can anyone give some advice on housing?

[chocymonsta]

this is my first time posting, have been lurking for a while but are having some problems with our housing situation and need some general advice. at the moment me my dp and 2 ds's are living in a 1 bedroom first floor flat which we rent from a housing association. me and my dp originally moved in when we had no children and it was great, then when i fell pregnat with ds1 (21 ms) we contacted our council to apply for rehousing and was told there was a 2 year wait but after that time we would be rehoused. then ds2 (4ms) 'suprised' us and again i went to the council to tell them that we would have 2 children as of jan and asked them to reasses our application, i was told that the wait ws still 2 years i was already 'high' priority for rehousing and the 2 years would be up in march at which time they would move me. they said i would just have to struggle untill then. when ds2 arrived we took the birth certificate in to the council and was told the wait was now 3 years, so have another year to wait!! at the moment me my dp and ds2 sleep in the living room, me and dp on a sofa bed and ds2 in moses basket and ds1 sleeps in the bedroom so he doesnt get woken up by ds2 during night feeds. the stairs going up to our flat are steep and too narrow to push a single pushchair down, let alone a double buggy, so this means unless my dp is at home or a freind omes round i do not go out. i have sent in a medical form letters from my hv, gp, housing officer all saying that i cant get out, the stairs are unsafe, i am becoming ill due to the situation but i am still in the same list position as they work on a banding system and i am already in high. in exceptional circumstances they can move people into 'urgent' band but i have asked the to do this and they said no. does anyone know what i should do now? i simply can not stay here for another year, i feel really bad for my children as they dont get to go outside and ds2 cant even have a proper cot as i cant fit 1 in, he will have to sleep in a travel cot once he gets too big for the moses basket, sorry its so long

Sorry, bumping for you.

If you're in Edinburgh, however, be prepared for a long, pretty much indefinite wait.

In some areas, there just isn't suitable housing available for all who need it.

It just isn't there and so long as you are not homeless, you're pretty much stuck if you're in this town.

Even if you are homeless, what you'll finally be offered may be even worse than where you are now.

It's just not a given that there'll be suitable social housing anymore.

We're moving out of the area.

Have you thought of doing that?

Sounds like you've done all you can so far.

How about working more to earn enough money to rent suitable accommodation privately?

We ended up doing swapped shifts in order to afford the rent, but it's worth the space.

In our council, at least, the only people dealt with on a truly urgent basis are the homeless and those who become physically disabled and can no longer get into their old homes anymore.

Everyone else is take a number and wait.

no other advice apart from what expat said really,

Does your dp work full time? Can he get more work? Are you getting all the benefits you are entitled to so that you can start looking around to rent somewhere privately?

Sorry, you've probably already thought of all that

Hi chocymonsta

Don't really have the answer, except have you thought of renting a place and claiming housing benefit? Is that feasible or not? My friend is a single mum and she was renting a 2 bed place when her ds was young, before he went to school - and the council paid.

Council house lists are very, very long. My friend has 2 kids as well and is still waiting after 3 yrs (London). They have moved in with her mother-in-law to try and save money to get their own place.

I hope something can be sorted, because the not being able to go out must be very, very hard - especially in such a small place.

i think you pretty uch have to make sure that you get everythig in writing.

the thing is with housing staff - and with people who deal with general public in general - the squeeky wheel gets the oil.

if you shout louder you will get the attention.

go to the papers

contact your MP

your local councillor

write letters weekly to your HO

if you really really want this you have to work at it - do not wait for some incompetant fucker at the housing office to actually follow the rules and know what they are doing.

you would be surprised.

create your own publicity.

get everything written down

get a copy of the complaints proceedure and every time a housing officer speaks to you like shit

writes a letter to you that reads like shit
complain
make a formal complaint

get them out to fix everything

make the repairs bill huge
and when they dont coe to fix it - complain about it
complain about the workmen

complain about not being given proper and full information

ask about transfers

tell them you are being threatened you are getting thereatening phonecalls,

that somone keep s throwing stuff at your windows

that people are posting dog shit through your letter box

you are frightened
often alone
go to your doctor push for another letter cry and say your having a break down - you cant stand the threats anymore and you are practically a prisoner in your own home

go go go

you have access to a computer obviously - so use it.

I can't believe your Council has got away with this! How can you be given a time limit anyway? How can they say 'it will be 2 years then a house will suddenly appear'.
Weird.
Our Council would put you into a temporary accomodation at least. I would keep going in to the cityhall/offices and jogging their memory. Is their anyway of speaking to a housing officer?

I agree with expat, it does sound as if they are doing what they can. I don't know where you are - but is there a housing advice centre in your area? They would have a very good idea of how local policies are implemented and may be able to advocate on your behalf. As your youngest is only 4 months, would you consider putting him in a sling and the oldest in a single buggy so you can get out. I know that it might be a short term measure. I feel sorry for the situation you are in and hope that you find some resolution soon.

PS. Have you tried approaching the HA direct and asking if there is anyone wanting to do a transfer?

Put in for the 'right to buy' several times too, this wastes time and money...

thanks for the replies, we are currently in oxfordshire and 3while i know there is a lack of housing the flat downstairs is supported housing and 3 families with 1 child have nbeen moved on since i had ds1, so there is some coming up obvousily, i have tried calling up all the time and tried getting them to come and do a home visit to see what our situation is actually like but they just wont, am getting so tired of fighting them, was thinking of writing to my m.p but not sure if they can help with things like this

sorry to hear what a horrible situation you are in. dont have much knowledge etc with housing so will stay out of that. however instead of a double could you beg borrow or steal a sling. that way you could put baby in sling and just go out and about with a single pushchair. just a thought at how getting out might be easier for you.
do try and get out to mums and tots group etc. ask your hv for some nice ones to go to. i know alot of mumsnetters slate them, but for somewhere to go with new toys for your eldest, lots of mums happy to hold babies and a cup of coffee if you can stick it it would do you some good.
do keep talking to the hv and the gp and telling them how much it is a problem and upsetting you etc as they can help with pushing etc. otherwise i have no idea.

i have tried putting ds2 in a sling but we live at the top of a hill and i get asthma really bad so cant manage it, was hard enough with just i ds

Go see your doctor..they can help.

Has your health visitor suggested Homestart to you?
They will send a volunteer round for maybe a few hours a week who can help you get out of the house with both children. It might be something as simple as them going to a Mother's groups with you and helping you to get there and back. Definitely worth a try.
Also don't do all the fighting on your own. Get dp to writew to your MP (it is something youtr MP should care about)
What about friends and family? Do you have people nearby to help you, come over for a coffee etc. Don't stop talking to people and keep coming on here

you wont know unless you try.

i urge caution in trying to assess the whole housing policy on the basis of people moving in and out of the flat downstairs. it may be a dedicated decant flat, flat for people fleeing abuse, designated temp accom.

i think if your sick of fighting - you will have to be resigned to your situation.

Sorry to hear about your situation, not much advice other than to say just keep on at them, ring them, visit their offices as often as you can. Unfortunately youre not on your own, we are elligible for a move and in the nice glossy book that came from the council it says in nice bold print that overcrowded accomodation has a 10 year wait to be rehoused, urgent need such as being made immediately homeless has a 5 year wait. Dont ask what youre supposed to do in the meantime. Thankfully we all just about sqeeze in at the moment so im not too bothered! Have you asked if they do housing swaps in your area?

How about buying your current flat and then selling it for a profit and using the procedes to rent or buy privately?

You'll probably need to be in work to do this, though.

Custy's right, though. It takes HUGE effort to get reliable rented housing these days as a family. Millions of us struggle with this.

That's just life for many of us.

Councils don't 'get away with it' - they often do NOT have the housing at all. It's not there. Sold off. Gone.

And being in temporary housing can be even worse - sometimes, you could be separated from your partner because the only temp accommodation available doesn't allow for families or men, especially in areas of great shortages, which tend to have really high house prices.

DD1 slept in a travel cot.

My dad slept in a drawer.

Both are healthy and kicking!

do homestart do that kind of thing? my mw mentioned them but siad they would only be for companionship etc, no houswork, looking after children and the like. my family live about an hour away, my mum comes round once a week but only breifly as she works f/t. my dp does work f/t and we ahve been told we should rent privatly and claim housing benefit but as a lot of my dp's pay is bonus related we would have to claim each week/month and then the council will decide what the shortfall is, i have been on housing benefit before and i really struggled

You can estimate annual wages when you apply for housing benefit when you apply to factor in the bonuses.

Sorry, I hate to sound blunt, but in today's UK, especially in an area like Oxfordshire, I'm afraid you can't rely on the council or local housing association to get you a larger accommodation - especially so long as you are not homeless and physically able to access your home.

You're going to have to get creative and put in a huge amount of effort.

If your partner is working ft, your best option is private rental and housing benefit.

Some associations will rent 'market rent', but you get an assured tenancy so you can stay as long as you like.

They'll also take whatever working tax credits you get into consideration for your 'income'.

can you leave the buggy downstairs so at least you could get out? staying cooped up can't be helping.

I kept my double buggy in my car as I had no room for it in the flat we lived in and couldn't get it up & down the stairs. Ds had to sleep in a travel cot in our bedroom too. Luckily we were able to buy a bigger house & it does make life so much easier & more pleasant. I really hope you get something sorted out soon, good luck.

there are steps outside the block too, also narrow, ds 1 cant walk up/down the stairs yet and i cant carry them both

No, Homestart volunteers are not there to do your housework or be childminders.

What they can do is provide companionship if you'd like to get out for a few hours - you wouldn't be on your own and have two pairs of hands to help.

can't you fold the buggy up and carry it downstairs and then take them down and put them in it.

That's what we do, nappy, and we are on the second floor with two children - one special needs.

Put children in cot and run downstairs with buggy.

Then take children down.

We have DD2 in a sling for going down because DD1 still needs help going up and down stairs.

it would mean leaving them both in the flat alone while i put the buggy up then leaving 1 in the buggy in the street while i got the other 1