Brentwood Council Apologises for Restricting Help to Homeless Individuals
Brentwood Council has issued an apology for limiting assistance to the homeless by imposing unnecessary barriers during the application process
Brentwood, Essex, Homelessness, Local Government, Ombudsman
Brentwood: So, it turns out Brentwood Council has been in hot water for how they’ve been handling homeless applications. They’ve been putting up all these unnecessary hurdles, making it tough for people to get the help they need.
An investigation by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman found that the council was asking for way too much info right off the bat. They wanted things like bank statements and a five-year address history just to start looking at someone’s case. That’s a bit much, right?
They even set a strict deadline for people to submit their applications. If someone didn’t get everything in on time, their case was just closed. Over six months, they shut down 216 cases out of 326, even though many of those folks met the legal requirements to be considered for help.
The Ombudsman pointed out that the council should have been looking into all those cases, especially since they had reason to believe these people might be homeless. But they only made proper decisions in 22 of those cases. That’s pretty alarming.
Ombudsman Amerdeep Somal expressed serious concerns about the council’s approach, saying it felt like they were intentionally keeping numbers down by making it harder for people to get help. He emphasized that councils have a duty to assess homelessness when they suspect someone might be in need, not just when applicants meet arbitrary criteria.
He also highlighted that vulnerable individuals, like those facing domestic abuse or rough sleeping, were being overlooked because of this rigid process. It’s like they were gatekeeping, which is just not okay.
Jonathan Stephenson, the Chief Executive of Brentwood Borough Council, admitted there were issues with their previous process and sincerely apologized. He mentioned they’ve already started reviewing their service and are making changes to improve how they handle these applications.
Stephenson reassured everyone that they’re committed to helping vulnerable individuals and ensuring they meet their responsibilities under the law. Let’s hope they really follow through on that!