Can someone please explain this to me?

[Becca19962014]

Please don't flame me. I'm in a really bad place, mentally and physically, a huge amount to deal with and zero medical support.

I was directed to email someone at the council for urgent help which I did, and it went though (sometimes they don't). I began my email with "Dear Ms" as it was a woman and always address emails as such, like letters, and on the council website it says she's Ms firstname second name.

Anyway, I've had a long email back about discrimination, how i need to educate myself about pronouns online and how to address people properly in writing. They drew my attention to their signature which says gender pronoun her/she and directed me to council policy about gender discrimination.

Zero advice on my urgent situation

I dont understand. Do I now just put "hi" in any professional emails so I don't get in trouble? Why aren't they answering my urgent question?? Was I rude? How am I supposed to know how to address people properly and why am I being accused of discrimination?!

There will be an emergency social services number though? (I phoned them on a weekend)

And the hoarding does change things legally due to putting everyone else in danger.

So much for it being a recognised serious mental health issue.

@Suitcaseseverywhere it's an emergency when homeless not before and because ive been under mental health they won't get involved anyway (separate teams for mental/physical) I'd need to go through crisis team who won't see anyone without referral from GP/A&E; neither will refer for something like this and A&E is almost three hours away as local service closed. Crisis team (from experience) will just tell me to wait until homeless and in the meantime do some mindfullness even when suicidal I was told to wait until actually trying to end my life to contact them.

I’m sorry it sounds really difficult

Another who's sorry about all this Becca. If you think back, is there anyone in the recent past who you've maybe not considered who's been supportive or helpful who you could turn to?
I can't think of anything else useful to suggest except a practical suggestion: Can you spend a bit of time gathering together key documents, possessions so that if the likely eviction does happen, you know you've got important things beside you so they don't get lost?

No. Everyone stopped helping me March 2020. All citing their health concerns and no one was interested in my needs under safeguarding. Was told it didn't matter.

I'm not going to be able to carry a lot of stuff to get my meds; two hands in splints, need to use sticks and small bag that's already full with water and food to get there and get meds back.

But they know this.

Sorry.

@Becca19962014 you said

It's private rented, building with flats, so self contained but still just a room if that makes sense. Probably doesn't.

I can't tell if you are saying:

1. you rent/occupy your own separate space, and you are on your own - a self contained bedsit maybe; or

1. whether you are possibly lodging in a room in someone else's rented flat; or

1. in a joint tenancy with others in a multi occupied flat?

What has the landlord working from home got to do with it? Is he occupying the same flat as you? Are you his lodger? If you are a lodger, you don't have the protection of a tenant. But whether you are a tenant or not might depend on the circumstances of how you are living. Do you have a tenancy agreement or anything else in writing from the landlord?

And the hoarding does change things legally due to putting everyone else in danger.

Who is the everyone else? Are you hoarding only in the space you are renting/paying for, or in common areas/outside your flat?

Oh, Becca. I know things have gone to absolute shit since Covid hit, and I know they were bad enough beforehand. I well recall all of these endless bloody hoops to jump through, when it comes to homelessness and the system - some of them quite literally impossible.

I wish I had a more useful suggestion to make.

It sounds like you really need your GP, social services, or mental health crisis team to step up, here. There has to be a way to sort this out.

Becca, I presume you are in Wales?

• I appreciate you may already have tried some or all of these, but just in case, some organisations that might be able to help:

Ths is a charity that helps people at risk of homelessness:

'Contact us if you need help, if you’re worried about anyone, or if you know of anyone needing our help and support.'

Email
[email protected]

Another org it might be worth trying:

01792 674 900

[email protected]

Call or text
07955 518 669

And the following from the Shelter Cymru page:

Emergency housing advice

If you need help immediately, phone Shelter Cymru’s helpline on 08000 495 495 to talk to an expert housing adviser. They can:

explain your rights
tell you your options
contact accommodation providers, such as hostels, on your behalf.

@TedImgoingmad

Sorry for not explaining well. It's the first one in your list.

My landlord, demanding access to a small room that's occupied by a sheilder whose at extreme risk of covid, is working from home to protect himself from covid, yet is happy to put me at risk. They've told me covid is a "silly cold" so why work from home then? it just seems off to me. Willing to protect themselves but risk giving me covid. They were only diagnosed last week and had no symptoms so really worried they'll give it to me (did test after lateral flow result).

Not hoarding elsewhere. There's two small parcels outside for me. Not in anyone's way.

@ArabellaScott sheltercymru helpline just disconnects after telling you to go online and look for what you need. No option to queue. Been trying to call them since Tuesday. Eventually they emailed me to say what I said above.

Crisis don't cover my area.

I've tried helpoirhomeless. It didn't connect but trying again.

You're all being so kind and I really don't deserve it, but thank you so much for trying!!.

Becca, can you just clarify a few things in your last post for me?

Where is your landlord's home that he is working from? Is it in the same building you are in?

When you say demanding access to a small room that a shielder is in I presume that is your room? Is he personally physically demanding to be let in? Or is he sending people to evict you and remove your stuff?

This all sounds awful for you.

@RedDogsBeg I'll try!

He lives down the road from me. Told me they're home working due to risk.

It's the room I rent from him. The letter says "staff" but when I rang he said him and he'll be chucking everything and removing me because I'm a danger.

Does that help?

Sorry really unwell right now.

If he threatens you, you can call the police.

He hasn't followed the procedures. He can't legally evict you, if he tries to, he is breaking the law and you can call the police.

(This is my understanding from reading that page above, I'm not qualified in anyway)

No problem, you are under a lot of stress. OK, well if he wants you out, then he needs to go through the legal procedure which was set out by pp, namely, service of a section 21 notice. Are you absolutely sure no notice has already been served? Are you in rent arrears? Or is the stated reason for eviction the hoarding causing danger to others? If no notice has already been served, he needs to serve a section 21 notice giving you 2 months' notice; however, he may be trying to get you out for the hoarding as anti-social behaviour, in which case the notice period may be reduced to less than 2 months - possibly down to 1 month or less. Either way, though, he has to give you notice. He can't just hassle/threaten you out of the room. That is a criminal offence, and if he tries it, please contact the police.

Not sure whether this advisory option has been posted, but you could try Civil Legal Advice:

www.gov.uk/civil-legal-advice

The govt has also put into place a pilot mediation service to cover covid evictions. It supposedly kicks in once court proceedings are under way, but may be useful to contact them in any case to see if you can come to an arrangement with the landlord. Make it very clear that your problems have become exacerbated by lack of help and support due to Covid.

www.gov.uk/guidance/rental-mediation-service

@ArabellaScott

He hasn't followed the procedures. He can't legally evict you, if he tries to, he is breaking the law and you can call the police.

(This is my understanding from reading that page above, I'm not qualified in anyway)

You categorically cannot evict a tenant without getting a court order, and then it is only court appointed bailiffs who can evict. The landlord will not get a court order if he cannot show that he has served a valid section 21 notice. If court proceedings are issued, try to get the matter into mediation - if it's the hoarding he's citing as the reason he wants you out, try to come to a solution where this gets sorted out to your mutual satisfaction. If it's rent arrears, then you come up with a payment plan - no court will have you out for arrears unless they are serious. If he wants you out just because he wants the flat back - well he can do that, but it will be a longer procedure for him (courts are prioritising "urgent" cases), and he still needs to follow the legal procedure.

No notice served. But he has in the past come in and put a notice on my bed which he predated. He's been trying to evict for years, I've had threats but was put in mediation where he charmed the mediator into thinking I was just crazy (sort of man women fall at his feet if you get my drift).

My other worry is he knows I won't be here. So I can't stop him changing the locks, it'll be too late when I get back. I've medical equipment I simply cannot drag to get my meds with me and will be without it.

Thankyou for the links.
Again apologies for the not great answers!

Thanks, Ted, I'm glad someone qualified is here!

Are you able to change the locks yourself so he can't get in/illegally evict you? I believe it's an implied right under most tenancy agreements.
Regardless of what date he puts on any notice, he still needs to go through court to evict you.

Becca, is there someone who can be with you on the day he is threatening to evict?

I've never been in arrears in over twenty years. Even when I've had no money I've begged/stolen to get it paid. They charge 10% in late fees every day rent is late, so in ten days you owe an extra 100%.

The support necessary to sort this just isn't available. Services being closed here until at least next spring. I'm also terminally ill (as in could die any moment) so IF he went the legal route it's not a problem.

Thing is, in the past he hasn't gone the legal route and the people who helped me then simply aren't available now.

If he does that - locks you out - he is acting illegally. You contact the police and tell them you have been unlawfully locked out of your property. You tell them you want him arrested and charged with harassment.

I can't change locks. When he threatened me with assault I did that and it made things much much worse. Ended up in mediation appointment with mental health team agreeing with him I'd damaged his property.

No one can be here.