Eviction of Mrs Appleton (collector of dolls and memrabelia) and her three sons

The poor, poor lady. It's heartbreaking.

Staggering! There must have been a better way...

That is so callous, brutal even. The poor dear woman. Surely the local authority have a duty to home her - how can they possibly allow her to be homeless? I hope to God a solution is found for her.

These are emotive articles appearing in the national news.
As a tenant there are rules to be observed regarding a whole raft of conditions to keeping that tenancy and this type of situation doesn't just suddenly happen or come out of the blue. There are regular inspections of property on behalf of the freeholder to check that conditions are being met. By the time written warnings are given it has clearly become a serious issue.

There has to be consent from the owner of the hoard before anything can be sorted/decluttered otherwise nothing can be cleared. Her three sons have not taken the responsibility of sorting it out to ensure that their mother remains in her home. Apparently others have tried to help including the local church but to no avail.
Nothing is as simple as it at first appears and if the sons won't/can't do the job then the authorities have to do the best they can with the tools they have at their disposal. If those tools seem somewhat heavy handed then that is what it is.

Cooing over sad situations does not solve them and sometimes you have to be cruel to be kind.

I have a friend who lives in a flat in a large house in just this same manner and the other flats owners are frightened of fire and that the floor might give way. Since the property is owner occupied the other owners have been unable to do anything and so they continue to live in fear.
Her friends and family are trying to help her get back to a liveable, socially acceptable normality and in spite of her mental health issues cannot get the relevant authorities to help in any way for various reasons.
The lady has been unable to sleep in a bed for years because it is so cluttered, cannot cook for the same reason and cannot use the bathroom other than the toilet for the same reason. She cannot wash herself or her clothes so she is very smelly. The windows cannot be opened and the heating cannot be used, the gas is cut off and there are infestations which make it a very unhealthy place to live. She is totally possessed by her possessions which is tragic.

I very much doubt that this is any different to Mrs Appleton other than that the lady I know is an owner occupier. At least something can be done when the occupant is a tenant.

I hope that the relevant authorities can get Mrs Appleton to agree to have her possessions cleared, sorted and stored properly elsewhere so that she can return to her home and live in a more healthy environment.

Oh dear. No easy answers here. I suspect that neighbours must have been very worried. What a shame they somehow couldn't accept the help and support offered. Sounds like they got into a totally entrenched position and couldn't sort things out for themselves. Sometimes it takes a crisis to make things happen. I wonder whether it might not be an improvement for them all in the long run? I hope so.

If she owned the house she could have the house as she wanted

, again people who are different to what is considered the norm are classed mentally ill . We must fit into little boxes mustn't we

Mrs Appleton's sons managed to keep the house clean and not infested as far as I know. And no pets.

There is clearly a family mental health issue as the 3 sons are all adults living at home with widowed mother. They do not appear to have created their own families.

I think one report said that Mrs. Appleton's father gave her dolls. He will be dead by now and so some of these are probably his memorial.

This is all complicated stuff and needs a team of people with a leader who has expertise in this area to support Mrs. Appleton and help her sons.

In the US Gail Steketee and others have written about this problem of 'Stuff' & 'Buried in Treasures'.

One would have hoped that someone from Cheshire had attended:

June Conference on Hoarding Behaviour
Amanda Peet / April 14, 2015
Jo Cooke and Amanda Peet will be speaking at the following conference in June 2015.

Click the link to find out more. www.ccclimited.org.uk/event/hoarding-behaviour/

HOARDING BEHAVIOUR – Taking steps to tackle a hidden problem

This conference is aimed at the following professionals:

Social workers
Family support workers
Children’s charities
Environmental health managers
Social housing providers
Tenancy support workers
Voluntary and community organisations
Mental health practitioners
Community health practitioners such as district nurses, midwives and health visitors
Occupational therapists
Older people’s services
Services for people with learning disabilities
Public health specialists
Fire services

This is a case where cooperation worked: (see below)

Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service
A new multi-agency process has been launched in Derbyshire – Vulnerable Adult at Risk Management (VARM). Run by Derbyshire County Council and Derby City, and supported by the FRS, police, social housing providers, environmental health and others, the policy gives professionals a framework to facilitate effective multi-agency working with vulnerable adults who are at risk of serious harm or death through self-neglect, risk-taking behaviour or refusal of services.

The VARM process is designed to be used for those vulnerable adults who do not fall within existing processes. Each agency appoints a ‘champion’ or lead to take part in the process: to meet, discuss, identify, and document risk for high-risk cases, and to formulate an action plan.
While the process covers all types of harm, it has been used in cases of hoarding. In a recent case, fire crews attended two false alarms at a flat, triggered by burnt cooking. An assessment by the fire officer concluded that the hoarding behaviour of the elderly occupant – of magazines, books, drawings, and human excreta in all rooms, blocking doors – meant that he was unlikely to escape unaided from a fire, and that crews would struggle to rescue him and be at risk themselves.

Although his social housing provider and social services had been trying to work with the occupant, who had health and mobility issues, previous interventions had not succeeded and he was in danger of losing his tenancy. A fire in his property would almost certainly kill him. A VARM was called, involving practitioners and managers from key agencies. One of the ways of getting the occupant to engage was to show he could be helped in a way that he wanted. As the tenancy support worker had formed the most positive relationship with him, this person was able to take simple steps to address his concerns, while getting other agencies’ concerns addressed. His care package was adjusted, to include assistance with household chores; he was visited and helped by health practitioners; his home was cleared allowing his central heating to be repaired. Fire risks were mitigated down to an acceptable level without the need to revisit and upset him.
The occupant is maintaining a clean and tidy house, is engaging with his care package and is still living at home.
www.cfoa.org.uk/17672

Hopefully there is a team working with this family and Mrs. Appleton will be able to return home.

Emily thank you for such an excellent post. I do hope that this can all be sorted out.

Nothing is ever as simple as it seems on the surface.

I think the neighbours were very concerned about the fire hazard in the house, which, if it had happened, could have spread to their houses.

How sad, though, and was there any need at all to go into the house as if the old lady and her sons were criminals?

Surely a trained negotiator and/or psychologists could have been called in before it got to this crisis point?
What has happened to all her possessions - stored properly I hope, but what now? She is entitled to have them back, otherwise this is tantamount to theft.

A psychotherapist I met holds regular monthly sessions with hoarders at a fire station.

People who find they cannot let go of things because they may have a deep sentimental attachment to them needs more that a once a month meeting

Can anyone can look at one possession they cherish and say yes I can part with it ?

They have never not paid the rent.
But I suspect they would never change their behaviour no matter what intervention they have[which costs money too].

I think they should be made to remove say 1/10 of their belongings. Either to say a friend or neighbour, or else even a council storage facility of some kind.

A fire hazard should not be allowed. For the sake of themselves and their neighbours. Even if, and especially if, they have mental health issues.

Can I ask Anniebach, do you always go for the underdog. No matter the repercussions to anyone else? Even if it is a matter of safety for others?

anniebach Can anyone can look at one possession they cherish and say yes I can part with it ... of course! I can and I have done. I gave away everything I owned when I came to live in the UK. Arrived here with two suitcases and I thought afterwards, I could have come with one.

DD has left a loft full of her cherished possessions with us.
I expect when she does finally go through it all she will have forgotten she had most of it.

I remember seeing a programme years ago about house clearing and it was recommended that people take photos of things they may find difficult to let go of and make a photo album of them, keeping just a few that mean the most.

jalima when I go to SA on visits, I also "visit" some of my previously cherished possessions e.g. some of the crockery I gave to family members, I coo "Oh, look, I used to love that painting/butterdish/rug".

Although Mrs Appleton's three sons apparently live with her, at least one of them wears a wedding ring, so there is some doubt as to whether he does actually live at the house.
This same son seems to be perfectly sensible, no sign of mental illness, so surely he should have managed to 'get through' to his mum just how dangerous her living conditions are.
I fully appreciate that she wants to be surrounded by her 'treasures' but she is a lady who walks with great difficulty, has to hold on to someone for support, and her house is an absolute death trap.
It's all very well people banging on about the fact that she's been removed from the property, but if there had been a fire and, God forbid, lives had been lost, those same people would be screaming that she shouldn't have been allowed to stay in the house due to the dangerous conditions.
For the local authority it's very much a case of damned if you do, damned if you don't!
As a final thought, those who are so appalled that the family have been evicted, would you want to live next door to them?

obieone, yes I often do ,

I just think that they have treated an old lady like a criminal and that they used a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

I can see all the arguments for the removal of the lady and I can see that living next to her might be a worry and I can see that she has three sons who might/should/could have done something.

With my sensible head on I see and understand the rationality of that.

BUT are you telling me in this whole country there was not someone who could have made a difference without bashing down her door and frightening her half to death? That there was NO solution that didn't involve making her homeless?

For goodness sake whether she's mentally ill, a hoarder, or simply a frightened old lady - there HAD to be a better way. It would seem that it was the internal contents that caused for concern.I didn't see anyone say they had a rat/mice/flea infestation from the property. Hundreds if not thousands of people live next door to neighbours who are less than ideal.

We took years and years and millions and millions of pounds to get to the point of extraditing Abu Hamza back. Isnt this obviously needy old lady worth the same effort?

Well said N&G

Good post Nananandgrampy, no way should the lady have been treated as she was

Have you seen the state of the houses some of these hoarders have created? They almost certainly present a health and fire hazard.
This looks like a house that is in a terrace.

There is a likelihood of infestations of vermin, bugs moths rodents or suchlike.

One of our GNrs had a dreadful time with her adjoining house. Hers was previously a council house but the state of our Gnrs property was being severly affected by the condition of the adjoining property. The safety of the structure of her own was at risk.

There was eventually a fire in the property which could have seriously damaged both parts of the semi detached.

I think a negligent home owner or tenant could be held responsible for damage to a neighbouring property if their home is neglected or potentially dangerous.

l feel sorry for these OCD hoarders but the property owners have to protect their buildings and the other tenants or home owners nearby.

I enountered an elderly lady in an upstairs flat who invited her alcoholic men friends into the flat and these people were peeing in the corner of the flat rather than bothering to go to the toilet.

The council, after many attempts at improving the situation the council had to evict her as it was to say the least unacceptable for the people below to have to live with this behaviour.

I don't think there was a hygiene problem with Mrs Appleby and her sons, it was her huge collection of toys, dolls, memorabilia etc. Although, of course, the more stuff around the more difficult it is to clean.

Yes, I do remember going to see an old lady many many years ago; she was unable to get into her four poster bed in the living room because it was piled practically to the ceiling with papers of all kinds and the room had a narrow passage to get through the piles of stuff. I didn't see the rest of the house but I believe it was even worse.
I don't know what happened to her as she was a a family friend of someone I used to know.