To refuse to do this.

[Minus273]

I have just had the Council out as they are trying to have us taking off the list, we are homeless thanks to redundancy and are camped out in my mum's spare room. Before I get flamed for this I know we would be waiting years, I know there are no homes but not being allowed on the waiting list just feels psychologically like a kick in the teeth. I hope someone knows what I mean.

We are overcrowded as there are 3 adults, 1 child and about to be a baby so quite stressed living conditions. My Mum is elderly, I am 37.5 weeks pregnant so I have been struggling with the basic housework never mind anything else. I haven't seen DH for 5 weeks as he has been away finishing up at work away from home. The only good thing about this being his last day is I won't be trying to do everything myself any more.

There is a box room with the boiler on the wall, not in a cupboard but just in this small room. She objects that I didn't move the storage cabinet in the room for her. I could do it normally although would take a while I'm just not up to it at the moment when even walking hurts and I spent the time leading up to the 37 week mark on MW orders to rest to try and avoid premature labour due to signs I was showing. She then said I could fit a cot in if I slid it under the boiler so we wouldn't be overcrowded. When I objected saying it wasn't safe as the boiler regularly drops pressure letting the seal go and leaking boiling water. She said this was my choice not to do this so was deliberately making ourselves overcrowded and should do it as she thinks we shouldn't then be over crowded and have no right to be on the list. She spent the whole quick visit looking down her nose at me and making it clear she though I was scum. I can't stop sobbing now.

Am I really so unreasonable not to move heavy things when so heavily pregnant and to refuse to put my baby's life in danger?

There was a terrible story a while ago in the nationals about a baby that slept directly under a hot water tank and it burst and the baby died. I think the couple had just moved in that day and it was a HA or Council house from what l can remember. You think they'd learn wouldnt you ? Yes chocolate then MP is a good idea - mine helped me fight the council and it was sorted after one letter from him after me fighting it for months and being stonewalled by them. They tried to put my council tax up a band because our predecesors built a conservatory basically and that was after we'd lived there 12 months aswell.

I got housed as kids were in my mums spare room and I was on her sofa. We left private rent though after the roof collapsed and the landlord wouldn't repair it

I think in that case the hot water tank was in the loft above.

We have only been here a few weeks we were in a private rental up til then. Money went on paying rent and CT there, rent to DH's family for him staying there, insurance, utility bills, food, professional fees to keep working, legal aid contributions, debt repayment, commuting etc.. We were at the end of a 6 month tenancy and they wanted us to commit to another 6 months, we didn't know if we could pay couldn't morally or legally sign to say we would pay when we didn't know if we could.

is there a gas fire in the front room though? we don't know that. as has been said, there seems to be a lot of other stuff going on that is aggravating this. the ex-H situation, whatever it is. sounds like there's a conflict between having to be overcrowded to get on the list, but having to provide a decent home to stop DD going to stay with the ex. no wonder OP is stressed! the answer has to be to put cc bills etc aside and start renting privately asap. can family help with deposit at all?

Minus, you are not making sense. Your DH has been working FT, and you PT, you get maintenance for your dd, and CB. You are not homeless due to redundancy as your DH is just redundant today. Why did you give up your flat?

On thread after thread, you have been advised to contact various organisations and CAB and you haven't. You claim you are told that you are not entitled to any benefits - that is NOT TRUE. Your DH will get JSA, you will be entitled to Tax credits, HB if you can find a new place, council tax credit etc. Your DH can't snatch your dd so that you never see her again - it just doesn't work like that.

Plus - you have both been working and not having to pay rent on your own place - what have you been doing with all the money? Surely you have had opportunity to save up? Why have you been living on a loan and cc's whilst your DH IS WORKING - and so were you?

I would also query that you are not being allowed on the Council list.

They may have decided that you are not homeless, but you would still be allowed to register on the Council's housingwaiting list, just not with the priority of someone homeless; the Council has an obligation to secure accommodation for someone who is in priority need and not intentionally homeless. Even if you weren't homeless, you would still get additional points on the waiting list for "living in" so would get a home more quickly than people with fewer points.

Unless of course you have been excluded from the housing waiting list for another reason, such as previous rent arrears or ASB. Or you are in fact intentionally homeless i.e. you chose to pay other things rather than your rent / mortgage, which certainly sounds to be the case here (paying CCs before rent etc)

There is more to this tale than the OP has disclosed.

Please, a few years ago a baby died close to my home town when a boiler suddenly leaked water all over his cot. You are so right not to risk it, don't be talked into it.

The loink is hereI am warning you that it is horrid to read but might help your case.

X posts with other mentions of story.

I don't know where that leaves you - I was only wondering as I was told by the council that I would have to refuse to leave where I was then (a private tenancy), until the landlord went to court, or I would be intentionally homeless.

Is this the situation where the OP can't leave the county she is in because of some court order, or am I getting confused?

I think ladyintheradiator is probably right. Did you not thinking of getting HB instead? Otherwise it looks like you just moved in with your mum (to save money etc), as opposed to becoming homeless.

But that doesn't make any sense, not renewing your lease. Your DH might get another job next week, anyway you would get HB.

Are you not eligible for benefits for some reason?

Oh was it Peppapig - sorry probably totally irrelevant then. But l still think it isnt a good idea to put a baby or child anywhere within range of any appliance that contains or heats hot water. At the end of the day any appliance however safe and checked it is can go wrong and it doesnt bear thinking about. I wasnt suggesting my council tax row was anything as bad as your situation OP btw - just saying how effective an MPs intervention can be sometimes.

'they wanted us to commit to another 6 months, we didn't know if we could pay couldn't morally or legally sign to say we would pay when we didn't know if we could.

Sadly in that case council are right: intentionally homeless.

Much as you or indeed I may struggle with it, to be homeless you must be served with notice of eviction or even evicted dependant on council.

You must talk to shelter and CAb but in truth you have put morals above procedures and that simply does not work with our benefits system.

it's also rather indicative of a give up attitude: every eyar we sign our lease it is with optimism over reality, but a sense of fight: we are on year 8 with never a penny missed. It's how almost everyone lives these days. very few people know they can afford their rent or mortgage in six months time becuase anyone can lose a job or their health immediately.

Is your other child currently in the box room?

As others have said, you should be using any "extra" living rooms as sleeping accommodation, provided there isn't a gas fire in the room. How many living / dining rooms are there? And if there is a gas fired boiler in 1, then you should use that as the living room and the room without the boiler as a bedroom.

This only applied to gas fires, so not, for example, an electric combi boiler.

I wouldn't put my baby under a boiler either, but then I don't think the OP actually has to, it is just her spin on it.

A classic case of intentional homelessness, I think. Though once again, you can still register on the waiting list, unless you have been excluded for your conduct. Which the OP probably has.

I think the Council sound to be in the right, but if this is a homeless decision (and this is far from clear) then you can ask the Council to review its decision. The review is carried out by an officer senior to the original decision maker. Also, some advice - give the council clear and full information if you do want a review - they aren't psychic, as you clearly expect MNetters to be.

I remember the story in the news. It was a cold water tank in the loft and the system somehow malfunctioned and pulled hot water into the tank. The tank was plastic, so of course it melted, and the weight of the water crashed through the ceiling. It was quite horrific, DS was tiny at the time and it really upset me. It wasn't related to a boiler but I wouldn't want to take the risk anyway.

Surely a "boxroom" can fit a single bed in at least? If it's smaller it's a cupboard.

I think you need to contact Shelter and CAB and see what your rights are.

When they asked us to sign we knew for definite that DH was to out of work as he was given notice. I couldn't lie I just couldn't.

I will repeat again I am not upset at not getting a council house I knew we wouldn't get one and I knew we wouldn't count as homeless as we are not on the street. I am not expecting the council to provide for us. I am upset about 2 things, the woman being nasty about it and her suggesting I was unreasonable for not wanting my baby to sleep a few cm underneath a boiler.

What I expected was, admittedly unrealistically but I don't believe unreasonably were: to be allowed on the waiting list, to be treated with civility and not as scum.

Dd will be in with us anyway at first, always was the plan by the time she would be moved out I had always hoped we would have got things sorted enough to get a 2 bed private let with a room for the girls to share. Then we would be in the happy position to be calling the housing office to inform them we would no longer be sharing accomodation.

Am I really being so bad to want them to treat me as a human being rather than something they have scraped off their shoe.