Case No. EWHC-185-(Admin)

43.The recitation of communications that I set out below was hampered by the fact that the trial bundle had emails which were not in chronological order.44.On the 10th of August 2022 the Claimant’s solicitors wrote to the Defendants’ housing options service asserting that the Park West flat was unsuitable due to the Claimant’s disabilities and expressly requested relief under S.188 (1) of the Housing Act 1996 and more permanent suitable accommodation. The Claimant’s medical conditions were summarised and the unsuitability of his flat was summarised. The homelessness code of guidance for local authorities was referred to and the specific provisions of S.188(1) were set out. There was no mention made of concern of the fire risk. The Claimant made it clear the interim accommodation he was seeking should be larger and provide him with privacy from his carers. This application made no reference to the previous dealings between the Claimant and the Defendants, or the Defendants’ previous decisions on the lower level of Claimant’s need for care and accommodation based on the Defendants’ own medical assessment and the Claimant’s own GP notes. 45.On the next day (11th) the Defendants responded providing contact details. On the same day the Claimant’s solicitors emailed the Defendants at four different e-mail addresses asking for confirmation that the Claimant’s homelessness application had been accepted.46.The Defendants quickly arranged an interview with the Claimant. This took place on 12th August 2022. No note of the contents of the interview was produced by either party. However it is evidenced by an e-mail from Charlie Alaway dated 12th August sent to the Claimant stating as follows:47.The Claimant did not do as requested and did not return those forms in 5 days. Instead on the same day the Claimant’s solicitors emailed the Defendants with a formal letter before action under the judicial review pre-action protocol. They asserted the Defendants had failed to meet their duties under the Housing Act. They required a response by the 19th of August. They asserted that they had not received a sufficient response to the pre-action protocol letter. They repeated the contents of the letter of the 10th of August. They failed to mention the interview that had taken place or was taking place that very day or the request made by the Defendants for completion of the relevant forms. This begs the question whether the lawyers had been told by the Claimant about the interview. There was no mention made of fire risk. The Claimant made it clear the interim accommodation he was seeking should be larger and provide him with privacy from his carers. The letter made no reference to the previous dealings between the Claimant and the Defendants, or the Defendants’ previous decisions on the extent of Claimant’s need for care and accommodation based on the 2020 medical assessment and his own GP notes. 48.On the 15th of August the Defendants, through Natalie Stevens, asked the Claimant’s lawyers to ask the Claimant to comply with the earlier request to complete the various forms. It was stated these were necessary for the application for assistance to be progressed. On that date the Claimant’s lawyers were also informed of the interview and the emailed request for information made on 12th August 2022.49.The Claimant failed to comply with the first or that second request. 50. On the 19th of August the Defendants provided a formal response to the threat of an application for judicial review. The response set out the interview on the 12th of August and the request for the medical assessment form and other forms to be completed and returned. The response specifically stated these documents were necessary to inform the Defendants’ enquiries and that it was not possible to reach any conclusions without the information requested. The response complained that despite a chaser from the Defendants on the 15th of August the documents had still not been provided and the Defendants asserted they were unable to progress matters without those documents. The Defendants stated that they remained ready to continue their investigations and consider what, if any, duties might be owed to the Claimant once the requested information and consents were provided in order to facilitate proper enquiries.51.On the 25th of August 2022 the Defendants wrote again to the Claimant’s solicitors reminding them of the requests for documentation and stating that the usual time scale for provision of these documents had passed and requesting that the lawyers advise the Claimant of the need to provide these in order for the application to proceed. On the next day, the 26th of August, the Claimant did provide the requested documentation. However on reading the documentation provided it is quite clear that it was not properly completed and omitted all relevant evidence relating to his medical conditions.