Milton Keynes Council branded ‘not fit for purpose’ after being found guilty of severe maladministration

The local Labour-led Milton Keynes City Council has been branded ‘not fit for purpose’ after the Housing Ombudsman found it guilty of severe maladministration.

We reported yesterday that MK City Council had received a strong reprimand from the government after an ombudsman found it guilty of failing to carry out housing repairs to the expected standard.

Secretary of State Michael Gove wrote a scathing letter to the council saying it has ‘failed your residents’ following the finding where a vulnerable resident and her son, both with disabilities, were forced to live with outstanding repairs for years.

This is the latest in a string of concerning failures by the Labour-led council in Milton Keynes after it was criticised by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman just last year over failures to support a woman to care for a child under a special guardianship order (SGO).

And now Milton Keynes North MP Ben Everitt has accused the Labour-led council of not being fit for purpose.

Ben said: “I’m incredibly disappointed, but not surprised by the way the Labour-led council has handled this whole matter. The initial response to a vulnerable resident’s request for housing repairs is bad enough, but the complete failure in dealing with the subsequent complaint is incredibly concerning.

“This isn’t the first time the Labour-led council has been criticised by the ombudsman and it just further shows what we’ve known for a long time, that Labour simply aren’t fit to run the council in Milton Keynes. The council just isn’t fit for purpose.”

Iain Stewart, the MP for Milton Keynes South, added: “It is really alarming to read the letter from the Secretary of State about the ‘not fit for purpose’ Labour-ran Milton Keynes City Council and their complete disregard for providing residents with a safe space.

“I am thankful for all my caseworker and the Housing Ombudsman have done to assist the constituents in this terrible situation, and I hope the Labour-administration will address its shortcomings to prevent this from happening again.”

David Hopkins, leader of the Conservative Group on Milton Keynes City Council, commented: “It is totally unacceptable that this situation was allowed to develop that led to a vulnerable Milton Keynes City resident and her son, both with disabilities, living with outstanding repairs for years.

“The Labour run council failed to raise the resident’s complaint and delayed both stages 1 and 2 of the process, despite the Ombudsman’s involvement. When the council finally did respond it did not do so adequately, and the council failed to recognise the time it took to resolve the issues. The delays that resulted and the lack of empathy towards the resident and her son, caused her to believe that she was being discriminated against.

“No Milton Keynes resident should be left to feel this way. The council has failed its residents. Everyone, particularly those who are vulnerable, should be able to expect to live in a decent, home and to have complaints taken seriously and repairs carried out in reasonable time.”