughter onto the housing register, did you not undertake a responsibility to do everything in your power to house her according to her needs, as and when the need arose?

If that is not the case then what, may I ask, is the point?

Naturally, I have checked out your housing website. You know, the one where it says the council wants everyone in its catchment area to have a home of their own where they feel safe and secure.

It may very well say that, but until the council decides to live up to those promises and actually help people who need help, these are nothing more than empty words.

As for the various housing associations who also claim on their websites to be so supportive of vulnerable adults, so willing and able to help when the need arises, but when you explore further to find out how to obtain this help - surprise surprise, all avenues lead straight back to Bournemouth council housing department, and straight back to square one.

There are other councils around the country – Wiltshire, for one – who allow people with significant health issues to bid for suitable properties, and give these applicants priority on medical grounds, regardless of age.

It is completely wrong of any council to deny access to to social housing to people in need simply because they do not fit into one of their predetermined tick-box categories.

Now, I’m no lawyer but I do know there are laws against age discrimination and in my opinion, by denying vulnerable people access to suitable accommodation on grounds of age, Bournemouth council is blatantly contravening government legislation designed to protect the very people you are turning away.

I have not named my daughter for fear of reprisals from the council staff dealing with her case, but I am terribly torn on that point because I do so desperately want you to help her, which you can’t do without a name. You see my dilemma?

The big question I want to ask you, Mr Lawton, is – what are YOU doing to address the plight of my daughter and all of those other vulnerable adults over the age of 18 whose housing needs are being ignored?

People who have become invisible because they do not use a wheelchair, are not being discharged from council care or some other institution, and do not fall into an eligible age group – or some other highly convenient bureaucratic reason why they can't even bid for properties which suit their needs – let alone actually succeeding in securing their basic human right to affordable social housing where they can feel secure and safe from harm?

Yours sincerely,

Shena Milne

Cllr Lawton said:

I’m sorry to hear the difficulties this individual is experiencing in securing appropriate council accommodation.

It is difficult to comment on the circumstances of individual housing applicants when their identity is unknown or where consent has not been obtained.

I would strongly urge that the person involved, contacts the council so we can ensure the correct advice has been provided.

Our staff always aim to give the best advice and information working with the resources available to them.

I would like to emphasise that all those seeking housing through the housing register are prioritised according to our allocations policy which takes into consideration the circumstances of individual housing applicants.

Unfortunately, Bournemouth has a high demand for social housing as do councils up and down the country.

It could be necessary to discuss other housing options such as the private rented sector to meet housing need.

We have a number of properties where housing applicants need to be over the age of 60 in order to be eligible.

These include sheltered housing and one bedroom bungalows and the restriction is necessary to ensure that these properties remain available for older people.

Such age restrictions are not unlawful or uncommon within social housing.

In exceptional circumstances, one of these properties may be allocated to someone under 60 if general needs properties are unsuitable.

Other social landlords that we work with may also have age restrictions for some properties.

There are similar constraints to ensure that properties that are suitable for disabled persons are only offered to those who are in need of the special facilities provided.