A council tenant was shocked to be told that enforcement action was being taken against her less than 72 hours after receiving notification that she was in arrears with her rent.
Craven Vale resident Natasha Burney received a letter on Thursday 25 July, saying that she was £2,868 in arrears.
She then received a second letter saying that Brighton and Hove City Council was starting recovery action and seeking to take possession of her home of 11 years.
Miss Burney immediately contacted the council, saying that she believed her rent was paid by direct debit. In response, the council said that it had no record of a direct debit being set up.
She is also chasing up months of back pay from one of her council jobs. The money, owing since Miss Burney was suspended from both her roles last September, was promised in an email from Thursday 10 July seen by the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
Miss Burney is a council employee but currently suspended with pay from the two roles that she holds. She believes that her suspension is related to complaints that she has made about housing and data compliance.
So far, one of her complaints has been upheld by the Housing Ombudsman while 14 remain outstanding with one refused.
Miss Burney was awarded £400 compensation in January after an ombudsman ruling on a complaint about anti-social behaviour by a neighbour involving human faeces left in a communal hallway in September 2023.
Eight complaints have been upheld by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) following data breaches and two are outstanding.
The complaints allege several data breaches, with the council mixing up information and including details from other neighbours’ complaints.
She said: “It was soul-destroying. It’s an injustice because they owe me money. The fact they have the audacity to take any formal action against me, I find shocking. My mental health is shot.
“Their lust for revenge and to make me pay for daring to whistleblow knows no boundaries.
“I am (like) a fox in the countryside on the run, the council is the farmer armed with his shotgun and the council officers are his pack of hounds.
“I am desperately seeking a safe space to regain my strength and tend to my wounds.
“The hounds circle around me and I can hear them (and) almost feel their savage teeth snapping at me again.”
Alongside her neighbour Lee Catt, Miss Burney and others in their block were targeted by nightmare neighbour Alex Holmgren, now 29, formerly of Craven Road.
Holmgren was jailed for 30 months just before Christmas 2023 and his home was made the subject of a closure order.
Craven Vale Community Association (CVCA) secretary Alan Cooke has written to the Labour leader of the council, Bella Sankey, and chief executive Jess Gibbons.
His letter in March complained about the treatment of Miss Burney and Mr Catt and its effect on the wider community.
Mr Cooke wrote that two residents – highly respected in the community, having helped their neighbours tackle anti-social behaviour and having worked hard to improve the area – were now being treated as “persona non grata”.
The council said: “The council takes a supportive approach to rent arrears, prioritising tenancy sustainment over enforcement.
“We aim to resolve issues early through personal contact and dialogue and we offer flexible repayment plans.
“We also provide access to free money advice through services like Money Advice Plus.
“In this instance, we recognise that our communication could have been better aligned with the ongoing discussions about resolving the arrears informally.
“We have since withdrawn the Notice of Seeking Possession warning letter and apologised for the concern this has caused.”
Solidarity Natasha!
Hi Natasha, it’s David. We spoke at length earlier this year.
I believe you need to begin criminal court action in the form of a private prosecution.
You have my number, please contact me
Kind regards
David
The council hate losing and are vindictive. They lost a case in court to us and the judge gave some clear orders about the so called rent arrears. They were to be removed from the account, they are still there and still used even though the order forbade it. Instead of using the address for the property they try to use “a previous property” but refuse to say which one. They even tried to threaten us with having us investigated by social services with our new born, unless we did what they wanted and paid the arrears they lost in court.
Talk to a lawyer and get a letter sent to the council advising that unless they do not correct the rent account as per the court order of January 2025, include the court case number. Then you will sue the council in court for fraudulently demanding monies with menace along with a breach of the Data Protection Act for failure to keep true and accurate accounts. From this point all communication is to via letter to your solicitors (So you have a paper trail). And that any further legal costs plus damages to credit rating, causing of anxiety and depression will be brought before the court at the time of the hearing. Copy in your local councillor and MP. Also see if one of the national papers such as the Telegraph wants to take up the story.
This is shameful & degrading conduct by a Council that appears to be lacking management competence and any notion of compassion and caring towards her as a council employee, albeit suspended.
Any reasonable person would suspect victimisation by the Council for her courage in raising these other concerns and largely succeeding with those complaints.
I can only hope that her trade union support includes legal advice and representation for prima facie there appears to be grounds for claiming she has been the subject of a vendetta for daring to raise those other challenges.
This sad case has all the ingredients for generous damages/settlement.
Take courage and keep fighting!!!!
Coming soon after the appalling conduct of B&HCC in removing the established ivy growth on the house at Seven Dials which will cost a significant sum in compensation – which we as Council Tax payers must meet, it is fair comment to ask whether the necessary due skill and competence exists in the so-called “management” team at our Council.
A vote of no-confidence in B&HCC seems appropriate. They must be held to account for such inadequate management competence and apparent victimisation of this Council’s own employee.
Have you tried to get a N244 FORM..you can apply to the court for a stay of eviction..if you receive certain benefits you can ex160..which means you don’t have to pay for N244..hopefully you will be seen by a judge. Especially if you hopefully into detail about your troubles..i hope this helps you..I hope you find some peace good luck
The council owe you money and won’t pay it its beggars belief on the other hand no fault of your own you owe council money then they try to evict you through all the stress worry anxiety doctors appointments medication your on there’s a definite case for compensation
The council are public servants,but for years they think they are a private buissness. If they have a wall built it goes 5times over budget.lets get reform in and kick the old white women out of the council.
So rent arrears while she has a direct debit??? Obviously fabricated by this local authority due to her highlighting flaws in their service and whistleblowing. They should be quaking in their boots or implementing changes rather than vilifying this lady who clearly IS doing Her job and sounds like they need more employees like her!
Council showing who’s in charge, at the taxpayers expense, this is another reason why all these mini empires should be amalgamated, get all them on ONE SYSTEM, no need for all these clowns running around in different venues, ONE CIRCUS IS ENOUGH TO RUN EVERYTHING IN SUSSEX
And NOT run by anyone in B&HCC
A separate HA set up as a CLG is actually a good idea.
Did she not notice the “direct debit” was not in place as no money was going out of her account. I check every month to make sure.
I find with stories like these, there are always elements of bad faith on both sides.
It’s totally unforgiveable to treat someone like that, but surely you know if you’ve got much extra cash in your account every month.
The very first thing I do when I’m checking why certain things haven’t happened is to check my bank to see if the direct debit has come out. She obviously didn’t do that before she rung them.
It may be the same council that owe her money and which she owes money to in turn, but it’s not just one big office. One department can’t turn round and give it to another and clear the debt.
I’ve got to say, have you considered writing a book? You have a very colourful turn of phrase there.
Good luck sorting it out, kick up as much fuss as you can and appeal to your local councillors and MPs to help you. Councils hate having this kind of publicity.
I have had exactly same issue with Derbyshire County Council and took matters into my own hands instead of going to Ombudsman.
Many letters and arguments later a two thousand pound back payment has been made and my home and kids are now secure.
I know many like this that have fallen victim.
Ah, the hypocrisy of the over confident, under intelligent “liberals” never fails to amuse/boil blood. Maybe, if they weren’t blowing millions on debt, cycle lanes and vanity projects they wouldn’t need to skimp on the treatment of citizens. Starting to look like communism, isn’t it?
This is many decades past what we were mislead to believe what Communism is, the number of politicians allowed to vote on and be involved in public housing should be restricted to those without a housing portfolio, anything else is nepotism and fraud, that’s why housing policies will never change or improve, too many grubby fingers in too small a pot.
I am afraid that all councils I have been under are vindictive and bullies. They threaten and frighten people. Dont give up which is what I did on some very bad advice from citizens advice bureau.
…so several councils, which you’ve moved around to different areas, and an independent advice organisation are all wrong? That doesn’t seem right, Wendy.
This is what happens when you give the council full control I blame the successive government’s for letting this happen just like the council tax rates go up to the max every year where do these bureaucrats get Thier ideas any disposable income is being snatched away by government and we the tax payer sit back and let it happen this country is absolutely disgusting in it’s treatment of the British public
Councils generally don’t have a choice in the matter when it comes to CT, because central funding hasn’t kept up, and more services are being provided with less. The alternative is to do some heavy cutting of services, which also upsets people.
Personally, there’s clear evidence of an inequality between modest and wealthy households, which needs to be addressed, in my opinion. More means-tested methodology needs to be applied to so many more aspects.