Council adamant on evicting woman

Woking Council in Surrey is planning legal action to evict a
mentally ill woman from her flat, even though a judge has ordered a
judicial review of the case.

Bernadette King was given permission at a High Court hearing to
challenge the council’s decision to launch a possession action
against her, though no date has been set for the hearing.

But the council says it will press ahead with a county court
hearing next month to evict her from her flat in Nottingham Court
on antisocial behaviour grounds.

King’s barrister, Matthew Hutchings, said she had been diagnosed
with chronic paranoid schizophrenia in 1999 but the council had
decided to evict her on the “absurd premise” that she is not
mentally ill.

But Phil Mason, the council’s tenant and leaseholder services
manager, said: “The issues have been considered at length with
local health professionals. We believe that removing Ms King from
this community is the best course of action.”