A vulnerable man was left unable to join Kingston Council's housing register after it failed to properly help him when he became homeless.

A watchdog found Kingston Council offered the man private accommodation in another borough without giving him adequate advice.

A new Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman report said the man, referred to only as Mr Y, accepted the offer without knowing it would leave him ineligible to join the council's housing register. He said the council's failings had caused him significant frustration and distress.

The council told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) it is looking into accepting Mr Y onto the housing register as an exceptional case. It paid him £550 overall in recognition of its failings.

Mr Y applied to the council for homelessness assistance in December 2023 as his relationship with his partner had broken down.

He spoke to a housing officer the next day and was contacted by the council a few weeks later, which said he would hear from another officer about how it could support him.

Mr Y reported ringing the council several times in February 2024 as he had not heard back and his relationship breakdown had escalated.

The council found him a property in the private rented sector in another borough which he accepted, while asking for more details. An officer told him this meant he was no longer homeless, after he chased them for a response.

Mr Y complained to the council in March that he was too far from his support network, which was negatively impacting his mental health.

He said the authority had not explained to him the implications of accepting the tenancy and that he would not have signed if he had known he would then not be able to join its housing register.

The council upheld Mr Y's complaint in April and offered him £350, after finding it did not advise him or put together a personalised housing plan when he originally asked for help.

It recognised he had entered into a tenancy outside of Kingston "without reasonable understanding or knowledge that doing so would prevent him from making an application" to its housing register, as this required continuous residence in the borough.

The ombudsman agreed with the council that it was at fault for how it handled Mr Y's case. It found the authority should have offered him temporary accommodation and allowed him to join its housing register.

The report said: "We expect councils to ensure applicants are aware of the consequences of accepting accommodation, and of their rights that flow from these decisions.

"There is no evidence the council informed Mr Y what accepting the tenancy meant for his housing situation at the time in February 2024. He was unable to make a fully informed decision. This is fault. He is vulnerable and lost his local connection.

"The faults identified caused Mr Y considerable frustration and distress, along with lost opportunity and review rights. He also has a high level of uncertainty about what might have happened had it not been for the fault. This is significant injustice. He is likely to have been more severely affected due to his vulnerabilities."

The watchdog ordered the council to apologise to Mr Y and pay him £200, on top of the £350 it had already offered.

A Kingston Council spokesperson said: "Kingston Council accepts the findings in this case and have written to Mr Y to formally apologise for the distress and uncertainty caused. We have also made an additional payment of £200 to acknowledge the impact of the faults identified, bringing the total payment made to £550.

"We are now carefully considering whether Mr Y should be accepted onto the housing register as an exceptional case, taking into account how the council's shortcomings in this instance have contributed to his current circumstances.

"Kingston Council remains committed to improving our services and ensuring residents are treated fairly."