A WOMAN and her daughter were left in a "damp and mouldy" home for five months after being evicted by their landlord, it has been revealed.

Now, Southend Council has been ordered to pay £700 to the woman for the “severe distress, frustration and financial loss” following a ruling by the Housing Ombudsman.

The ombudsman has ruled the council was “at fault” after it failed to find the woman a new home following the landlords decision to evict her.

The woman, named only as Mrs X in the report, and her daughter suffered “health issues” due to the disrepair of the flat.

Despite being issued with a notice of leave in October 2022, the council did not rehouse the woman into a bed and breakfast until March 2023.

The woman was also forced to pay legal fees after being taken to court by her landlord because she remained in the home after being evicted.

When Southend Council finally placed the woman and her daughter in temporary accommodation, it was deemed unsuitable because it was too far from her child’s school.

The Housing Ombudsman said: “Mrs X complained about the council’s actions when she became homeless. The council failed to properly consider whether it owed Mrs X a relief duty sooner and placed Mrs X and her child in unsuitable emergency accommodation.

“The council did not consider Mrs X’s request to review its decision of temporary accommodation.

“It also offered her two properties which were unsuitable for her health needs and too far from her child’s school. These faults caused Mrs X distress, frustration, uncertainty, and financial loss.”

The woman complained to the Housing Ombudsman in July 2023.

A Southend Council spokesman said: “Ensuring that our residents are safe, comfortable, and secure in their homes is a top priority for the council. We appreciate that in this case we did not meet our own high standards, and we apologise to the resident affected.

“While we ensured that this family were always housed during this time, we accept the ombudsman’s findings and have taken steps to review our processes at key points when dealing with homelessness and temporary accommodation cases.

“We can also confirm that the remedial payment has been made and a suitability review of temporary accommodation is underway, and we have contacted the resident with regards to this.”