Council Housing

Littlenicky55

Hi, I’m looking for advice regarding Council housing. Myself and my partner have been on the housing list for 9 years, our child has additional needs (autism, sensory processing disorder and mobility issues) I have been in touch with every td and councillor in our area who have all vowed to help for the past year. I’ve sent countless letters and emails to the Council, called several times to be spoken to in the most horrendous manner and I’ve sent them in all of my child’s medical reports etc.
We are renting at the moment, my partner works full time,where we are is 2.5km from the town and my child is reliant on a buggy to get around which isn’t appropriate and I’m going through buggy’s like nobody’s business due to the child being too big for them.
I’ve tried to speak to the Council on many occasions regarding Medical priority and have repeatedly been told there’s no such thing even though it’s in their own allocation policy.
I’m looking for any advice on how I can be heard or listened to.
I’ve resorted to calling tuath and other ahb’s myself to no avail as I need to be nominated by the Council.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Graces7

Littlenicky55 wrote: »

Hi, I’m looking for advice regarding Council housing. Myself and my partner have been on the housing list for 9 years, our child has additional needs (autism, sensory processing disorder and mobility issues) I have been in touch with every td and councillor in our area who have all vowed to help for the past year. I’ve sent countless letters and emails to the Council, called several times to be spoken to in the most horrendous manner and I’ve sent them in all of my child’s medical reports etc.
We are renting at the moment, my partner works full time,where we are is 2.5km from the town and my child is reliant on a buggy to get around which isn’t appropriate and I’m going through buggy’s like nobody’s business due to the child being too big for them.
I’ve tried to speak to the Council on many occasions regarding Medical priority and have repeatedly been told there’s no such thing even though it’s in their own allocation policy.
I’m looking for any advice on how I can be heard or listened to.
I’ve resorted to calling tuath and other ahb’s myself to no avail as I need to be nominated by the Council.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

a small point but your child needs a small wheelchair? Try the various Irish Wheelchair places?

see

http://www.assistireland.ie/eng/Information/Information_Sheets/Suppliers_of_children's_equipment.html

also eg donedeal will sometimes have secondhand.

Caranica

Do you have letters from doctors at consultant level? The councils I know won't accept anything below that for consideration for a medical priority list.

Unfortunately there is also a wait on the medical priority list so it's no fast cure.

With the housing crisis no politician can magic up a house for you and the wait is long. The list operates on a points system based on need as well as a length of time. Making sure the council has all the information to see your urgent need is all you can do I'm afraid.

Gatling

Unfortunately it's a very simple case of waiting ,you can get re-enforced buggies for bigger children too you should really look into ,

Unfortunately your one of tens of thousands in the same position

mickuhaha

Is there an issue with the rented accommodation?

DublinHun72

Can the health board not assist with a wheelchair ?
Failing that as suggested above you could try wheelchair association. There are kids wheelchairs on adverts.ie for €80 atm.

power pants

Littlenicky55 wrote: »

Hi, I’m looking for advice regarding Council housing. Myself and my partner have been on the housing list for 9 years, our child has additional needs (autism, sensory processing disorder and mobility issues) I have been in touch with every td and councillor in our area who have all vowed to help for the past year. I’ve sent countless letters and emails to the Council, called several times to be spoken to in the most horrendous manner and I’ve sent them in all of my child’s medical reports etc.
We are renting at the moment, my partner works full time,where we are is 2.5km from the town and my child is reliant on a buggy to get around which isn’t appropriate and I’m going through buggy’s like nobody’s business due to the child being too big for them.
I’ve tried to speak to the Council on many occasions regarding Medical priority and have repeatedly been told there’s no such thing even though it’s in their own allocation policy.
I’m looking for any advice on how I can be heard or listened to.
I’ve resorted to calling tuath and other ahb’s myself to no avail as I need to be nominated by the Council.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

You will not be seen as a priority as you are currently renting and have a roof over your heads. Your partner is working full time too.

I'm not sure why you think you would be a priority -are you about to be made homeless?

Blazer

power pants wrote: »

You will not be seen as a priority as you are currently renting and have a roof over your heads. Your partner is working full time too.

I'm not sure why you think you would be a priority -are you about to be made homeless?

+1
I have 2 autistic children.
I work full time and my partner looks after them.
We also rent and are looking at buying in the next 2-3 years...hopefully.
I know my missus had been talking to the local SF TD and he was telling her she’d be entitled to a “free” house because of the kids.
She had told him she was single so probably this is where it’s coming from.
Needless to say I blew the lid.

power pants

I think that is where the issue lies. More and more people are told by tds, councils, friends that they are "entitled" to a council house because of their "unique" situation

However that doesn't mean that they will get anything anytime soon.

Pelvis

Sounds like the mobility issues are the actual problem here, and the misuse of buggies to fix it! Even if you were given a house, there's no guarantee that it would be any closer to where you want to be.

There is such a thing as priority I’m on it since April of this year don’t know why they are lying to you

Littlenicky55

Pelvis wrote: »

Sounds like the mobility issues are the actual problem here, and the misuse of buggies to fix it! Even if you were given a house, there's no guarantee that it would be any closer to where you want to be.

misuse of buggy’s? my child has a motor delay along with other issues and is unable to walk 2.5km to the shop and other amenities in the town. The buggy is to get from a to b, it’s not used to “fix” the problem- the extensive physical therapy and AFO’s are supposed to “fix” the problem.

power pants

Littlenicky55 wrote: »

misuse of buggy’s? my child has a motor delay along with other issues and is unable to walk 2.5km to the shop and other amenities in the town. The buggy is to get from a to b, it’s not used to “fix” the problem- the extensive physical therapy and AFO’s are supposed to “fix” the problem.

Whilst sympathetic to your child's needs -how will a council house sort this out ?

What happens if the council said, search for properties closer to town?

Pelvis

Littlenicky55 wrote: »

misuse of buggy’s? my child has a motor delay along with other issues and is unable to walk 2.5km to the shop and other amenities in the town. The buggy is to get from a to b, it’s not used to “fix” the problem- the extensive physical therapy and AFO’s are supposed to “fix” the problem.

You said you're going through buggies because of the distance from town and the fact your child is too big for them. The buggies are not fit for purpose. Get a wheelchair.

Littlenicky55

Clearly posting here was a mistake, I’m not here for judgment or advice on buggies or wheelchairs.
A buggy or a wheelchair doesn’t help when it comes to carrying this child up a stairs, or getting into the bath, changing nappies etc.
I was just looking to see what else I could do to be heard by the Council instead of being swept under the rug. Yes my partner works full time, minimum wage. We unfortunately cannot afford to buy a house if we could I would not be dealing with these people at all as I have enough to be doing also I don’t enjoy being spoken to like crap when I contact them.
Thanks for the replies, I’ll take them on board.

afkasurfjunkie

Littlenicky55 wrote: »

misuse of buggy’s? my child has a motor delay along with other issues and is unable to walk 2.5km to the shop and other amenities in the town. The buggy is to get from a to b, it’s not used to “fix” the problem- the extensive physical therapy and AFO’s are supposed to “fix” the problem.

Have you got a car? Very few young kids would be expected to walk that far to a shop.

power pants

Too much entitlement.................

Littlenicky55

afkasurfjunkie wrote: »

Have you got a car? Very few young kids would be expected to walk that far to a shop.

Unfortunately don’t have a car, hoping to save for one after Christmas.

Littlenicky55

power pants wrote: »

Too much entitlement.................

?????????

power pants

Littlenicky55 wrote: »

?????????

To be honest you comment on the attitude regarding the council, however your own isn't coming across too well on here either.

People are asking and myself included why you believe you are a priority?

There is no reason why you couldn't rent closer to where you would prefer to be.

When your partner is working and you have a roof over your head, you will not be seen as a priority.

afkasurfjunkie

Littlenicky55 wrote: »

Unfortunately don’t have a car, hoping to save for one after Christmas.

That’s your priority really so. You need to get a car sorted. If you were offered a house this minute but it was further away from amenities it would be of no use to you.

Pelvis

Littlenicky55 wrote: »

Clearly posting here was a mistake, I’m not here for judgment or advice on buggies or wheelchairs.

A buggy or a wheelchair doesn’t help when it comes to carrying this child up a stairs, or getting into the bath, changing nappies etc.

None of us are mind readers. Our responses to you are based on the information you provide. The only issue you highlighted in your post was your distance from town and use of buggies.

Littlenicky55 wrote: »

I was just looking to see what else I could do to be heard by the Council instead of being swept under the rug. Yes my partner works full time, minimum wage. We unfortunately cannot afford to buy a house if we could I would not be dealing with these people at all as I have enough to be doing also I don’t enjoy being spoken to like crap when I contact them.
Thanks for the replies, I’ll take them on board.

There's little else you can do. There is a housing shortage and a long waiting list and there are likely many above you who live under worse circumstances.

To alleviate some of your issues, you can keep an eye out for rental properties closer to town that are better suited to your needs, e.g a bungalow, ground floor apartment etc. You are likely to find a property like this before you are offered a house by the council.

Littlenicky55

power pants wrote: »

To be honest you comment on the attitude regarding the council, however your own isn't coming across too well on here either.

People are asking and myself included why you believe you are a priority?

There is no reason why you couldn't rent closer to where you would prefer to be.



When your partner is working and you have a roof over your head, you will not be seen as a priority.

If there was accommodation available to rent closer to the town we would be gone, unfortunately there isn’t. I don’t think I am a priority, I think my child deserves to at least be considered by them when they are allocating all of their new builds, and the houses people moved from to move into them.

Graces7

Littlenicky55 wrote: »

If there was accommodation available to rent closer to the town we would be gone, unfortunately there isn’t. I don’t think I am a priority, I think my child deserves to at least be considered by them when they are allocating all of their new builds, and the houses people moved from to move into them.

I agree totally. Meanwhile, ask at the doctors re a wheelchair etc\? I think the Public Health Nurse will help? Even that would be some support. And she may have more input that will support the help you really need.

DublinHun72

Littlenicky55 wrote: »

If there was accommodation available to rent closer to the town we would be gone, unfortunately there isn’t. I don’t think I am a priority, I think my child deserves to at least be considered by them when they are allocating all of their new builds, and the houses people moved from to move into them.

Your child is being considered when they are allocating homes. You would be higher on the list than say a single man. It’s a massive list with people who have no homes and are living In hotels with kids on it. I’m not sure why you can’t see that there is an allocation process.

Littlenicky55

Graces7 wrote: »

I agree totally. Meanwhile, ask at the doctors re a wheelchair etc\? I think the Public Health Nurse will help? Even that would be some support. And she may have more input that will support the help you really need.

I was told my child would need to be issued a special needs buggy from the occupational therapist, in our area the waiting time to see one I 2.5 years. We pay privately for occupational therapy but as it’s private a specialist buggy cannot be issued.

Littlenicky55

DublinHun72 wrote: »

Your child is being considered when they are allocating homes. You would be higher on the list than say a single man. It’s a massive list with people who have no homes and are living In hotels with kids on it. I’m not sure why you can’t see that there is an allocation process.

I appreciate that there’s plenty of people in need, I’ve familirised myself with their specific allocation policy and they are going against it telling me I’m wrong when it’s there in black and white

GoneHome

What age is the child, would you consider getting a part-time job yourself while he is in school/care or in the evenings/weekends when your partner gets home from work, so that maybe you could then save towards a mortgage and buy a place of your own rather than waiting for the Council to 'give' you a house?

power pants

Littlenicky55 wrote: »

If there was accommodation available to rent closer to the town we would be gone, unfortunately there isn’t. I don’t think I am a priority, I think my child deserves to at least be considered by them when they are allocating all of their new builds, and the houses people moved from to move into them.

You have said you are privately renting
Your partner is working full time
You are paying private for occupational therapy
you hope to have a car by Xmas
you currently have a roof over your head
You are not about to be made homeless

there is a huge massive housing crisis , there are 1000s and 1000s who claim to be in worse situations and will be looked after first

can you not see why you would not be deemed as a priority or considered any time soon?

Littlenicky55

power pants wrote: »

You have said you are privately renting
Your partner is working full time
You are paying private for occupational therapy
you hope to have a car by Xmas
you currently have a roof over your head
You are not about to be made homeless

there is a huge massive housing crisis , there are 1000s and 1000s who claim to be in worse situations and will be looked after first

can you not see why you would not be deemed as a priority or considered any time soon?

My partner works full time and is payed minimum wage. I actually said I hope to save for a car after Christmas which will take a long time as you can imagine I don’t have buckets of money. I pay €80 per hour for occupational therapy as it is a necessity for my child.... that doesn’t mean I’m flush with cash. I like anyone else put my child’s needs above all else. I currently have a roof over my head, the rent is going up in January and it’s very possible I will no longer be able to keep on top of it.

Littlenicky55

GoneHome wrote: »

What age is the child, would you consider getting a part-time job yourself while he is in school/care or in the evenings/weekends when your partner gets home from work, so that maybe you could then save towards a mortgage and buy a place of your own rather than waiting for the Council to 'give' you a house?

Yes