A vulnerable woman, trying to re-unite with her children, has been left homeless after allegedly ‘refusing’ accommodation in Bracknell town centre.
Bracknell Forest Council is refusing to offer her any alternatives even though she says the house she was offered was unsafe.
Georgie Hassan has been looking for accommodation to share with her two daughters since they lost their previous home in 2024 when, she says, she was in hospital and her husband changed the locks.
In a crisis situation, she was offered a home in Mount Pleasant in Bracknell, where her daughter who suffers from autism and learning difficulties didn’t feel safe.
She said: “I was told that it was unsafe because of the drug problem there, and a public footpath was running past the flat.
“Having gone through domestic abuse I wanted somewhere safe to stay.
“[Name withheld] at southern housing said he would not stay there.
“Structurally there were other issues, mould on the ceiling and windows, the kitchen didn’t have an extractor fan nor a window.
“The smell of smoke was unreal. He said all of this in front of my two children they didn’t feel safe and wanted to go back and wait in the car.
“My eldest daughter is 20 but has autism. There is no way I would have been able to leave her in the property on her own.”
According to Mrs Hassan, even an employee Southern Housing who owns and operates Mount Pleasant, agreed that the housing was unsafe.
The housing association has disputed this account, denying that their colleague stated the property was unsafe, and Bracknell Council has dubbed the problems at Mount Pleasant ‘minor repair issues’.
Southern Housing is one of the largest housing associations in the UK with close to 80,000 homes and 167,000 residents.
In recent weeks, its accommodation in Bracknell has come under scrutiny after residents complained at a public meeting about broken heating systems, mold, damp, moldy washing machines and sky-rocketing electricity bills.
Accompanying her to the accommodation, the Southern Housing rep allegedly advised Ms Hassan not to accept the housing but because it wasn’t safe for her or her daughters.
The employee allegedly told her: “I’m going to reject it on your behalf.”
Mrs Hassan said: “Of course I was petrified.”
Her daughter told her: “Mum, I don’t feel safe. I want to go and sit in the car.”
Now her situation has been reviewed by Bracknell Forest Council and in spite of her situation, no further effort will be made on her behalf.
The council allegedly told her: “We are satisfied that you remain homeless, but we owe you no duty of care.”
Mrs Hassan said: “If I were a dog, and the owner had locked the dog out of the property, which my husband did to me, the UK would be in an uproar. Unfortunately I’m not a dog. I’m just a Mum trying to get my children back.”
A spokesperson for Southern Housing said: “We deny our colleague stated the property was unsafe.
“While prospective residents are entitled to decline an offered home for any reason, no such comment was made by our staff member.
“All our homes at Mount Pleasant meet the required safety standards and housing allocations are the responsibility of the local authority.”
A representative of Bracknell Forest Council, Grainne Siggins, said: “While we cannot comment on individual cases, if a tenant raises concerns about their accommodation, we will advise them of the processes they can follow to engage with the relevant housing association.
“The landlord or housing association has responsibility for maintaining their properties and keeping them to a satisfactory standard.
“The council would only take further action if the landlord or housing association refused to remedy any issues raised.
“We know that at Mount Pleasant, Southern Housing is currently working closely with residents to fix a number of minor repair issues.”
