Please can anyone help with regards to re-housing and the council?

[misdee]

we have applied for a transfer. dh has been awarded 50medical points so with our 30points this puts up in a very good positin for rehousing. unfortunatly the council has decided that the 50points can only go towards a ground floor property. there are only around 12 3 bed ground floor flats/bungalows which are owned by the council. so basically we are stuck here, in a 1st floor masionette which my dh cant cope with as he is breathless. the last few weeks have been hell as we havent had a car so dh doesnt go out much as it exhausts him so much. I have explained to the council that all we really need is a house with a toliet on both levels, and suitable parking close by. I tried phoning social services to see if they could help, they dont get involved in housing needs, they gave me a number to speak to housing needs at the local council, who in turn put me back thro to my housing officier who i have explained all this too. doesw anyone have any advice? apprently a letter has been sent out, but i know we are going to have a battle on out hands to get a suitable place, and all the time dh is feeling worse. if we really need a ground floor property like they say we do, why only give him group b points (50) instead of group a (150)?

Oh dear . Sorry, it was just a quick thought. It might still be worth them coming and doing an assessment for you. They may say it is impossible to adapt appropriately, which would help your case no end.

we have called adult care services, i am waiting for them to call me back (they have untill monday before they get an angry fonecall from me) and they are hopefully coming out to do a home assessment. i have to make a call i na bit to get dh a gp appointment as the hospital wont see him b4 november unless his go asks for him to be seen sooner. he is getting worse and i just dont know what to do with everything.

i can see an empty flat over the rd, its not the ones under the masionettes so i dont know if its a 2 or 3 bed. its g/f as well. might have to have a nosey later. tho it could be a private sale thats happened and not council at all.

THIS IS DOING MY HEAD IN!!!

misdee what a saga. Sorry have been skimming thread a bit cos it is late but will put what I can and come back asap.
Firstly I suggest you try to get hold of the Allocations Policy. Every council has to have one and has to publish it. You are absolutely entitled to see it, but you might be directed to a local library to look at it, it might be up to 20 pages long. You should be able to find out from it what flexibility the council has for offering different types of accommodation, and whether you stand a chance of getting into Group A.
Also the council has to give an indication of how long an applicant is likely to have to wait, eg what is the turnover of 3 BR houses or whatever.

Secondly, it sounds as though you haven't got an occupational therapist involved. I strongly recommend that you ask for an OT assessment. This is often done through social services and the OT is able to advise about what adaptations could be or should be done and what the realistic medical limitations are on different properties.
Who decided you need a GF property? If nobody medically qualified has seen the application then it is rubbish. An OT report usually has much more weight than a doctor's letter because GPs don't often know much about housing issues as such, but both should be put in.

Thirdly have you got points for dd with walking issues? Now that you are expecting another babe (congratulations ) you should be able to amend your application and get EVERYTHING in.

Fourthly you might consider getting legal representation. I don't know your circumstances but Legal Aid is available for certain income brackets and is definitely available for this sort of housing case. Otherwise try Citizens Advice Bureau or similar.

Hope this helps. I will come back in a couple of days if you feel like posting an update. Good luck xx

my daughter is still clumsey, but the hospital doc the other week said there was nothing wrong with the way she walks (he saw her take 10steps holding her dads hand). i am making a gp's appt for me, as the situation is making me stressed and depressed. I will also fill in another form for dd2 as her wlaking is a problem and i do feel she would benefit with somwhere with less steps and somewhere for her to play to help her co-ordination with walking.
We have called adult care services last week to ask for an OT to come out and do a home assessment, am waiting for them to call back.
In desperation yesterday i asked if we could have a 2bed g/f flat (as thats what empty over the rd), as i have already said i'm expecting in march, they wont let us as in march we'd be overcrowded.

The housing officier told me they start allocated houses at around 80points, then work down the list, we have 80points in total, but only can use 30 for a house, so that felt like a kick in the teeth.

All we need is somewhere where dh can come in and sit down, and with a downstairs and upstairs loo to stop him having to climb as many steps. i have told them that, over and over again, but they dont listen to me. Hopefully the OT will say the same as what i have and we can get the 50points changed so we can have a house.