Documents seen by the Ilford Recorder confirm that the council deemed the hostel room in Bathurst Road, Ilford, suitable for the needs of the family – who were placed in temporary accommodation in April after being evicted from their previous home in Romford.
MD Mir Masuque, 43, a security guard, requested a suitability review of the temporary accommodation, citing concerns that three generations of his family are sharing a single bedroom.
The residents of the accommodation are MD and his wife, his two young daughters, and his elderly mother and father.
He said: “My situation is a real problem because the council have put my family all in just one room.
“The council said the room is okay, but we are not comfortable here.
“My father is 75 and is disabled, but we are on the second floor, and it is very difficult for him to go up the stairs.”
MD’s father Marizul Hoque suffers from severe knee pain and arthritis, while MD himself has been diagnosed with diabetes and stage 2 chronic kidney disease.
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MD’s wife Romena Yasmin Chowdhury is Marizul’s primary carer and a part-time student.
The council wrote to MD informing him of its decision and said it took these medical factors into account.
But it decided that the health of the family had not been adversely impacted by the nature of the accommodation.
The council said that this decision was taken in line with its duties under the Housing Act 1996.
MD also expressed criticism regarding the sleeping situation in the hostel, with the family-of-six sharing two bunk beds between themselves.
As seen in images provided to the Recorder, MD’s elderly parents sleep on one bed, while he and his wife share the bottom part of the other and his two daughters, 5 and 11, take the top part.
The family feel that the outcome of the suitability review conducted by the council is unfair but have not attempted to appeal the decision again.
On the emotional impact of his family’s living situation, MD said: “We are tired, very tired.
“My father is elderly, my mother is elderly, our life is not comfortable here.
“We have one toilet but it is very small.
“Our kitchen is shared and outside, we must walk across the garden to get there.”
The family has rented privately in various areas across Redbridge since they came to the UK from Bangladesh in 2017.
Redbridge Council has been contacted for further comment.
