Mp For The Hillsborough/Wisewood/Wadsley Area Of S6

[FinBak 12]

3 minutes ago, wornout53 said:

I have had to call on Gill Furniss for help a couple of times and got what I needed fairly quickly.

What was it that you needed...?

[Ms Macbeth 73]

On 6 August 2019 at 20:55, FIRETHORN1 said:

Can anyone tell me the name and contact details for the MP who represents the Hillsborough/Wisewood/Wadsley areas of Sheffield 6?  I've just looked online in an attempt to find this info ...  and it's all very confusing and contradictory! Is it a woman called Gill Furniss? Has anyone ever raised issues with the local MP and if so, did you find this MP to be helpful?  I'd really appreciate any advice and info on this, because I'm currently trying to sort out a serious housing issue for my 81 year old severely disabled mum ….but  I'm getting absolutely nowhere in my attempts to deal with Sheffield Council or with my old mum's Social Housing provider

Have you had no help or advice from a local councillor?  They are usually the first point of contact before an MP as they are responsible for council housing in the city.  

[wornout53 10]

On 07/08/2019 at 18:42, FinBak said:

What was it that you needed...?

On one occasion help with an education matter and on another occasion a housing matter

[FIRETHORN1 58]

It's a  housing matter and I'm so annoyed about it that I'm thinking of involving the local MP or Councillor.

My mum, who's  in her 80's,  is totally housebound and wheelchair- bound since having both legs amputated in the past year. She currently lives in a Housing Association 3 bedroom house, confined to the downstairs only and without access to the upstairs bathroom and toilet facilities.  We are trying to get her rehoused into a one or two bedroom home that is already adapted for wheelchair use - or which can be adapted to suit her needs.  Understandably, my old mum wants to stay in the same S6 area of Sheffield where she already lives.  She's lived in this area her entire 80-odd years, most of her friends and most of her family live in this area too.

 

Both her Housing Association and Sheffield City Council are being very unhelpful. They say that she must bid for and accept any suitable property, no matter whereabouts in the city it may be located - and because she wants to remain in S6, they won't give her any sort of priority.

 

I think this is very unfair. I believe that her priority ranking should be based on her level of disability needs and not downgraded to the lowest level because an 80 0dd year old woman doesn't want to move miles away from her family and friends to a totally unknown area of the city.

 

I thought that Sheffield City Council and the HA's were supposed to be desperate for family homes and her current property is a large 3-bed home with both a front garden and a large back garden. It would be an ideal home for a family -  yet they seem incapable of finding her a suitable 1-bed disabled person's flat in the S6 area. I think it's outrageous!

[Ms Macbeth 73]

22 hours ago, FIRETHORN1 said:

It's a  housing matter and I'm so annoyed about it that I'm thinking of involving the local MP or Councillor.

My mum, who's  in her 80's,  is totally housebound and wheelchair- bound since having both legs amputated in the past year. She currently lives in a Housing Association 3 bedroom house, confined to the downstairs only and without access to the upstairs bathroom and toilet facilities.  We are trying to get her rehoused into a one or two bedroom home that is already adapted for wheelchair use - or which can be adapted to suit her needs.  Understandably, my old mum wants to stay in the same S6 area of Sheffield where she already lives.  She's lived in this area her entire 80-odd years, most of her friends and most of her family live in this area too.

 

Both her Housing Association and Sheffield City Council are being very unhelpful. They say that she must bid for and accept any suitable property, no matter whereabouts in the city it may be located - and because she wants to remain in S6, they won't give her any sort of priority.

 

I think this is very unfair. I believe that her priority ranking should be based on her level of disability needs and not downgraded to the lowest level because an 80 0dd year old woman doesn't want to move miles away from her family and friends to a totally unknown area of the city.

 

I thought that Sheffield City Council and the HA's were supposed to be desperate for family homes and her current property is a large 3-bed home with both a front garden and a large back garden. It would be an ideal home for a family -  yet they seem incapable of finding her a suitable 1-bed disabled person's flat in the S6 area. I think it's outrageous!

Firethorn, there appears to be one ground floor flat in S6 open for bids through Medical Priority at the moment, in Foxhill. https://www.sheffieldpropertyshop.org.uk/Property/41064

 

There's a bungalow in Loxley, for anyone on the housing register to bid for, but it doesn't state how accessible it is.  https://www.sheffieldpropertyshop.org.uk/Property/41389

 

If you are familiar with Jean Gledall Apartments at Wisewood, it might be worth contacting them.  http://www.housingcare.org/housing-care/facility-info-162082-jean-gleadall-apartments-sheffield-england.aspx

 

Have any in the specific area of S6 that you are requesting become vacant during the time your mum has been bidding?  Council and Housing association wheelchair accessible bungalows and ground floor flats are not spread evenly over Sheffield unfortunately.

 

I'd start with the local councillors for the area where your mum lives if you are unhappy with the service.  However, not all of S6 is covered by the same councillors,  Hillsborough and Stannington for instance are different.  

http://democracy.sheffield.gov.uk/mgMemberIndex.aspx?VW=TABLE&PIC=1&FN=WARD

Edited August 25, 2019 by Ms Macbeth
Added a bit

[FIRETHORN1 58]

Thank you for your very helpful replies Ms Macbeth. I really appreciate your advice.

 

We've tried to bid on all of the above properties you mentioned, but the system has blocked our bids, saying that our mum is "not high enough priority". When we queried this with Sheffield Council, they told us that mum had been dropped to Priority D - the lowest priority - because we'd failed to bid on previous properties in Stocksbridge and Deepcar - where she wouldn't want to live anyway!  Apparently, the Council's "rule" is that unless we bid on all and any suitable properties, regardless of geographical location, mum will remain bottom priority.

 

This is what really upsets us. Of course, we accept that such properties are in short supply and of course we accept that mum will have a longer wait if she wants to hold out for a property in Sheff 6, but to reduce her medical priority and prevent us from even bidding for properties in Sheff 6 because we haven't bidded for properties in other areas is wrong and unfair. Mum is in her 80's, both legs amputated above the knee, partially deaf.  We feel that although the wait might be longer, her medical priority should be based on her medical condition - not on the area she chooses to bid for.

[pattricia 575]

I would say that her medical priority was very high and would take her to the top of the queue. Someone in authority needs to intervene here.!

[Centrepin 0]

My mum in law was in a similar situation and spoke to someone at the council who actually listened. When it was pointed out she was giving up a 4 bed house for a ground floor bed sit they moved her just a few hundreds yards in less than a week. 

 

Try speaking to your area rep in the first instance, but be persistent,  they respond to get rid of your consistent nagging.

 

Best of luck.

[dragoness 10]

Quote

As you mum is a bilateral amputee, I am assuming that she had both her amputations locally and that she was probably under the care of Vascular and or Diabetic Surgery Teams. Contact the consultant who's care she was under, they should be able to give you details of a Social Worker who will be able to help your mum get the help she needs. Hope you get something sorted out for her soon.

 

 

[catmiss 12]

I emailed Gill Furniss office and got quite a speedy response telling me I was a constituent of Central ward, rang them re bus service changes and spoke to a very receptive person but could hear someone in the background saying ‘tell them we know all about it’- not very encouraging! Gill Furniss office suggested contacting Lord Mayor’s office as issue was Council issue-got an email saying response would be made by Friday last week-still waiting!

[UselessMP 0]

Gill Furniss is absolutely useless.

 

I provided evidence of abuse of public funds along with several other examples of how a housing association do not meet their obligations with regards safety etc, yet receive £233.33 of taxpayer's money every 7 days (plus a service charge) for each tenant. She was just not bothered. Repeatedly failed to answer questions, and when a reply was received (by her staff) it was useless and only partially answered some of the questions with others being ignored completely.

 

Gill Furniss is happy to employ her daughter while doing nothing of substance for her constituents. Her approach is modelled on the Nadine Dorries model of being an MP i.e. doing nothing for her constituents. It seems her staff do all the work and she sits back and claims her £85k a year to feel important. Oh yeah and she received a personal 'gift' from the Qatari government. The woman has zero integrity and does not fulfil her role as an MP.

[BigAl1 143]

13 hours ago, UselessMP said:

Gill Furniss is absolutely useless.

 

I provided evidence of abuse of public funds along with several other examples of how a housing association do not meet their obligations with regards safety etc, yet receive £233.33 of taxpayer's money every 7 days (plus a service charge) for each tenant. She was just not bothered. Repeatedly failed to answer questions, and when a reply was received (by her staff) it was useless and only partially answered some of the questions with others being ignored completely.

 

Gill Furniss is happy to employ her daughter while doing nothing of substance for her constituents. Her approach is modelled on the Nadine Dorries model of being an MP i.e. doing nothing for her constituents. It seems her staff do all the work and she sits back and claims her £85k a year to feel important. Oh yeah and she received a personal 'gift' from the Qatari government. The woman has zero integrity and does not fulfil her role as an MP.

Why not contact the local media