A disabled man narrowly avoided being forced out of his home by bailiffs thanks to support from community union, ACORN. Ben Watson, who takes medication for various long term health conditions, said he has been trying for over six months to get on Bristol City Council's waiting list so he can bid for properties in the city.
The landlady of the flat he rents in Hillfields said she was left with no choice but to sell the house and evict the tenants after her husband committed suicide and left his estate to his sister. Mr Watson, who claims benefits due to his long term health conditions, cannot afford to rent another home in the private sector and claims the council cannot help him until he is forced out of the house by bailiffs.
The 58-year-old who has chronic depression was due to be evicted today (Wednesday, June 21) but was saved after ACORN members gathered outside the house, blockading the entrance.
READ MORE: Bristol's 1,500 empty homes 'lost' to Airbnb
Mr Watson told Bristol Live he was worried about the prospect of emergency housing as he thinks he might have to be forced to give up his pets, and because he can't afford to pay for storage he's worried about losing his belongings. Mr Watson has physical disabilities and mental health diagnoses as a result of childhood trauma and a major breakdown he experienced some years ago.
He said his health has been deteriorating and he has been experiencing memory loss causing him to forget to take his medication. He said he now struggles to leave the house and is having to rely on his daughter who works full time to provide him with care.
Mr Watson added: “Up until I contacted ACORN, I would say 98 per cent of me just wanted to hide underneath the cupboard and hope it all went away. Before I used to be able to get out and do things but with my depression, it just makes me want to hide away.
“I was getting really suicidal at one point, thinking, ‘if I was dead, it’s fine because then I’m not here, I don’t have to deal with it. They can chuck all my stuff, the council doesn’t have to worry about me, I don’t have to be rehoused because I’m in a hole in the ground instead.
“I started packing and then thought, ‘why? What am I going to do with it all?’ You just want to give up.
“Yesterday, my daughter ended up in hospital with breathing problems and chest pains and I’m very sure, it’s the stress of it all. She’s trying to look after me and hold down a full time job. It’s a lot on your plate when you’re a single parent, you’re a carer for somebody else who is going to be evicted.
“I feel guilty that I’m having to do this but I have nowhere else to go. I can’t go into temporary accommodation because I know I won’t cope. If they separate me from the dog, that will be it. I never go anywhere without her, she’s my support dog.
“There’s no help in the middle or any sort of guidance [from the council]. We’ve kept them updated, we’ve followed all their guidelines and done everything that they’ve asked us to do.
“There is nothing you can do so you’re just hanging around waiting. The landlady who wants to sell the property is then left with a tenant who can’t move out. “
Response from the landlady
Margaret Slater has rented the property to Ben Watson for the last 11 years but said that she has been left with no other choice but to sell the property. She said that her husband, who she has been separated from for over a decade, recently passed away and due to the ‘estate’ being passed on to his sister, she has been forced to sell the properties they bought together.
Ms Slater said: “I hated to have to do it but it’s only because my husband committed suicide last year. We were separated and his estate goes to his sister so they had to be sold, there is no other way around it.
“I’m not a heartless landlord, I put the rent up twice; it’s £520. I’m not money grabbing, I can understand them wanting to demonstrate, I really can but it’s got to happen.
“It is a catch 22 for everybody. It breaks my heart, I didn’t sleep a wink last night because of it, I was absolutely dreading it. It’s an awful thing for bailiffs to go round and I’ve never had to do it before."
Bristol City Council has been approached for a comment.
