Great Yarmouth Borough Council to pay compensation over homeless support

Great Yarmouth Borough Council has been ordered to pay compensation after taking too long to process a request for homelessness support

A council has been ordered to pay a woman £550 after taking too long to process her request for homelessness support.

Great Yarmouth Borough Council (GYBC) in Norfolk gave Miss X - as she was named in a report - "incorrect advice" and caused her "avoidable court costs", the Local Government Ombudsman said.

It added the authority must also apologise to the woman.

The council said it had now made improvements to its service.

Miss X was served a notice by her landlord in June 2021 and contacted the council to help her find somewhere else to live, as she was at risk of homelessness - which councils have a duty to prevent, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

The ombudsman found that a confirmation of this duty, which should have been issued within 33 days, took the council five months.

In the meantime, Miss X had to pay court fees as her landlord continued with legal proceedings.

Inadequate remedy

GYBC had already accepted it was at fault and had offered her £300 as compensation, but the ombudsman said this was not enough.

"While I welcome the council's acceptance of fault, I do not consider the council's remedy to be adequate because it did not take account of Miss X's quantifiable loss," the ombudsman said.

"She has explained she only had to pay court fees because of uncertainty about her housing situation."

The council has agreed to pay Miss X a further £250.

The ombudsman also said communication from the council to Miss X had been "poor".

Miss X said she experienced distress and that her mental health suffered as a result of the delay.

Conservative councillor Emma Flaxman-Taylor, chair of the housing and neighbourhood committee, said the council "fully accepted the ombudsman's findings".

She said it had "apologised that the service provided fell below the level of service which should have been provided".

"The council has identified a number of areas where the council can improve its service, which have been implemented," she said.