A FURIOUS woman has slammed her council after she claimed they locked her out of her own home for 14 months.
Tracy Naden, from Low Fell in Gateshead, was shocked when she returned home to discover her front door boarded up.
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The 52-year-old was forced to stay at friends’ houses with nothing more than the clothes she was wearing after Gateshead Council left her “homeless.”
The ordeal has caused Tracy to lose three stone through stress.
She claimed police broke into her council flat in November 2021 and the door was only replaced in January 2023.
Tracy told ChronicleLive: “The council left me without any access at all to my flat for 14 months all for the sake of buying a standard fire door.
“The police put the door in for a welfare check on someone who doesn’t live at the property while I was staying at a friend’s house.
“No one informed me and when I came home I found the front door had been boarded up.
“For 14 months I have had no access to my clothes or personal items. The council never contacted me to see if I had anywhere to stay.
“It was ridiculous, they locked me out of my home.
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“I had nothing but the clothes I was standing in that day.”
The fed-up resident explained the flat, in which she had ben living for the past 10 years, is now in ruins after being left empty for so long.
She also estimated losing around £200 worth of food in the fridge and freezer.
“The council thinks it’s just all well and good to come in and clean the property,” Tracy added.
“But those are my possessions, that’s everything I own in the world.”
The 52-year-old described her treatment as “shocking” and wanted to share her story to “stop it from happening to any other vulnerable person.”
She continued: “I understand the police have to do welfare checks but why wasn’t the door replaced straight away?”
Northumbria Police confirmed they attended Tracy’s home on October 17, 2021, following a report of concern for welfare.
Gateshead Council said they would only enter a property without a tenant being present in “exceptional circumstances.”
The council claimed they repeatedly tried to contact Tracy about installing a new door and have offered to deep clean the flat as well as provide compensation for the lost food.
A council spokesman said: “Following numerous unsuccessful attempts to contact the tenant, a new door was installed to the home on Monday, January 23.
“We will never make entry to a property without the tenant in attendance other than in exceptional circumstances.
“Since the property has been unoccupied for a period of time, we have offered to deep clean the premises, including all carpets, and have offered compensation for any spoiled food within the tenant’s refrigerator and freezer.
“Our housing team continues to work with the tenant to make sure they are receiving appropriate support – this includes reviewing the status of their rent payments.”
Occupancy rights including councils and housing associations
Most of your rights and obligations as a tenant will be explained in your tenancy agreement which is a legally binding contract.
Your tenancy agreement will explain which repairs your landlord is responsible for carrying out. The law also makes landlords responsible for some repairs, regardless of what the tenancy agreement says.
If you are an assured or secure tenant, your tenancy does not expire and you can continue living in the property as long as you pay rent and do not break the rules of the tenancy agreement.
Your landlord cannot evict you without a court order. It can only ask a court to evict you if it has a legal reason, such as for rent arrears or antisocial behaviour. Your landlord will give you a notice in writing explaining why it wants to evict you before taking you to court.
Homelessness
If you have nowhere to stay you should be able to ask your council for contact details of hostels, night shelters, refuges and B&Bs.
As well as getting contact details of hostels and night shelters from your local council, you can also search for somewhere to stay on the Homeless Link site.
You’ll usually need to be referred to a hostel or night shelter by an advice or support agency.
Contact your nearest Citizens Advice to see if they can refer you.
Some places will let you call or walk-in to book a place – it’s best to call first to check if you can visit to book a place.
You can apply to the council to get somewhere to live if you’re homeless or you wiII become homeless within 8 weeks.
You don’t have to be sleeping on the streets to be considered homeless.
How much help you get depends on your circumstances and it is best to get advice from the nearest Citizens Advice.
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