Norfolk Hotel "not fit for purpose"

13 November 2013

Damning allegations have been revealed by Homeless people from Solihull who are thrown out of their homes and placed in Bed and Breakfast accommodation by Solihull Council.  The Council routinely uses the Norfolk Hotel, Hagley Road, Edgbaston, a long way from Solihull !  All was revealed on BBC Radio WM's Adrian Goldberg show this morning from 9am 'til 10am.

One Solihull Councillor has branded the hotel "not fit for purpose" and called on the Council to urgently find alternative accommodation within the Borough and to stop all use of the Norfolk Hotel.

A number of homeless individuals from Solihull and from Birmingham, where the City Council also use the hotel, have got together and spoken with Councillor Chris Williams (Green, Chelmsley Wood) who raised the degrading treatment of vulnerable people at the Norfolk Hotel at a recent Solihull Full Council meeting.

Allegations passed on to Councillor Williams include:

  • Fire doors padlocked shut
  • Internal fire doors propped open with extinguishers
  • Smoke alarms hanging from ceilings
  • Rats and mice
  • Cannabis use inside the hotel
  • Single women being harrassed outside the hotel by kerb crawlers
  • Letters not being promptly passed on to homeless tenants, some of whom await letters regarding their housing applications.
  • Degrading treatment by many staff at the hotel including being laughed at for asking for some toilet paper.

A look at TripAdvior ratings for the Norfolk Hotel show it to have just a 10% approval rating by visitors [1].  Paying guests stay in a separate, more upmarket, part of the hotel to homeless people.

The Food Hygiene 'Scores on the Doors' rating [2] for the Norfolk Hotel show it to have just 1 star out of five.  Its assessment by Birmingham City Council considered "major improvement necessary" and "Little Confidence in Management".

Following the complaints to Councillor Williams, West Midlands Fire Service Headquarters were informed who have undertaken inspections and have repeat visits booked in, having found some concerns.

Councillor Williams said "I am so saddened by the alleged maltreatment of such vulnerable people who have lost their home for whatever reason.  Repossessions, people struggling to pay their rent and domestic violence all play their part in people becoming homeless.  Surely we should be providing them with decent accommodation while we find them somewhere to live? 

I am calling on Solihull and Birmingham Councils to stop using the Norfolk Hotel until its practices significantly improve and even then, bed and breakfast should only be used in an emergency according to Government guidelines".

 

[1] http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g186402-d215723-Reviews-Norfolk_Hotel-Birmingham_West_Midlands_England.html

[2] http://www.scoresonthedoors.org.uk/business/norfolk-hotel--229109.html

[3] Government Housing Minister says there is "no excuse" for Councils to breach rules on homeless accommodation and should only be used in emergency: http://tinyurl.com/qzt25wk

Norfolk Hotel

 






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