Bulwell army veteran living in car after finding out he can't get a council house

A disabled army veteran is living in his car after being told he would not be eligible for a council house. Mark Jones, 58, says he was advised he would had to have lived in Nottingham for at least three of the past five years to stand a chance at getting on the Nottingham City Homes waiting list.

To access temporary accommodation, he'd have to go back to the Shetland Islands, where he lived until October, or Wiltshire, where he lived for the previous ten years. But having grown up and lived in Nottingham for the first 48 years of his life, he believes he should be prioritised in his home city.

Mark said: "It sounds difficult but to me it's simple. If a lad's lived in Nottingham for 48 years of his life, that should count for something. I feel like I'm just a number to society because I'm disabled and a burden to the benefit system. When my brothers went in the forces in the 70s and came out they were high priority - top of the waiting list.

"It's like they're saying to me 'thank you for your service Mark, thank you for those 12 years, but goodbye. We don't want to know you no more.' That's how it feels."

Born and raised in Bulwell, Mark joined the RAF in 1985 and served two terms in the Falklands War. But he was discharged in 1997 after a 60-foot fall down a rock face left him with mobility issues and unable to pass fitness tests.

He lived in privately rented homes on Hucknall Lane until 2013, when he moved to Wiltshire to support his daughter with her college and university studies. But in 2023, his landlord there told him he would be doubling his rent.

Mark, who also had a brain tumour, a brain haemorrhage and a stroke last year and is on disability benefits, simply could not afford to stay. He claims he was evicted after a judgment in Swindon County Court.

It was in the midst of the moving out process that he contacted Nottingham City Council to ask about being added to the waiting list, having reconnected with a former romantic interest in the area. But he claims he was told that he had to be a recent city resident in order to be considered.

Homeless, Mark stayed in the spare room of an old RAF friend's flat in the Shetland Islands for six months, but the landlord there couldn't allow him to stay longer. So he went back to Nottingham, where he grew up, in the hope of finding accommodation.

But he's lost his parents, fallen out with other family, is unable to afford a guesthouse and Wiltshire remains his local council for temporary accommodation. All he has is his Motability Renault Captur, paid for out of his benefit allowance, and his duvet.

He's currently surviving off a packet of sausage rolls and a packet of crisps from Greggs each day, which Greggs staff bring out to him in the car park due to his limited mobility. Recently, a resident of the street he's parked on has been providing him a cheese toastie and a cup of coffee each morning for breakfast.

He says if he wants an evening meal, he'll usually ration a couple of the sausage rolls at lunch and save them for later. And when he needs a number two, he drives up to Hucknall to use the disabled toilet at McDonald's.

He passes the time by listening to the 80s radio in his car - but only for a short while, before he turns off the car for fear the battery will run out. He'll heat the car with the engine on to the point it'll last throughout the day, before turning it off until around 9.30pm, when he gives it one last blast, turns it off, wraps himself in his duvet and falls to sleep.

A spokesperson for Nottingham City Council housing services said: "We would encourage anyone wanting social housing in Nottingham to make an application to HomeLink. Once we receive an application, it is assessed, and we then write to the applicant to let them know whether they’re eligible to join the waiting list.

"A full copy of our Allocations policy is available on the HomeLink website, explaining all eligibility criteria. Anyone who is homeless can contact Housing Solutions for advice and assistance on 0115 876 3300."