A dad from Richmond borough had to sofa surf and sleep in hotels with his son after the council failed to offer them emergency housing for five months. Richmond Council has agreed to pay out more than £1,500 after a watchdog investigated the case.

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman said the council failed to offer the dad, referred to only as Mr X, temporary accommodation when it had reason to believe he was homeless with a dependent child.

The report said the unstable living arrangements caused the dad and his son, named Y, avoidable distress and affected the boy's mental health and schooling.

Mr X approached the council as homeless in October 2023. He said his son regularly stayed with him, which was supported by his ex-wife, although his son's school and the estate agent of his ex-wife's property said he lived with his mum.

The council told Mr X in November it was not satisfied his son lived with him, which meant he was not in priority need or eligible for emergency housing, and later offered him advice for finding private rented accommodation.

His ex-wife contacted the council again in March 2024 to say her son had been removed from her address as a household member and was homeless with Mr X.

The council then agreed Mr X was in priority need due to a change in circumstances. It offered Mr X and his son temporary accommodation, where they stayed until October 2024.

The ombudsman found the council must have had reason to believe Mr X's son lived with him for it to make extensive enquiries into his living arrangements between October 2023 and March 2024.

Although the authority received conflicting information, the watchdog ruled it should have secured emergency housing for the pair during this period if there was even the smallest chance they were homeless together.

The report said: "Between October 2023 and March 2024, Mr X moved between friends' sofas and hotels. I understand that Y spent some of this time living with Mr X. Both Mr X and Y's mother said that the uncertainty and instability during this time affected Y's mental health, school attendance and schoolwork."

The watchdog told the council to apologise and pay Mr X £1,000 for the five months he spent in unsuitable accommodation, along with the difference between what he spent on hotels and the cost it would have charged him for emergency housing.

It also ordered the authority to pay Mr X and his son £250 each for the distress they experienced.

A Richmond Council spokesperson said: "Richmond Council acknowledges the ombudsman's findings regarding the failure to provide temporary accommodation to Mr X and his child in 2023. We take this matter seriously and apologise for any distress caused.

"We have made improvements to our processes and staff training to ensure people seeking assistance with homelessness applications receive the support they require, and to ensure similar situations do not occur in the future. We have implemented all agreed actions, as outlined in the report."