Feb 24, 2023, Birmingham Live: Furious mum desperate for home for her autistic children after five years stuck on waiting list https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/black-country/furious-mum-desperate-home-autistic-26308598
She's one of 20,000 people on Birmingham City Council's housing waiting list A fed-up mum who has been on stuck on a council house waiting list for five years says she has no idea when she will get the home she needs for her five kids. Mia has been living in temporary accommodation in Birmingham since April 2018 with her children, one of whom has severe autism.
The mum believes she deserves to be given a home after waiting so long and says the system is "unfair". She explained how she has been moved into the higher priority Band A but has been told there are still at least 200 people ahead of her on the waiting list, meaning she doesn't know how long she will have to keep waiting.
Around 20,000 people are on the city council's waiting list and applicants can wait years before moving into a property. And Mia's struggles highlight how difficult it can be to secure council housing in a city where the battle for social housing is hugely competitive because demand significantly outweighs supply.
Council bosses said due to the large waiting list it could take "considerable time" to secure a property but insisted the process was fair and those with the greatest need were prioritised.
But the angry mum said: "I have five children, three of them are autistic, one is more severe. "He is nearly six and gets one-to-one support. In temporary accommodation I can’t redecorate, I can’t provide for his sensory needs. Instead of him improving he's got worse.
But the council don’t take it seriously.
"I have been moved to band A but there is at least 200 people ahead of me. The system is not fair, as people like us get pushed behind."…
"Not everyone has special needs for their children." A Birmingham City Council spokesman said: "Unfortunately there is a severe shortage of affordable homes in Birmingham reflecting the national housing crisis….
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