Liverpool City Council has apologised after a man who needed surgery was left living on the streets for six months during the COVID pandemic.

The man first became homeless in June 2020 and said he contacted the council for help on three occasions. The police also contacted the council about the man’s deteriorating health.

However, despite the local authority being informed of the man’s situation on multiple occasions, he remained homeless until December 2020 when a neighbouring council housed him.

An investigation by Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman found that the council recorded it had lost contact with the man in March 2021 and closed his case, even though it had not responded to his requests for help, or to a complaint he made in January 2021 about the issues.

In late April the man had surgery and the next month Liverpool council offered him a place in a hostel. The man refused the offer because he felt too vulnerable to stay in a shared hostel while he recovered from surgery. He subsequently returned to Liverpool where he began renting privately.

The man complained to the council about how it had handled his case, but there was a four month delay before his complaint was considered. When the man escalated his complaint, the council took 12 months to deal with it.

Michael King, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, said: ‘Liverpool City Council did not do enough to help this man despite being contacted numerous times by his friends, the police and the man himself.

‘Had it intervened when the man first approached the council for help, it’s likely he would have been offered interim accommodation, and he would not have had to live on the streets.

‘Additionally, the council closed his case without ever checking up on his situation, contrary to both the council’s policy and government guidance.

‘I’m pleased the council has accepted my recommendations to improve its services for people at risk of homelessness in the city.’

Responding to the Ombudsman’s investigation, Anne Marie Lubanski, Liverpool’s director of Adult Care and Health and Homelessness, apologised ‘unreservedly’ for the council’s failings in this case.

‘Every year we successfully support hundreds of people off the streets and into accommodation but in this instance we let this man down and for that we are sorry,’ she said.

‘We have apologised personally and paid him compensation for the avoidable distress and risk of harm, and the time and trouble he spent pursuing the complaint.

‘We have learned lessons from what went wrong and have reviewed our procedures for homelessness referrals and reminded staff of our duty to support homeless people in a timely manner.’