to think that elderly people living alone in 3/4 bed council houses should not have a choice about whether they want to stay there?

[BlessYouToo]

In fact, they should be moved into one bedroom accommodation as soon as the kids leave home (this should have happened years ago of course). Having a 'spare' bedroom in case the grandchildren come to stay should not be an option when they are in state owned properties.

I have today been to view a council property with a friend of mine who has been homeless for 3 years (in temp accommodation) after finally getting to the top of the bidding queue! She was called to see a 4 bedroom house and it was absolutely rank, the smell made me want to heave. Plaster was hanging off the wall and the whole place was damp as the previous tenant either, did not or could not, heat and ventilate it properly Apparently the house was in a much worse than the state we saw it in today but the council had done some remedial work on it to make it safe so it was a bit better. The garden was also just a sea of brambles.

We were told that an elderly person had been living there and had just been moved into a nursing home. T

I was shocked that the council could rent out a property in this state. I would have expected that they would have made sure the property was up to a decent, clean standard before renting it out as any other landlord would have to do (all my friend will get is a paint allowance if she is eligible) but I am even more shocked that this elderly tenant was allowed to let the property get into this condition. Why do councils not carry out inspections to ensure their properties don't get into this state? Obviously the house was too much for the previous tenant to cope with and surely they would have been better off with a smaller property that they could keep clean?

We were told that many of the properties coming available after elderly tenants have either died, or gone into alternative accommodation, are left in a similar state. How many families with young children are left crammed into tiny flats while elderly people are living in houses much too large for their needs, letting them decay around them? I find it unbelievable that this has been happening.

I feel gutted for my friend as she has been desperate to get a stable home for her DCs and will now be going into a total shithole without even carpets on the floor, just cement. It's a bloody disgrace! AIBU?

[GypsyMoth]

I kind of agree.

But the carpet thing is standard. They are removed after each tenant.

I'm in a HA house. Previous tenant was a 'white witch'!!

[AmberLeaf]

Your friend is lucky to get a 4 bed house regardless of the condition.

Is she as 'gutted' as you are? I suspect shes more than likely relieved at finally getting a home of that size that is permanent.

This is actually quite normal you know, its not just houses that had an old person living in that are offered in such a shitty state- its normal

[snice]

Having read your OP again I feel more sadness for the elderly tenant living alone and cold in a house they couldn't afford to heat that was crumbling around them. Their landlord i.e. the council surely had a responsibility to them to ensure their home was adequately maintained and that they were getting some help.

[griphook]

give it 20 years and there will be mandatory youthanisa at 70

[LordOfTheFlies]

Some of the saddest situations I have seen (in my travels as an NHS worker) is where someone cannot use the upstairs of their house so has to live,sleep,wash and toilet(usually a commode if they don't have a downstairs loo).
They have no idea what is going on upstairs- could be leaks in the roof, damp, mice, rooms not heated.

And sitting with a lady crying because her grandaughter had bought the old ladies council house (she said to keep her company and help round the house) then moved her boyfriend in and moved the lady into one room.So she felt unwelcome in her own home and restricted to a small room.

In these situations, is this preferable to moving to smaller, possibly warden controlled accomodation

[TidyDancer]

Oh of course YABU. The answer to the housing crisis does not lie in throwing people out of houses they are already in. Just because it's a council/HA house, do you think these elderly people are less entitled to security? Ridiculous.

[ninah]

I kind of agree with snice
A friend of mine is a council tenant, 98 year age, 3 bed house, she's lived there most of her life
it's not a valualbe property, except to her
I'd rather fill empty houses, of which there are many, restrict second homes, before turning out people like my friend

[gaelicsheep]

My MIL is in this situation. Can barely climb the stairs any more, doesn't bother getting dressed - ever. Hasn't been out of the house for years because she's scared. She owns her house and nothing we can do will make her sell it and move to warden assisted accommodation. If she was in council accommodation and was "encouraged" to move out to somewhere more suitable we would be mighty relieved. It would be far better for her, even if she refuses to see it.

[fortyplus]

YABU - at present Council tenants have secure tenancies that mean they can stay in their homes as long as they wish provided that they don't breach the terms of their tenancy agreement - ie pay the rent and not cause nuisance to their neighbours. I work for a local authority and we offer financial incentives to people who downsize. If we could offer 2 bed properties then more people would take up this offer, but no one wants to give up a family sized house to move into a 1 bed flat. They wait till they have no choice but to move into sheltered accommodation or a care home. Fixed term tenancies are probably the way forward but they won't apply to existing tenants so it'll take years to make a difference.

[LittleMissFlustered]

The abolition of right to buy, a concerted effort to increase social housing stock and incentives for people to downsize if they want to is a better solution I feel. More humane.

I live in a council house. The previous tenant was a pensioner who decided to downsize voluntarily I am very lucky that the place was spotless as apparently she was a 'decorate twice a year' kind of a woman. I have been told she'd be horrified that I've used bright colours in some rooms and couldn't give a monkey's bumcheek about the state of the garden as long as everything has been cut to less than six inches tall where possible:o

[littlemisssarcastic]

I heard somewhere that if all the tenants of underoccupied properties were moved into a property that was the right size, there would be enough social housing stock to house the people in overcrowded conditions in a property of the right size too.

Mind you OP, 1 bedroomed social housing properties are scarce in my area. Most common social housing property is a 2 bedroomed flat, then 3 bedroomed house/flat, then 2 bedroomed houses, then 1 bedroomed property, then 4 bedroomed houses, so not sure there is enough 1 bed properties for every elderly person to be rehoused in one.

[OldLadyKnowsNothing]

What about people who own second or holiday homes, should they be forced to sell one?

[DioneTheDiabolist]

YABU. I live in a 2bed council house. My middle aged neighbours live in a 4bed council house. They paid for the extension and loft conversion to accomodate their growing family.

It's their home and when they go, the council will get back a 4bed house instead of the 2bed house they originally provided. More than that, it's their home.

Council tenants invest money in their homes, just as owners do. Why should they have to give it up?

[Memoo]

What kind of selfish twat individual would throw an old person out of their home.

[reallytired]

People have the right to a roof over their head, not a right to a particular property when they don't own it.

There are working people who live in cramp conditions and do not have the option of going to the counci. Why should their taxes subsize one elderly person to live in a larger house than a working family?

However I think something needs to be done about people who get pregnant to get a larger council house. The benefits or housing system at the moment encourages people to have babies they can't afford.

I am not sure how a policy can be made that is compassionate and workable.

[birdynumnums]

In theory, I kind of agree and I think the council should always offer to move them to smaller accomodation. But when I look at the full picture, I think YABU. An example of this is my lovely nan who lives in a 3 bedroom council house. She has lived there for over 50 years, raised her children there, all her memories of my long gone grandad are there. Her friends live in the same street. That is all she knows. To force her to leave there would be cruel and would cut her off from her community.

[IneedAbetterNickname]

give it 20 years and there will be mandatory youthanisa at 70

My Nannie wants this, although at 80! She has told us if she is still alive, she will kill herself the night before she turns 80 :(

But then, if she does, her 3 bed council house will be available, might please OP

[gaelicsheep]

"They paid for the extension and loft conversion to accomodate their growing family. " I'm sorry, but if they can afford "invest" in their council homes to that degree what the hell are they doing in one?

[snowybun]

But the question has to be asked whether or not there are 1/2 bed places for them to be moved to? I know this is certainly not the case in one particular area my parents are in a 3 bed council house and for the last year trying to downsize to a 2 bed bungalow. My Dad has terminal cancer and is struggling with living in the house but not enough suitable places are coming up and when they do it seems like they are very much in demand and huge numbers bid on them. So if you move an elderly person out a 3 bed house where are they going to go? If they are only able to live downstairs they would be no good in flats that only have stair access. Or will they be shoved into unsuitable accommodation.

[OldGreyWassailTest]

My sister is in a 3 bed Council House on her own. She will not move. Her daughter, husband and 3 disabled children are having to rent at a cost of £1500 a month and cannot even get a sniff at a Council House. If the Council would let them have her house then she would move, but the Council won't......so she's staying put.

The shortage of housing is down to Maggie Thatcher thinking it was a good idea to have Right to Buy, even though she was warned that this situation would be the future we are now in. But then she had her own millions and didn't care.

[IneedAbetterNickname]

birdy My Nan was offered a brand new bungalow next door to her house, but still won't move! I can see both sides of the argument! There is a massive housing shortage, and she doesn't need all her bedrooms, But, like your Nan, she has lived there 50+ years, raised her children, and has all the memories of my Grandad there too. It's a tricky situation!

[jasper]

hmc, happy to explain.
I am at a stage in life where I am appreciating my parents/elderly people more than ever before.
They are in their mid 70s.
Or rather, my dad is.
Mum died a calm dignified death after a short illness earlier this year. We will never be the same .We loved her so much, and she loved us.

I have come to appreciate the unique nature of the last years of life through the example of Mum, Dad, and their friends.

My generation have more than a touch of moaning self centredness about us.

When you are faced with death everything else but love fades away.

To suggest elderly people should be turfed from their homes to make way for younger families is less than human

[timidviper]

Surely the issue is that these are COUNCIL houses so are owned by the council not by whoever lives in them so, having had the privilege of renting at at a reasonable cost when they had the need, these people should have a responsibility when their need is less to stand aside for others who need them more. Social housing will only work well when people behave like a society rather than being totally self-motivated