To really not know what to do next RE housing situation?

[extremepie]

Bit of background, me & DH split up recently meaning I have had to give up my job due to childcare difficulties.

We actually got given notice to quit on our current rented house in June because our 6 month contract had expired and they didn't want to renew as they are elderly and want to sell the house.

There was a property we were due to move in to that is owned by a former friend but it needed quite major renovations so landlords agreed to let us stay until it was ready. Unfortunately at the last minute friend changed her mind (after me & DH split) & said we could no longer have the house.

I have been looking for a private rented place since September with no luck, the issues are as follows:

I don't drive & wanted to stay close to DS' school - I have relaxed this a bit to include anywhere in a certain area that is close to any school as so few have come up in the area I wanted!

I am receiving HB (LHA) but do not have a guarentor so 80% of agencies & private rentals will not touch me with a barge pole.

I am on the council lisg for a property. I have 2 boys so the council say I only need 2 beds but DS2 has ASD and quite severe sleep issues which impact heavily on DS1 if they share a room so we have had a social worker & paediatrician write letters recommending DS2 have his own room to minimise the disturbance but the council have only given us the option to bid on 2 bed houses.

We are on band e so have virtually no hope of getting a couple place any time soon anyway!

I have found a property that looks perfect & may actually possibly take us on with our circumstances but I have been told because there is a £150 a month difference between the HB we get & the rent on the house the council will not help us move into it (with the rent deposit scheme) because it is too expensive & we need to look for somewhere cheaper.

It's driving me mad & I don't know what to do next! It's a bloody miracle I managed to find the one I did & now they are saying they won't help so what's my next option? Sit & wait to get evicted & then stuck in a hostel or temporary accommodation until we can get housed?

No clue where to go next :(

Are some of you fucking serious?! The OP is hardly 'entitled'!

Go back to the council and tell them that the Court of Appeal unanimously ruled in 2012 that a qualifying disabled child was entitled to an extra, separate bedroom. It was called the Gorry case.

New regulations came into force on Wednesday of last week to that effect - the Housing Benefit and Universal Credit (Size Criteria) (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2013. This is now the law. Tell them to stick that in their pipe and smoke it. Well, don't, but take heart from it and make council aware you know of the legal situation.

And all you folks who think the OP is entitled.... well, I hope you all earn over £26,000 per annum otherwise you are not net contributors to the economy and the rest of us are supporting you.

Why are you band E? You have a disabled child. Have you explained that you will be homeless soon? I appreciate it sounds drastic to say that but you should be top priority! Even then, I know it can be a wait but on band E, the kids will be adults by then. Ridiculous!

Yes, so entitled, a lone parent with a child who has ASD and severe sleep issues. Sounds like the life of fucking Riley. Well done, Ragusa.

Social services should be able to help you out here, as should the SN officer at the LA. Write to your MP too.

Moving a statemented child to another school involves a redundancy payment for the existing TA, staff training for the new school teachers, and all the associated costs with new TA recruitment, equipment purchase etc.

Argos do nice futons so you can sleep in the living room of a 2 bed, while letting both your children have a bedroom each. On the estate where I've just moved from this is the norm for private rental, owner occupiers and social housing tenants.

Between a half way decent disability team social worker, the LA SN officer & your EWO you should be able to persuade the petty administrators in the housing office to bump up your banding, especially as you have already submitted evidence of your impending homelessness & medical needs.

In the meantime as part of a 2 pronged approach start thinking about any family and friends you might be able to stay with for a few months.

The reality is that even with the highest number of points it's possible to be awarded in many parts of the country social housing is at such a premium the wait could take months or even years. If you find yourself in this position then the last thing you want with a high night time need child such as yours is to be living in a LA funded B&B, especially in winter. Are you in a part of the country where you could rent a holiday chalet or caravan in the off-season etc? It'stime to start thinking outside of the box.

Are you willing to relocate to a totally different part of the country? If you've always admired MK's autism services but live in Cornwall and MK does have social housing spaces then a properly planned relocation to somewhere with long term superb services for your children might be an option. many SE & home counties councils have accelerated lists for families willing to relocate to coastal regions or up north.

Would your employer be willing to act as a guarantor on a private rental? it's worth asking HR, as they may prefer to do this than recruit a replacement for you, given the opportunity. It's one of those where the worst that can happen is that they say no to you.

Are there any housing associations in your area that operate their own lists and if so are you on them? Have you looked into shared ownership or to living in a commune or co-op?

Lastly contact Shelter as a matter of urgency on Monday. They will be able to give you so many ideas both for new avenues of opportunity to search for a permanent home and ways to persuade your LA to help you get housed quickly in a way that doesn't wreck your children's education.

Thanks for the advice, lots of food for thought there bochead :)

Unfortunately I don't have an employer at the moment & no one else who would either be able or want to be a guarentor for me, hence the difficulty :/

I don't have a problem with a 2 bed place, obviously would prefer a 3 bed but anything is better than a hostel or other temporary accommodation, the thought of all of us sharing a room fills me with dread as none of us will get any decent slept, we will all be exhausted :(

I have just had some additional paperwork through from the council which will hopefully help us move up on the banding - not sure why we were given E to be honest :/

Judgejudith I don't expect a house next to the school - I live in a rural area & the Ds' school is at the top of a big hill, we currently live in the nearest village which is a mile away. It isn't a case of wanting to live next door it's a case of living somewhere that is reasonable. If I took any old house 6 miles from the school not near any shops or other amenities, not on a bus route, how on earth would I get the DC's to school & back 3 times a day? Or do shopping? Or get anywhere for anything without a car or spending extortionate amounts in taxi fares? It wouldn't make sense!

Also, I don't have any friends or family living close by, the nearest people who could take me in live 274 miles away!

Btw, do you think it would make a difference if I told the council we currently have no heating or hot water & haven't done since April as we have oil heating & no money to put oil in the tank? We are making do with electric heaters atm but it is v. expensive & not ideal this way, do you think that would make any difference?

I can't believe the number of you who think OP sounds entitled.

I doubt many of you understand the true nature of living with a child with ASD, let alone one with sleep issues.

I say this as someone who lived in a 1 bed apartment for a year due to financial difficulties after I split with DS father.

OP has just asked for advice on where to go and what to do. In fact I think her post doesn't really highlight just how worried she must really be and how difficult things really are.

Also for anyone who's been this situation please understand how hard it is to admit you need support and can't provide a roof over your children's heads without help. It took me longer to deal with those demons than it did to get a place for my DS to call home.

how can you not afford to heat your house when you will recieve income support, dla & carers allowance?! that adds up to what i earn & you dont have to pay rent/council tax out of it?! take a 2 bed as you really dont need a three.

judge You do know that DLA is not income but extra money for the OP's son to cover disability related expenses???!!

i have a disabled son & recieve £290 pmc (lower rate) & i spend probably £100 pcm on his needs. i live in a two bed & have to have a child in with me - i cant afford a 3 bed house on my wage. op is lucky to have a free roof over her head & therefore should take whatever is offered. pisses me right.off that people cant simply adjust & buy a sofa bed! god forbid op lived in a different country that doesnt give out free houses/money! just be thankful op.

But she doesn't live in another country. She lives here. And the law says she is allowed three bedrooms. So why the blimming heck should she make do with two?!
She's struggling, on her own, and with a severely disabled child.

What do you do with the extra £190? I hope you give it back. Please don't say that you put it in a savings account to meet your DS's needs when he's older? Because surely your own logic would deem that rather entitled?

Ps do you have any notion how much an old, inefficient oil-fired heating system costs to run? Also do you appreciate that oil cannot always be bought in installments unless heating cos are happy you'll cough up ( dometimes difficult to convince them with a nil earned income)

judge Some people's disabilities mean that their needs cost them an awful lot of money. That is actually what DLA is for, not to supplement family income.

op doesnt "need" a 3 bed house, she "wants" a 3 bed house. theres a difference. my cousin & his partner have one child & live in a studio flat - people cope. sofa beds were invented for a reason. & of course i put the rest away, after all its for my son & not me.

It's money that is meant be spent meeting your son's day-to-day care and mobility needs. So, you should probably get off your high horse. You say the OP is entitled (which she isn't!) when you are the one saving your son's DLA money aka misusing it!

Judgejudy people who steal their disabled child's dla money piss me off.

Somebody earlier in the thread beat me to it but why aren't you getting maintenance? Why isn't your DCs father paying for his offspring?

Judy have you read the thread? She can't get a 2 bed place either without a guarantor. Sorry but she and her dcs are entitled to some where to live.

Judy what do you do with the excess DLA payment??

If you have that much DLA left over each month after meeting your child's needs, then I do find myself wondering whether that child is really entitled to a payment at all tbh.

DS's only meets SOME of his disability related expenses every month and it's been that way ever since he was first awarded it .

maybe you are fortunate enough to live in that mythical land where the NHS actually covers all therapy needs or something? (If so please share your postcode!)

I see now you've said you do put the money away. So, it's OK for you to put spare (some might say free) DLA money away for your son's future, but not OK for the OP to have state funds spent on meeting her and her family's additional immediate needs?

If you have ever spent any time with a child who has ADHD and ASD then I don't think you'd be so quick to judge the OP for requiring a little bit of space for herself and some needed rest for her non-disabled child. Sheesh. Some people's own adversity seems to make them harder, not more compassionate.

And in any case, the OP's main issue appears to be that she cannot find a 2-bed private let that's within budget or willing to accept her.

I assume Judy is saving it as although they don't need it right this minute with a disabled child there is the likelihood it will be needed in the future?

My sister has learning difficulties and receives dla as well as an earned income from two part time jobs (cleaning) for the most part she doesn't need the dla and prior to a period of unemployment it was never claimed but the job centre wouldn't let her apply for jsa etc without applying for dla which then opened up additional help for her job search. If she hadn't have been receiving dla she wouldn't have had a job centre staff who would call job openings and explain her situation things like not being able to carry out a telephone interview or one of the personality tests that so many companies favour these days.

Whilst I can see that the op is in need of help (I've been in a similar situation but without disabled dc and refused help on the basis I worked so was not in need of social housing!!) some aspects of her posts do come across as grasping. In the same situation my priority would be getting into accommodation with two bedrooms whether that was social or private and then work out a plan for long term. But ultimately being housed would be my priority.

I don't think it is very nice to stay in the property until you are evicted. This will take a while and stop the landlord progressing with their sale. It is selfish.