A supported housing company which illegally evicted a vulnerable tenant after claiming it would help them has been prosecuted by City of Wolverhampton Council.

Phoenix Supported Housing CIC, based in All Saints Road, Wolverhampton, former director Kimberley Bethell and director Davinder Singh Chall said they would help the tenant with their financial, physical and mental health.

But they failed to provide the promised support, provided misleading information and their actions meant the tenant fell into debt before being illegally evicted.

After the tenant asked the council for help, officers from Private Sector Housing and Trading Standards teams investigated, and the company and the individuals were prosecuted.

Former managing director Bethell and director of housing Chall, both pleaded guilty to one charge each under The Protection from Eviction Act 1977 and one each under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008.

The same charges were also brought against Phoenix Supported Housing CIC and guilty pleas were also given.

Bethell and Chall were each sentenced to nine months in prison, suspended for 18 months at Wolverhampton Crown Court on Tuesday (January 14).

Bethell was ordered to complete 140 hours of unpaid work and Chall was ordered to complete 25 rehabilitation days. They were also ordered to pay the tenant £1,500 each within 12 months.

In addition, the company was fined £10,000 and will have to pay £15,000 towards the council’s legal costs.

In sentencing, Judge Recorder Joanne Barker said Bethell and Chall’s behaviour was “thoroughly wicked” and they “should be ashamed of themselves”.

Issues first began in August 2021 when the tenant moved into a the first of two city flats which were operated by Phoenix Supported Housing CIC. Tenants were meant to receive a variety of support options as part of their tenancy, but no help was made available to the individual until seven months later, in March 2022.

Further issues included: 

• Not issuing tenancy documentation before or at the time the resident moved in.
• Falsely trying to charge the resident for support and when none was provided to them 
• Not telling the resident that they would have to pay council tax when moving from one flat to another 
• Entering the resident into contracts for the supply of utilities without their knowledge and then transferring an existing contract into their name without asking or telling her
• Not telling the resident of their legal rights as a tenant and then breaching those same rights during their time in the flat. 

The failures caused the tenant to fall into debt and they were then given 14 days to leave the flat, with the threat that any possessions left behind would be disposed of. This failed to comply with the requirements of a legal eviction.

Councillor Steve Evans, City of Wolverhampton Council’s Deputy Leader and cabinet member for city housing, said: “The landlords and the company acted in a shameful way in this case. And unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident in the supported housing sector.

“We are seeing concerning trends where landlords are misleading tenants about the security of their tenancy, denying tenants their rights in law and illegally evicting them by failing to follow the correct procedures.

“We will not tolerate landlords misleading tenants in this way and will use our powers to investigate and take action, which can include engaging locksmiths to reinstate illegally evicted tenants, using court injunctions to prevent future attempts at illegal evictions and carrying out investigations with a view to prosecution.”

Councillor Bhupinder Gakhal, cabinet member for resident services, said: "A vulnerable resident was bullied out of their home by the very organisation that was supposed to be supporting them.

“Bethell and Chall gave no regard to the individual’s health and wellbeing and whether they had anywhere else to go. It is absolutely right that the council brought this prosecution to hold Phoenix Supported Housing to account.”