A disabled Hackney resident unable to leave his flat for months has condemned his landlord over the “nightmare” treatment he has experienced during the hunt for a new home.
Wheelchair user Malcolm Cripps asked for a transfer from his third-floor housing association flat, after being repeatedly trapped inside due to a faulty communal lift he relied on to enter and exit the building.
Malcolm, who has severely restricted mobility, has found himself stuck both inside and outside his estate block on several occasions, including one “traumatising” three-to-four-month period last year when he could not leave the building at all.
His landlord, Sanctuary Housing Association, apologised for the “intermittent lift issues” and offered him alternative flats, but “none have been suitable”, he told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).
Sanctuary asked if Malcolm, who is 64, would move to an older people’s residence.
According to his NHS wellbeing practitioner, this was “more like a care home”.
Malcolm said he would consider this, but not before visiting. After viewing, he declined due to concerns over the impact it would have on his sensory issues, and the loss of his independence.
“I couldn’t handle being in there. It felt like a psych ward,” he said.
After this, several months passed where “nothing happened”, Malcolm added.
Sanctuary then offered him two other places to live, including at Kingsmead estate in Homerton, but neither of these had wheelchair access, and both had steps.
“Ironically, the person leaving one of these properties also needed a wheelchair”, he said.
But Malcolm said his “nightmare” has gone beyond finding the right flat. “I’ve had to fight for years just to be heard,” he told the LDRS.
“They don’t treat me as a person – just a problem.”
Malcolm later lobbied to be transferred to one of Sanctuary’s properties at Gascoyne House because it had two lifts as opposed to one, which made him feel safer.
“At first they said it was unsuitable because it was still in void, and then it was due to works needed. Then it was because the layout was the same as the Kingsmead ground-floor property,” he said.
“But the layout was ideal. I know, because I’d seen it. It’s been smoke and mirrors.”
He said he would accept this transfer, and asked for an Occupational Therapist (OT) to assess what adaptations the property would need.
Sanctuary said they did not provide these, “even though I had previously viewed one of their properties with an OT present”, he said.
After this, local MP Meg Hillier and a journalist from Inside Housing contacted Sanctuary.
The housing association subsequently agreed to pay for a private Occupational Therapist (OT) to inspect the flat and identify any adaptations it may require.
The OT submitted report to the landlord in December last year, but Cripps was chasing for a reply for weeks, he said.
His wellbeing practitioner said: “I’ve been working with Malcolm for two years, I don’t know how many emails I’ve written or phone calls placed to Sanctuary.”
“He has also been doing a hell of a lot of them himself”, he added.
Local councillors Clare Joseph (Labour), Penny Wrout (Independent) and Claudia Turbet-Delof (Independent) have also intervened throughout the process.
In March, Sanctuary reversed its offer for the Gascoyne House flat, which had been earmarked for a year, because the OT report said it would not meet Malcolm’s long-term needs if his condition worsened.
However, Malcolm is certain he could live there independently now, and disputes some of these “ideal” recommendations which he was “not consulted about”.
His wellbeing practitioner said: “The landlord is making out that the property is just too difficult to adapt, but they haven’t really explained why.”
“This has happened before with Sanctuary, to other people I work with. They offer someone a flat, pay for an OT assessment and then decide they can’t make the adjustments.”
Malcolm added that he and his practitioner had been asking for a meeting with Sanctuary to discuss the matter ever since they withdrew the offer, but they had not responded.
In May, the landlord told him they were unable to override an OT report, and the flat had been returned to its allocations list.
He is still worried about entering the lift where he currently lives, and has to “ram his legs into the wheelchair” to use it.
The Equality Act 2010 states that housing providers must not discriminate against disabled people, and are legally required to make reasonable adjustments.
Cllr Turbet-Delof told the LDRS she was “shocked and appalled by Mr Cripps’ disgraceful treatment, by a housing assocation that has both the means and the responsibility to do better”.
“The distress, delays and systemic failures he has experienced is simply unacceptable. No one should have to endure prolonged isolation,” she said.
“Sanctuary Housing—and all housing associations—must be held to account. They can afford to spare residents from this level of distress, and they must never forget that their duty is to support and uphold the dignity of every individual they house.”
Cllr Turbet-Delof also raised the work done by her “dedicated” colleague Cllr Joseph before she went on maternity leave, and added: “I am dismayed the efforts to support him appear to have been disregarded entirely”.
A spokesperson for Sanctuary said Hackney was “heavily oversubscribed” with residents seeking transfers, which meant all housing bands had long waitlists.
They told the LDRS: “Mr Cripps’ specific needs mean the search for a new home is not straightforward, and unfortunately a recent property was deemed unsuitable following a review of the occupational therapist’s report.
“However, we remain committed to supporting him and finding a property that is right for his short and long-term requirements.”
