Am I eligible for housing ?

[Justanewmum25]

I am a single mother to a newborn . I live with my younger brothers who are adults since both my parents passed in 2019 & 2020.

i do everything in the house cook , clean , take out the rubbish , buy the essentials etc one of my brothers has a hygiene and cleanliness problem resulting in mould on clothes , in his bedroom , in the cups and bowls he returns to the kitchen after weeks. Another brother has a drug problem and smokes in the house with my newborn baby.

it was unbearable before my baby was born but now it is making me depressed and actually hate them as they have no respect .

we all currently live in my older brothers house , who initially wanted me to find my own place with the baby for my own sanity but also cos he is renovating the house for sale this year.

am I elegible for any support for housing . I did apply and have been put in band c - low working income household but getting nowhere

Eligible is different to priority. You are housed, safe, and not overcrowded. Do you have a partner?

Who owns the house you're in now? If just you, you need to evict your brothers.

I would ask social services for help. They might be able to support your brothers or find you somewhere else to stay.

Your older brother can formally evict you but you will likely be in temporary accommodation for some time.

yr brother would have to evict you, you would have to spend days at housing office.
It’s v possible you would be offered temp housing, maybe hostel, b&b, maybe private rented property, it all depends on yr area and the demand there. The council will need to assess your case and will encourage you to find housing.

while you are housed, they will do v little, they expect people to wait to be evicted cos social housing is on its knees!

in any large city, you could be waiting years for your own property and it could be private rented.

is there a reason you, as an adult, cant find your own accommodation? Rent a room? Stand on your own 2 feet.

where is baby dad? Are you planning on living together?

Do you have any idea of what the rental market is like these days? Multiple people bidding on properties, months of rent needing to be paid upfront. You can’t discriminate against claimants on benefits but obviously this does happen. It’s obviously not as simple as rent a room…

As others have said your brother would have to evict you . Its not the same as sau section 21/8 eviction where is gos through court . Your brother just needs to write you a letter saying he need you to leave on xx date . Due the house not being suitable for you a baby/relationship break down something like that.

You will then be put into temporary accommodation depending where you live that could be anything from 3 months to 10+ years it could be anything from shared accommodation with shared kitchen and bathroom. A hostel again with shared kitchen bathroom. To a self contained flat . Some temporary accommodation is OK but its not uncommon to have damp mould and vermin. Yoi can also gey moved several times.

Long term it could be worth it but the journey is not easy but akso depends on what accommodation you are given

My older brother owns the house , however does not live here

The father of my child left me during pregnancy due to the impact this home is having on our relationship and a few other factors

I would love to stand on my own two feet . I have worked all my life but now on maternity pay which I’m getting a little over £300 a month so can’t even afford my bills let alone rent that will cost me over £1000.

when my parents died I basically became mum to my brothers who were 15,18 and 21 at the time and felt it was my responsibility and they basically have just walked all over me . I wanted to leave before when I was working and did move out for a small period of time however was coming back to clean due to the guilt I felt on my mother as her home was always spotless

You say safe , my brother smoking will affect my baby no ?

You will not get priority for social housing because your brother smokes.

so you need to take action yourself - if that means you and your baby stay in your bedroom the majority of the time then that is what happens.
and you spend lots of time ventilating the house - windows open etc.

does your brother work or is he sat at home 24/7 ?

You say young mum, how young are you? I'd you feel you are unable to keep your baby safe in that environment (drugs) you can self refer to social care for support, depending on your age there are things you may be eligible for.

Smoking will not be viewed as being unsafe. Unsafe will be viewed as at risk of significant harm from DV for example and will require supporting evidence from agencies like social services or the police in order to get your banding reviewed

I didn’t say I was young just said a single mother but I’m 27

Why only £300 pm ? Smp is around £175pw then you could claim via cms . Are you eligible for uc?

In a nut shell if your brother kicks you out . You can go in temporary accommodation . Which could lead to social housing. Or they could help you find private rent Which is pretty hard .

Although the rental market is tough, whether private or social housing, it does depend on where you live. In some areas social housing is like hens teeth, but in others there may be different circumstances. For example, where I used to live (moved last year) there was a massive amount of 1/2 bedroom flats or maisonettes. Houses - no. Larger properties - no. But for a mum and baby, there was a relatively plentiful amount. I have to be honest and say that some of it wasn't in the best neighbourhoods, but needs must. Where I live now if you are looking for older person's bungalows you can be rehoused really quickly - but not anything else. So maybe do some research on the specific housing market for your area. It might indicate that there are options. Talk to a local housing charity or homelessness organisation - they will have much better information than any generic info you'll get here.

If your brother formally gives you notice to leave, you can go to the housing office and they'll reassess your priority. Do note that this is likely to include a visit to your brother to try and convince him to change his mind - this happened to me with an ex-boyfriend's parents and was mortifying.

If he won't, and you've got nowhere else to go, you'll be offered emergency accommodation because of your baby. That is likely to be worse than where you currently are, though, and they monitor how often you are there to see if you actually need help. This could be anything from a Salvation Army room to a B&B, hotel, temporary apartment...

Then you'll stay there until you're matched to something else. Here, if you're given top priority, you bid weekly for properties, but the council will also bid for anything that matches your needs on your behalf, and you cannot reject. If you're in second-band priority, you bid yourself and can reject up to three properties.

Before that happens, all you can do is keep looking for private options - although I appreciate they may be almost non-existant - and try your best to keep your baby away from smoke and mould as much as possible.

If he won't, and you've got nowhere else to go, you'll be offered emergency accommodation because of your baby. That is likely to be worse than where you currently are, though, and they monitor how often you are there to see if you actually need help. This could be anything from a Salvation Army room to a B&B, hotel, temporary apartment

She won't be offered emgency accommodation. As she has a place to stay ie her brothers house she is suitably housed.

Edit : not every council bids for you . Mine does not. When I evicted my daughter no one came to my house.

You need to claim UC, find a private rental and claim housing element which will cover some (but prob not all) your rent. The Housing Officer at your council may know if suitable properties and/or have a scheme to help you with deposit etc