Disabled woman left trapped in upstairs flat for four years with no lift

A disabled woman was left trapped upstairs in her council flat for four years with no lift.

The woman known only as ‘Miss X’, resorted to “dragging herself upstairs using her hands” after being put in a council flat without a lift.

It meant she would not have been able to escape the building had a fire broken out.

Following a long fight, Brent Council was ordered to give her more than £9,000 in compensation.

MyLondon reported the woman said the four-year ordeal had a significant impact on her mental health.

Brent Council was ordered to pay her £9,200 after the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) investigated her complaint.

The report stated the council “did not make efforts to try and ensure a vulnerable disabled person was offered alternative accommodation to suit her needs”.

She made the original complaint in 2017 when she said the council had effectively left her homeless as she could not access the flat via the stairs.

She said she was forced to drag herself up the stairs using her hands which left her in pain.

Furthermore, she added once she got inside, she could not escape in the event of a fire or use all the rooms.

Following an investigation, her complaint was upheld by the LGO after Brent Council confirmed they wouldn’t adapt the property. They were fined £9,2000 for providing her with unsuitable accommodation.

In 2021, she complained again because she had not received any suitable offers and could not make any bids herself.

The reason for this was that there were no properties that were appropriate for someone in a wheelchair.

She said this delay caused her “extreme distress and suffering” and claimed she occasionally slept in her car, stayed at her friend’s or family’s home, or used her benefits to pay for other accommodation.

The council didn’t respond to her latest complaint until October 2021 when they said that “very few wheelchair-accessible properties were available” and offered to pay her £5,600.

She later claimed circumstances meant she could not “pursue her life plans such as having relationships or starting a family” during the four-year period.

Cllr Promise Knight, Cabinet Member for Housing, Homelessness and Renter’s Security said: “We apologise unreservedly to Miss X for the distress and suffering that being housed in unsuitable accommodation for four years has had on her life.

“The poor handling of her case led to her facing appalling circumstances. She should never have had to endure what she went through under council care.

“We have agreed to compensate Miss X for our failure in her case and for every month that she spent in a property that did not meet her housing needs as a resident dependent upon wheelchair accessibility.

“We have now put measures in place to ensure that band A applicants’ cases are reviewed every six months. Our priority is to safeguard the tenants in our care and meet their housing needs as best we can.”