Right to ‘turn up and go’ for disabled rail passengers ‘under serious threat’
The right of disabled people to enjoy spontaneous travel on the rail network is under “serious threat” because of the planned closure of nearly 1,000 ticket offices across England, campaigners warned this week.
One disabled activist warned that the time for direct action over the “outrageous” threat to disabled people’s independence – through their right to “turn up and go” assistance at rail stations – was “fast approaching”.
Research by disabled people has already shown how the government-backed closure plans will have a “disastrous” impact on disabled passengers, and lead to a significant fall in the number of staff available to support them.
But disabled activists have now told Disability News Service (DNS) that they believe their right to spontaneous travel through the turn up and go (TUAG) system is now under clear threat.
TUAG refers to the right of disabled passengers to secure immediate assistance with boarding a train without having to book in advance.
The Office of Rail and Road says that, under TUAG, disabled passengers can “turn up at any station that they have identified is accessible to them and request assistance on to a train”, although this “depends on conditions at the time of your travel, such as staff availability”.
But evidence that has emerged during the ongoing consultation on the closures is raising increasing concerns that the right to TUAG could effectively be ended at many stations if the closures are allowed to go ahead.
Calculations by disabled activist Doug Paulley have shown that Northern’s staffed station hours will decrease by three-fifths under its ticket office closure proposals, from 10,793 to 4,238 hours per week, with nearly all the cuts at weekends and evenings.
And figures produced by the RMT union show that more than 2,200 jobs will be cut due to the closures across England.
Paulley said: “Given the de-staffing, there’s no way they are going to be able to facilitate TUAG. There will just not be staff at the stations.
“Everybody else can turn up and travel and buy a ticket and travel on the spot. We should be able to, too.”
Sam Jennings, a wheelchair-user who campaigns for a more accessible rail network, said she also believed that disabled people’s right to spontaneous travel was under threat.
She said: “I’m terrified that that is what is going to end up being lost.
“That’s not an exaggeration at all. It’s under threat and I feel it in my bones.”
She pointed to the RMT figures, and said: “If this goes through, that is automatically over 2,000 people taken off the railway that disabled people could approach to say they need assistance to get from A to B, and that’s just in the first round of cuts.”
But she said she did not think the right to TUAG would vanish immediately.
She said: “The cuts will start coming in and then it will just decline so much that you will have to book the day before because you won’t be able to find the staff if you just turn up without booking.”
Katie Pennick, campaigns manager for the disabled-led campaigning organisation Transport for All (TfA), said research by TfA and others had made it clear that TUAG was “under threat”.
She said: “The level of de-staffing contained within the ticket office closure proposals is shocking.
“Should these plans go ahead, disabled passengers’ ability to turn up and go will be severely curtailed, and in many instances TUAG will be entirely impossible.”
She pointed to West Midlands Railway, which has announced plans for 78 stations to become completely unstaffed and rely instead on daily or weekly visits from mobile teams.
She said: “These operators claim that there will be ‘greater visibility of staff on concourses and platforms’, despite there being nobody at the station most of the time.”
She also pointed to LNR’s claim in its consultation document that its mobile teams will be stationed at selected stations a maximum of one hour from each other.
Pennick said it was “ludicrous” to suggest these staff were meaningfully available to disabled passengers when they could have to wait up to half an hour for the assistance they need to board a train.
She said: “Having to wait half an hour and beyond for a mobile team to reach you does not constitute turn up and go, which, crucially, is about receiving immediate assistance at the point in which you turn up at a station.
“We are particularly concerned for disabled people who require assistance to safely navigate through a station.
“We object to these plans in the strongest possible terms and will be fighting them to the end.”
Tony Jennings, co-chair of a rail accessibility panel and co-founder of the Campaign for Level Boarding, said disabled people’s right to TUAG and “spontaneous and independent travel” would be under “serious threat” if the closures went ahead.
He said this was “outrageous” and “would impose significant barriers on disabled passengers and would require them to plan journeys well in advance and force them to book assistance, undermining the freedom and flexibility they currently enjoy”.
He said: “The time for direct action is fast approaching.”
He pointed to the government’s insistence that no staffed stations would be left unstaffed as a result of the closures, even though at least three train companies will move some stations from being staffed part-time to relying on mobile teams.
He also highlighted the RMT figures.
Paulley’s research showed that support at many Northern stations, including Ulverston and Hexham, will be drastically cut when the ticket offices close, in Ulverston’s case from more than 13 hours a day on weekdays at present to just two.
There will also be an end to any support on Sundays when it is currently available for more than 10 hours.
Jennings, a mobility scooter-user whose local station is Ulverston – served by Northern – pointed out that staff support at these two stations is particularly important for many disabled people because they include “barrow crossings”, crossing-points that allow passengers who cannot use steps to cross the tracks to move from one platform to another with the support of staff.
He said: “Northern’s proposal to leave barrow crossings unstaffed is deeply troubling, as it renders stations inaccessible for disabled people dependent on such crossings.
“The absence of staff assistance at these points may force disabled passengers to seek alternative, possibly hazardous routes, or in some instances deter them from using the railway altogether.
“Spontaneous travel and the legal right to TUAG would not be possible.”
He said the changes at Ulverston would “effectively make the station inaccessible and roving teams would have to be booked hours in advance so TUAG would be impossible”.
He added: “The nearest accessible station is 10 miles away and accessible wheelchair-accessible taxis are not readily available and again must be booked hours if not days in advance.”
Even before the proposals to close nearly 1,000 ticket offices were published, the right to TUAG was already under significant strain.
Last November, Disability News Service reported on research by the Association of British Commuters which found six train companies discriminating against disabled passengers at nearly 300 rail stations across the south-east of England by regularly denying TUAG services to those who needed assistance with boarding.
Matthew Smith, who resigned from the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee last year, after accusing ministers of backing policies on de-staffing the rail network that discriminate against disabled rail passengers, said: “Turn up and go is definitely under threat, as this requires staff and the proposals not only de-staff many stations but also remove all regulatory safeguards for future staff presence.”
He added: “Any staffing ‘guarantees’ cannot be taken seriously in this context, and once the ticket office consultation process is complete, there will be no more requirement to consult on any future staffing changes.
“Furthermore, TUAG actually requires station staffing hours to be extended, not curtailed, not to mention massive investment to make the network itself accessible.
“It should never be forgotten that staff themselves are a reasonable adjustment for the inaccessible, ‘Victorian’ rail network, and the lack of progress on an integrated and time-bound programme for station accessibility, including for example level boarding, is completely unacceptable in the 21st century.”
The Office of Rail and Road (ORR), the rail regulator, declined to say this week if it believed that the TUAG principle was now at risk because of the planned closures.
But it has written to train companies (PDF) to ask how they will continue to comply with requirements under ORR’s accessible travel policy (ATP) guidance, particularly the provision of both booked and unbooked assistance, buying tickets, and providing information to passengers.
An ORR spokesperson said: “We are now engaging further with train companies where we have further questions or concerns, and we will continue to do so as their proposals are refined.
“In due course, any material changes to a train company’s ATP will require ORR approval.”
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) told DNS: “The ability to travel when and where you want is fundamental to the rights of disabled people in realising their right to independent living, under article 19 of the UN’s Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
“These rights and the needs of older and disabled passengers must be properly considered and addressed in any proposed rail ticket office closures.
“We are concerned about the potential impact these closures could have on disabled and older people.
“The EHRC wrote to the Department for Transport to remind them of their obligations under the Equality Act to ensure they carefully consider equality across their work, including when designing or changing services.
“We welcomed the recent decision to extend the consultation period, which will provide greater opportunity for those impacted by the proposals to respond.”
The Rail Delivery Group (RDG) – which represents the companies that run Britain’s railways – said: “The [industry-wide] commitment to 20 minutes turn up and go will be maintained.”
But a spokesperson had failed to explain exactly what this commitment means by noon today (Thursday).
Another RDG spokesperson said: “Train companies will continue to engage with accessibility and safety groups and take on board their views during the consultation period.
“You will still be able to book assistance two hours in advance of your journey either using the Passenger Assist app or via a dedicated phoneline available 24/7 and you will always be able to access help and advice from a trained representative.”
She claimed the ticket office “improvements” aimed to “provide an inclusive and barrier-free travel experience for everyone by bringing staff out from ticket offices and into ticket halls and concourses, where they give a much wider range of support to passengers, especially those with accessibility needs”.
She added: “We have undertaken comprehensive measures to improve accessibility across our services.
“In collaboration with stakeholders, we have implemented changes such as accessible ticket machines, clear signage, audio announcements and trained staff to provide personalised assistance through our Passenger Assist app.”
RDG said train operators had also carried out equality impact assessments on each affected station as part of the planned closures.
The Department for Transport declined to comment on the TUAG concerns or to make a commitment to maintaining the current level of TUAG availability.
But it said that rail minister Huw Merriman had continued to speak to accessibility groups, including at a meeting last week.
A DfT spokesperson said: “While this is a matter for the industry, it is right that train operators have listened to feedback and extended their consultations, following continued engagement with stakeholders, including accessibility groups.
“Following the consultations, independent passenger bodies will continue to play a vital role in assessing and shaping proposals.”
The consultation process is being run by two passenger watchdogs, Transport Focus and London TravelWatch, and it ends on 1 September.
At the end of the consultation period, Transport Focus and London TravelWatch will have 35 days to examine the responses before deciding whether to object to any of the proposed closures.
If any of the train companies decide to ignore those objections, the disputes will be referred to transport secretary Mark Harper.
10 August 2023
DWP tried to prevent Atos winning £338m assessment contract, court documents suggest
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) tried to prevent its most controversial private sector contractor winning a five-year £338 million contract to provide disability benefit assessments, court documents suggest.
Most of the successful bidders for five regional contracts to provide work capability assessments (WCAs) and assessments for personal independence payment (PIP) were awarded three months ago.
Together, the contracts will be worth more than two billion pounds over the five years from 2024 to 2029.
But when the successful private sector bidders were announced by Tom Pursglove, the minister for disabled people, he revealed that Atos – which has been carrying out benefit assessments for DWP for nearly 20 years – had failed to win a single contract.
Atos has been blamed for countless deaths in connection with the WCA process, and for dishonest reports written by many of its PIP assessors.
But Pursglove failed to reveal the winner of the £338 million contract to provide assessments in the south-west of England.
Disability News Service (DNS) can now reveal why he did not announce the successful fifth contractor.
DWP had initially awarded the contract to the multinational Serco, ahead of Atos, after an evaluation of the two bids saw Serco come out ahead on the scoring system by just three per cent.
But Atos disputed the fairness of that decision and took DWP and work and pensions secretary Mel Stride to the high court’s technology and construction court.
In legal documents obtained by DNS – including its particulars of claim – Atos argued that DWP had scored Serco’s bid higher than it should have done.
Atos stated: “On a lawful and robust evaluation, [Atos] would have been the highest scoring tenderer.
“In any event, or alternatively, the [Serco] bid should have been excluded. In either circumstance, [Atos] would have been awarded the contract.”
Atos claimed Serco’s bid was incomplete and submitted late, and that it was allowed to add to its bid after the deadline, despite instructions to potential bidders that this would not be allowed.
It also suggested that chunks of the Serco bid had been cut and pasted from its unsuccessful bid for the assessment contract for Wales and the Midlands, as it contained irrelevant references to Wales and the Welsh language.
It concluded that DWP’s bid evaluators had taken a stricter approach to evaluating Atos’s bid than Serco’s.
Atos had been asking the court to award damages, to set aside the decision to award the contract to Serco, and to order DWP to re-evaluate the bids or re-run the procurement process.
The technology and construction court had initially agreed to suspend the decision to award the contract to Serco.
But a judge lifted that suspension on 16 May, with the written consent of Atos.
DWP is now believed to have agreed to relaunch the process to find a contractor to carry out assessments in the south-west.
DWP said this week that the process of awarding the contract was continuing and that it would announce the result in due course.
It also claimed that the department had complied with its obligations of equal treatment and non-discrimination under the Public Contracts Regulations 2015.
It declined to explain why the court had lifted the suspension.
Atos earned more than £465 million from delivering WCAs before it withdrew from the contract in 2015, following years of negative publicity and multiple links between its actions and the deaths of disabled claimants.
But Atos healthcare professionals were also repeatedly accused of dishonesty in the provision of PIP assessments, following a DNS investigation.
DNS reports this week how a disabled man had his benefits slashed after an Atos nurse lied about what he told her during an assessment about his pain and suicidal thoughts, and repeatedly under-stated how his health conditions affected his day-to-day life, in the latest example of a dishonest assessment report produced by an Atos assessor (see separate story).
Asked how it responded to the concerns raised by Atos in the particulars of claim, whether it had given Serco preferential treatment, and if it had, whether this was because it did not want Atos to be awarded any of the assessment contracts due to its past track record, a DWP spokesperson said: “DWP contracts are awarded through open and transparent procurement under the Public Contracts Regulations and in line with government policies.”
Atos said it had nothing to add to the court documents.
A Serco spokesperson confirmed this week that “the procurement process is still live”, but he declined to comment further.
10 August 2023
Recording shows Atos nurse lied repeatedly in PIP assessment report
A disabled man has had his benefits slashed after an Atos nurse lied about what he told her during an assessment about his pain and suicidal thoughts, and repeatedly under-stated how his health conditions affect his day-to-day life.
The nurse even claimed that Ian Littler, who lives with significant mental distress and long-term health conditions, said that all people were “scum” when he said no such thing during the telephone assessment.
As a result of the assessment report, he had his monthly personal independence payment (PIP) cut by nearly £340 a month.
It is the third time he has had to appeal after an inaccurate assessment report has resulted in his PIP being cut.
Atos has accepted the report was not fit for purpose – after listening to a recording he secretly made of the telephone assessment in April – and is investigating his complaint.
Littler, from Oldham, is calling for the nurse to be sacked and struck off from the nursing register, and he is seeking legal advice.
An Atos PIP client relations officer has told him: “The documentation of the information provided by you which can be heard within the recording, has not been documented accurately and there are inaccuracies in the report.”
It is just the latest case in which disabled people have proved that PIP assessors working for government contractors Atos and Capita have lied in their assessment reports.
The timing is particularly bad for Atos as it has so far failed to win a single contract to deliver PIP assessments and fitness for work tests for DWP over the next five-year period, and has been fighting through the courts to secure the last remaining contract (see separate story).
Among the errors in the assessment report, the nurse said Littler – who lives alone – would always take his medication, when he actually told her he could not take his anti-depressants unless someone was with him because of the risk that he would choke.
She also claimed he only expressed pain twice during the 40-minute assessment, even though he can repeatedly be heard groaning with pain.
The nurse wrote in her report that Littler “did not sound low in mood or anxious” and was “not anxious, agitated or tense” even though he told her: “I just don’t want to be here. I just want to go to sleep and not wake up.”
He also ended the assessment by becoming severely distressed and hanging up the phone after the nurse kept pushing him to explain why his GP was giving him monthly prescriptions when he had previously tried to take his own life.
Among the other lies in the report, the nurse described how he climbs the stairs in his house by holding one of the bannisters and a crutch when he told her that he climbs them on his backside.
And she said his tongue and eyes had swollen up just four times in seven years when he actually told her his dog had woken him up more than 130 times after sensing that his tongue was starting to swell.
Littler told Disability News Service that he felt “completely let down by Atos, the DWP and the whole assessment process in general”, which he said was “seriously flawed” and had increased his thoughts of self-harm.
He said: “After hearing horror stories for years about fraudulent Atos nurses and reports I’m shocked and stunned that they are still continuing to do these reports, and I feel that they should never be allowed to do these reports ever again or be awarded any future contracts.”
An Atos spokesperson said: “We have a robust complaints process for anyone dissatisfied with their consultation report.
“In this case, our investigation found the report did not meet our high standards and action was taken with the health professional involved in this regrettable incident.
“We have apologised and arranged for a new consultation with a different health professional.”
A DWP spokesperson said: “We support millions of people with disabilities every year and our top priority is that they receive a supportive, compassionate service.
“The department is clear that assessment providers should strive for 100 per cent accuracy and we want every report to reflect a high-quality functional assessment that the department can use to make benefit entitlement decisions.
“We have set performance guarantees and a threshold for unacceptable reports for providers, and, in this case, we welcome the decision by IAS* to rearrange the consultation for the individual in question.”
*Atos carries out assessments under the name Independent Assessment Services (IAS)
10 August 2023
Ticket office closures ‘could lead to huge price hikes’ for disabled Londoners
Tens of thousands of disabled people could face a huge increase in rail fares for many of their journeys outside London, if government-backed plans to close ticket offices across England are approved, campaigners have warned.
The research by the Association of British Commuters (ABC) shows that the tens of thousands of disabled people who hold a concessionary freedom pass – which entitles them to free travel across much of the capital – could be forced to pay inflated prices for many rail tickets once ticket offices are closed.
The price hikes will also apply to older people holding freedom passes and Londoners who have bought travelcards.
This is because so-called boundary fares are available from ticket offices but not online or from most ticket machines.
Boundary fares allow those with a freedom pass or a London travelcard to pay cheaper fares for many rail journeys outside the capital, as they are only charged for the fare from the edge of the zone covered by that pass.
ABC, a volunteer-led campaign, said it would have a disproportionate impact on older and disabled people and the price hike would be “so severe as to prevent an insurmountable barrier to travel for some of the lowest income groups”.
It believes the issue is a major breach of equality and consumer rights laws.
Emily Yates, ABC’s co-founder, said: “Once again, we are seeing the biggest impacts of ticket office closures falling on those already experiencing the most discrimination and financial pressure.
“It’s important to remember that the price of rail fares already disenfranchises so many people from travel – the people most affected are those who already survive financially by seeking out the discount options, and for whom advice from a ticket office clerk is essential.”
The ABC research shows the boundary fare penalty could mean an off-peak day return from a London terminal to High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire ends up costing £25 rather than £14 with a boundary fare, while an off-peak day return to Three Bridges in Sussex could cost more than £28 rather than £12 with a boundary fare.
One of the biggest price hikes is to Dartford in Kent, with an increase of 190 per cent for an off-peak day return (£11.60 instead of £4), and 234 per cent for an anytime day return (£19.70 instead of £5.90).
It is just the latest research by campaigners that shows how the proposed closure of nearly 1,000 ticket offices across England could negatively impact disabled people.
Asked if it was concerned about the boundary fares issues and the impact on disabled passengers, and what action it planned to take, the Rail Delivery Group – which represents the companies that run Britain’s railways – said: “The availability of boundary fares is being considered as part of the consultation, but no final decisions will be taken until the consultation has been completed.”
It added: “The aim of these proposals is to bring staff out from behind ticket office windows to offer more help for customers buying tickets and navigating stations.
“At the same time ticket vending machines are being upgraded, and we have committed that no customer will have to go out of their way to buy a ticket.
“No plans will be finalised until the end of the consultation period, and we encourage everyone who wishes to view the plans or take part in the consultation to go to their local train company website or visit Transport Focus or London TravelWatch by 1 September.”
DfT did not comment specifically about boundary fares, but it said train companies will be expected in their proposals to take account of whether passengers would easily be able to buy the right ticket for their journey.
A DfT spokesperson said: “Train operator consultations on ticket offices are ongoing and no final decisions have been made.”
A consultation on the proposed closures of nearly 1,000 ticket offices is being run by two passenger watchdogs, Transport Focus and London TravelWatch, and it ends on 1 September.
At the end of the consultation period, Transport Focus and London TravelWatch will have 35 days to examine the responses before deciding whether to object to any of the proposed closures.
If any of the train companies decide to ignore those objections, the disputes will be referred to transport secretary Mark Harper.
10 August 2023
Neighbours are most frequent disability hate crime offenders, report suggests
Neighbours are by far the most frequent perpetrators of disability hate crime in London, a new report by a disabled people’s organisation has found.
The report by Inclusion London found that neighbours accounted for more than half of the cases examined in 2022.
It also found that, where a location was recorded, two-thirds of disability hate crimes in 2022 happened at the disabled person’s home.
The most common hate crimes were verbal abuse, and persistent harassment.
The report is based on nearly two years of data – and 343 cases between July 2021 and March 2023 – from six disabled people’s organisations (DPOs) that have supported victims of hate crime in London.
Nearly half of these victims said they did not want to involve the police.
The most frequent reason was that they did not believe they had enough evidence, but significant numbers said they were afraid of the authorities, did not trust the police, or said the police had previously not believed them when they reported a crime.
The report says the research shows the need for long-term funding for community-based organisations to run support and advocacy programmes, with hate crime cases “very time intensive”, and two hate crime projects run by DPOs forced to close in the last year.
The report says that “securing funding to support victims remains an area of great difficulty”.
It highlights the importance of providing long-term emotional support for hate crime victims in many cases.
Although the report says increasing the number of disability hate crimes reported to the police is important, it also stresses that many victims “experience profound trauma and distress” and so DPOs can “play an indispensable role, providing ongoing emotional support and comprehensive, holistic services that foster recovery”.
It also says that disabled victims face inaccessible systems and services throughout the criminal justice system after they report a crime, and often experience multiple barriers.
Inclusion London said the report shows that more work is needed to improve disabled people’s trust in reporting disability hate crime to the police.
A report published 18 months ago by the London Deaf and Disabled People Organisations’ Hate Crime Partnership, which was led by Inclusion London, found the Metropolitan Police Service guilty of repeatedly failing disabled people who tried to report disability-related hate crime, with police officers dismissing allegations, or downgrading them to anti-social behaviour.
Among its future work, Inclusion London now plans to work directly with organisations that support victims who are Deaf, have chronic or energy-limiting conditions, and those with mental distress and trauma, as these groups have so far not been the focus of disability hate crime research.
Louise Holden, Inclusion London’s hate crime partnership project manager, said: “From the report, we know that disabled victims are in desperate need of localised services that offer holistic services to support with the consequences of being targeted.
“It was not a surprise to learn that nearly half of victims didn’t want to report to the police.
“There needs to be more understanding of the importance of supporting victims, even if they don’t want to report.”
She added: “If they are supported by their local DDPO* as a third party reporting centre, they are more likely to feel like something is being done, rather than having the case closed due to lack of evidence with nowhere else to turn to for support.”
*Deaf and disabled people’s organisation
10 August 2023
Council failed disabled woman over anti-social behaviour
A disabled woman was left living in a home where she didn’t feel safe for more than a year because of the failures of a local authority and its housing agency, a joint ombudsmen report has concluded.
Neighbours began ganging up on the woman after she made a noise complaint, shortly after moving into the property in Nottingham on medical grounds, following anti-social behaviour at her previous address.
An anti-social behaviour charity told Nottingham City Homes (NCH)* in September 2020 that it was not safe for Miss X to remain at the new property because neighbours were working together to force her to move.
She was left too afraid to leave her home, and she told NCH she had been left “like a sitting duck” and requested a move in October 2020.
As the months passed, she continued to report anti-social behaviour, including stones and mud being thrown onto her property, a ball being thrown at her car, and neighbours gathering near her home, playing loud music, drinking alcohol and swearing.
By June 2021, she was phoning NCH several times a day, saying she was desperate to move.
She said she was living in fear and was a prisoner in her own home, and she began to feel suicidal.
She was offered an alternative property in December 2021, but she said it was unsuitable and in a state of disrepair and turned it down.
The ombudsmen’s report did not find fault with NCH about this, as the property was suitable for her and the concerns about disrepair could have been dealt with.
But Miss X was now making numerous reports of anti-social behaviour, including damage to her car and house from stones being thrown at them, neighbours staring at her, and neighbours drinking and swearing on land opposite her house.
She finally moved into another property in December 2022.
It was the first joint investigation to be made by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) and the Housing Ombudsman Service (HOS).
They jointly criticised Nottingham City Council and Nottingham City Homes (NCH) – which managed the council’s housing stock at the time – for the way they dealt with Miss X’s complaints about antisocial behaviour and requests to move house.
The report says the council did not do enough to review the anti-social behaviour issues she faced through the “community trigger mechanism”, and NCH took too long to examine whether it could offer her a priority move to another area.
Paul Najsarek, the local government and social care ombudsman, said: “The antisocial behaviour community trigger was set up for exactly this sort of case; where vulnerable people are affected by antisocial behaviour, local authorities can convene multi-agency meetings to see how they can best deal with problems.
“In this case, the behaviour the woman was subject to was having a clear impact on her mental health and she was left for too long in a situation that could have been improved had all organisations carried out their duties efficiently.”
Richard Blakeway, the housing ombudsman, added: “The landlord did not make use of its powers to effectively tackle antisocial behaviour and help a resident, who was presenting with mental health needs. This was unacceptable.”
Among the measures the council will now have to take, it has agreed to produce information to give to people who report antisocial behaviour, and review how it shares information with other organisations after reports of anti-social behaviour.
It will apologise to Miss X and pay her £550 in compensation, and ensure its staff “maintain clear and accurate records” of their interactions with alleged perpetrators of anti-social behaviour.
A council spokesperson said: “We fully accept the findings of the ombudsman in what has been a complex and lengthy case.
“We acknowledge that there are areas in this case where we fell short of what the tenant had every right to expect from us, and we have apologised for that.
“This case happened some time ago, and we have already made improvements to the way we handle issues of this nature.
“Feedback from this determination is also being used to review the way we work and inform our continuous improvement journey.”
*NCH previously managed the council’s housing stock as an arms-length body, but it is now part of the council
10 August 2023
Other disability-related stories covered by mainstream media this week
The US tech firm Palantir lobbied the minister for disabled people to adopt new technology to crack down on benefits fraud, emails released to the Guardian have revealed. The company wrote to Tom Pursglove to brief him on technology it had recently deployed elsewhere, promising it had the potential for the Department for Work and Pensions to rapidly “recover large amounts of fraud”: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2023/aug/08/palantir-lobbied-uk-disabilities-minister-software-benefits-fraud
Disabled asylum seekers, torture victims and migrants who have suffered “traumatic experiences at sea” are among those that the Home Office has attempted to put on board the Bibby Stockholm – in violation of its own rules. The Independent understands that a man who is blind in one eye, another partially-sighted person, and migrants with phobias of water were issued with transfer orders that were successfully challenged by lawyers: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/bibby-stockholm-barge-disabled-torture-b2389045.html
Families of people with complex medical needs are warning that the NHS system that funds their care at home is struggling to provide sufficient support. Despite recent significant increases in spending on continuing healthcare, experts say staff shortages and rising prices mean families are lacking help. Some say at times they are so exhausted from providing care, they worry about the safety of their relatives: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-66058222
10 August 2023
News provided by John Pring at www.disabilitynewsservice.com
