Council to pay £20,000 to settle human rights and equality case after severely disabled man “forced to drag himself across floor to use toilet”

The man, ‘CPH’, is paralysed from the waist down, has only one functional arm and lives with other serious physical and mental health conditions.

He had additionally been street homeless previously.

Redbridge has been providing accommodation for the man from at least 2020 and accepted from August 2023 that he had eligible care and support needs.

However, the council failed to provide wheelchair-accessible toilet, kitchen or laundry facilities despite CPH's additional needs.

His lawyers, Bindmans, said that CPH had to drag himself across the floor to reach the toilet and shower as he was unable to use the bathroom properly from his wheelchair. He was unable to use the shared, unadapted kitchen and could not do his own laundry.

CPH began receiving essential care from his partner, but she was prevented from remaining with him outside visiting hours of 10am to 8pm.

Due to being left without essential care overnight, he began sleeping rough with his partner rather than staying alone in the accommodation.

Bindmans said that after CPH brought judicial review proceedings in November 2024, Redbridge agreed to arrange an occupational therapy assessment and carry out the recommended works.

“However, rather than recommending a move to suitable accommodation, the assessment proposed that CPH stop using the bathroom altogether and instead use a ‘wheeled shower commode’ to defecate and wash in his bedroom/kitchen area, assisted by his wife.”

Bindmans said it instructed an independent occupational therapist who concluded that CPH needed to move to accessible accommodation.

Redbridge still failed to offer suitable accommodation, so CPH brought a second urgent judicial review in July 2025.

This claimed breaches of the Care Act 2014, Articles 3 and 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, the public sector equality duty and disability discrimination.

That claim settled when Redbridge agreed to offer alternative accommodation and accepted that only fully adapted, wheelchair-accessible accommodation was suitable for CPH.

He finally moved into alternative accommodation with an adapted wet room on 31 July 2025.

CPH’s remaining claim for damages under the Human Rights Act 1998 and Equality Act 2010 was transferred to the County Court. Redbridge has now agreed to a £20,000 settlement.

Bindmans said: “The case highlights the potentially serious consequences when local authorities fail to provide suitable accommodation and support to disabled people and the importance of considering claims for damages under human rights and equality legislation where those failures are sufficiently serious.”

Local Government Lawyer has approached the London Borough of Redbridge for comment.

Emma Pein of Bindmans’ Public Law & Housing team represented CPH. She instructed Isaac Ricca-Richardson and Angharad Monk of Garden Court Chambers.

Harry Rodd