Anyone watching how to get a council house on channel 4?

[cleoteacher]

Is this a repeat or another new series ? I remember this sort of programme being on before.

Can't believe Emma. How entitled is she? People are on the streets and she's refusing a flat because it's too high up and not a great place to live. Surely with four kids anything is better than the streets!

She says she wants to get what she deserves. But it's not explained why she's unemployed. Surely you wouldn't risk yourself and four kids on the streets for a dog either.

In Emma's case they said her youngest son has global developmental delay (i hope i got that right) i have no experience of it but its possible she needs to be available for him during the day? Maybe not, i dont know, just making a suggestion as to why she isnt working.

True. Was trying to work out where emma was living or why she moved from where she was

The flat she was shown was disgusting. Maybe the council need to do monthly checks to see how their properties are treated

To get mould that bad must have taken months :(

All the couple had to do was to clean and wouldn't be thrown out - again why let it get to that state esp if man didn't have a job ie about all day

And once allowed to stay and have payment plan - why were they smoking inside the property. Not many LL allow that

Rents seemed really cheap to me - £95 per week is Less then £400 a month. For a 2 bed flat???

And think couple said they owed 3mths rent about £1500. Again very cheap

What the council/builders need to do it either make lots of one bed flats or like a residential care home so all have a bedroom but share living rooms etc

Re the couple with kids- they did mention it had taken 3 months so far to get his housing benefit sorted out, imagine not being paid for 3 months!!

What is the solution though? Is it better for children to be on the streets just so you feel like justice has been served to their parents?
People with mental health problems find simply tidying insurmountable. They need help not derision.

They were getting help though itsbetter i speak as someone who has had horrible depression and my house (shamefully) got into a pretty bad state, not dog shit on the floor levels but it was bad and i couldnt see how to put it right. This couple had a guy standing there being really tactful IMO for the sole purpose of advising them how to keep their LL happy, he was giving them the help, aside from him actually cleaning the place himself what could he do? Their place really wasnt awful, it wouldnt have taken a day to sort. But for some reason that woman preferred to shout at him and change the subject instead of seeing that he was helping.

Those rental prices were actually higher than what you would expect to pay where i am.

Surlycue. Again. That programme was heavily edited. You have no idea of the whole conversation. They purposely wanted them to make them look bad and undeserving.

Rental prices in Portsmouth are higher than what some posters are stating. A small 2 up 2 down is at least 750 a month.

Those are the prices quoted in the programme.

I agree, of course the programme was edited. But they didnt dub over her words. She was reacting like that and saying those things and there is no denying they werent keeping the place in great shape. CH4 didnt pre-dirty the place before filming.

surly I'm pretty sure you're right and the homeless mans place was private, they said council had a call saying it had just come up

Watched this yesterday on catchup and looking forward to the second episode tonight. Felt sorry for the applicants (except the first awful racist one). But I can see how difficult it is for Portsmouth Council due to the shortage of housing (which the stupid new Tory initiative about increasing buy-to-let will only make worse - why the hell are they doing that?)

Although she was a bit stroppy, I did feel sorry for Emma having to move her kids into that crappy flat. Can you imagine being told you had to live there?

Felt for the Romanian guy too, he managed to get work, but was sacked for not being clean enough, due to sleeping rough. But was told by the Council he had to have a job for 3 months to be considered for housing. Catch 22! In the past people could pay to use a shower or a bath at public swimming pools, that would have helped. But maybe that doesn't exist any more?
Although I felt sorry for him, I do think he had a bit of an attitude problem. Why should you imagine you can rock up in a foreign country and be given help with housing immediately? I wouldn't expect to go to Romania and for them to do that for me! But he seemed quite angry about it.

The case of the older guy who was beaten up whilst sleeping rough was the saddest. Disturbing that he was apparently not considered vulnerable or a priority, despite being 61. What age do you have to be then, for that to make a difference? 90 or something? Still, he was the one with a happy ending, that looked a really decent flat he got.

I meant Tory initiative about increasing right-to-buy, not buy-to-let.

I can't watch anything like that without getting really cross. My Granddad died just before Christmas, but he seems to be able to "channel" me when this sort of thing comes on so I end up shouting at the TV.

I've just watched this, was really interesting

I don't think people often realise social housing isn't decorated. No flooring or painting- it comes as a shell. It should be maintained (ie no mould) and clean (not spotlessly cleaned, but rubbish removed etc) it's not a recent thing to blame on austerity.

Honestly I thought Emma came across as a bit of a dickhead. It does amaze me how many social housing tenants are petrified of low heights vs the rest of the population. Quite amazing really

Anyone watching tonight?

Me.

Some spurious "medical" needs here.

Yes and my jaw just hit the floor! did she really just say that?? Are people really that thick to believe that shit?

Sadly they do. I'm not sure who I feel for this week!

Apparently so!

I feel for the little girl having the op. Shes not going be able to get in and out of that bunk bed for a while!

Can't imagine the older man (terminal lung disease and history of heart attacks) living with his son, wife and 3 children is being helped much by son smoking.

This man with the two sons seems like a good bloke.

I know I'm falling for it but she's a 'full time mum' and he can't work due to a leg injury - am I missing a trick here ? could she maybe work?

Molly.....I was wondering the same

Yes none of them work do they? But they all have demands. Homeowners tend to consider their situation before increasing g the size of their family. These families all have more and more children. Then say they are overcrowded and demand somewhere bigger but it can't be this and can't be that. Why does the man with 2 boys in a 1 bed flat have 2 dogs? That's not helping this overcrowded situation either. Why is the family living with her mother having another baby when already cramped in her spare room? They have not been making the wisest decisions.