I was advised to shut my autistic daughter in a room – Lauryn Henderson

Lauryn Henderson, a West London mother of two says a Hammersmith and Fulham Council officer advised her to shut her autistic daughter in a room.

“I carry my baby, buggy and autistic daughter up stairs, council told me I could shut her in a room,” she said.

Lauryn Henderson said she found the suggestion ‘completely shocking’ as she pushes the local authority and her landlord Notting Hill Genesis for a more appropriate property, London crime magazine, MyLondon reports.

She expressed the shock after being advised by the council officer to ‘securely place’ her autistic daughter in a room while she collects her specialised buggy, after she raised concerns about the logistics of her living situation.

Lauryn Henderson, 25, has also been recommended to look to order more groceries online and to wrap her window panes in bubble wrap and plywood to prevent her daughter causing damage.

A spokesperson for Hammersmith and Fulham said the local authority is ‘urgently asking’ Notting Hill Genesis to find Ms Henderson a new home.

A spokesperson for the provider added they are looking for a property which better meets her needs ‘but this could take some time’.

Ms Henderson moved into her first-floor, one-bed Shepherd’s Bush home in early 2020 with her eldest daughter, who is autistic.

She said problems arose almost instantly, with there being no hot water or heating upon her and her daughter’s arrival.

The situation came to a head the following year when Ms Henderson said she contacted Notting Hill Genesis due to worsening damp and mould.

She said the window frames were rotting and black mould was appearing, a particular concern given her asthma, and she feared her daughter would injure herself, MyLondon reports.