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Homelessness
Housing Act 1996 (Part VII) (as amended in Homelessness Act
2002)
The help Local Authorities have to provide to homeless people is
set out in the Housing Act 1996 (Part VII)
(http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1996/52/contents)
What is Homelessness?
The law says you are homeless if you meet any of the following
conditions:
- You have nowhere to live in this country or elsewhere in the
world which you can occupy
- You have been living somewhere, but you have no legal right to
stay there and have been told to leave
- You have somewhere to live, but cannot get into it, e.g. being
locked out unlawfully
- You have somewhere to live, but someone else who lives there
has been violent towards you, or is likely to be violent towards
you
- Your home is a caravan, or a houseboat and you have nowhere to
legally park it, or moor it
- You have somewhere to live, but nowhere for the people who
normally live with you
- You have been made homeless as a result of an emergency, such
as fire, flood or some other disaster.
- We will consider you to be threatened with homelessness if you
are likely to become homeless within the next 28 days.
This may be because:
You have been taken to
court by your landlord and the court has said you must leave.
You have been living with friends or relatives who have told you to
leave.
Who is Eligible for Homelessness Assistance?
Certain people are not eligible for assistance under the
homelessness legislation, for example, because you do not usually
live in the UK or are subject to some form of immigration
control.
You are likely to be eligible for assistance if:
- You usually live in the UK and are not subject to any form of
immigration control.
- You usually live in the UK and are subject to immigration
control, but your right to stay here is not subject to any time
limit or condition(s).
- You have been given refugee status, or exceptional leave to
remain here, as a result of an application for asylum.
- You are an asylum seeker who applied at port of entry when you
first came to the UK and have not yet received a decision on your
asylum application.
- You are an asylum seeker, who applied for asylum prior to 5th
February 1996.
If you are not eligible under the above criteria you may still be
entitled to help from Social Services.
What is Priority Need?
You will be considered to be in priority need if you, or someone
who normally lives with you, meet any of the following
criteria:
- You are pregnant
- You have dependent children (under 16 or 17-19 who are in full
time education) who normally live with you
- You are homeless or threatened with homelessness as a result of
an emergency such as flood, fire or other disaster
- You are aged 16 or 17, not living with your parent or guardian,
and not already being assisted by social services
- You are under 21 and were in care when you were 16 or 17
- You are vulnerable. You may have a priority need if you are
vulnerable due to:
Being elderly (typically over 60 years of age)
- Suffering from mental illness, disability, or physical
illness
- Being at risk of domestic or other violence
- Being over 21 and having previously been in the care of Social
Services or fostered
Having served a custodial sentence or served in the armed
forces.
When assessing whether you have a priority need due to being
vulnerable we will apply a particular legal test which the Courts
have developed. Not everyone will be accepted as in priority need
for housing, it will depend on individual circumstances.
What is Intentional Homelessness?
When assessing your application we will consider whether you
became homeless or threatened with homelessness intentionally.
We will examine whether you or a member of your household did or
fail to do something which directly led to you losing your last
settled accommodation which was available to you and reasonable for
you to continue to occupy. For example, failing to pay rent,
engaging in any form of anti-social behaviour.
We will also examine whether you entered into an arrangement
with your host or landlord which resulted in you losing your home,
the purpose of the arrangement being to enable you to obtain our
assistance as a homeless person.
What is Local Connection?
To have a local connection you, or someone who normally lives
with you, must meet one of the following:
- You have lived in the borough for six out of the last twelve
months.
- You have lived in the borough for three out of the last five
years. (You will not be considered as having a local connection
with this Authority if you have been provided with temporary
accommodation by another council within the City of London and have
lived in it for less than five years.)
- You have employment in the borough.
- You have a close relative who has lived in the borough for the
last five years. Close relatives include parents, children,
brothers or sisters.
- There may be other exceptional circumstances which the council
will accept as a local connection.
- We may refer you to another council and ask them to assist you,
if:
- You have no local connection with the City of London, but do
have a local connection with the other council. Or
- You made a homeless application to another borough in the last
five years and were placed in the City of London by that
borough.
Under such circumstances we have to make sure that the other
council has agreed to help you before asking you to go there. While
these arrangements are being made, we will offer you interim
accommodation if this is required. (Interim accommodation is
accommodation provided whilst we are carrying out our
enquiries).
We will not ask you to return to an area where you have
experienced, or are likely to experience, violence. If you
have no connection with any area, we may still have a duty to house
you or help you to obtain accommodation.
The above description is for general guidance only. As
each case is assessed on an individual basis, you should seek
advice from us if you are homeless or threatened with homelessness;
we will then explain the full conditions of eligibility to you.
Housing Options and Advice Service - Preventing
Homelessness
If you are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless you should
can get advice from our Housing Options and Advice centre. You may
also find our options for finding a home page useful.
Our Housing Needs Team provides help and advice to City
residents on a range of housing issues. These include finding
somewhere to live in and problems with your existing living
arrangements.
Dedicated housing officers can help you explore the different
options for finding a home that are available to resolve your
housing issues.
What is the service for
Free advice is available if you:
- want general advice about a housing matter
- are faced with losing your home now or in the near future
- are worried about losing your home in the future
- are already homeless
- want advice and information about your housing
options.
Make an appointment with an adviser
We can often help straight away by offering advice over the
telephone. We will usually arrange for you to see an adviser who
will talk to you about your housing needs in private. You are
welcome to bring a friend with you if you wish. To make an
appointment or for more information:
Contact: Housing Needs Team
Tel: 0207 332 1237 / 3452 / 1804
Email:
housingoptions@cityoflondon.gov.uk.
How to prepare for your appointment - You will need to bring
relevant information and documents to the interview with you, for
example:
- your tenancy agreement
- notice to quit your home and/or court order
- the name and address of your landlord
- wage slips
- details of other income such as benefits, pensions etc
- mortgage and secured loans agreements
- National Insurance number
- birth or marriage certificate
- details of social worker or support worker
- relevant medical information
- proof of pregnancy if applicable
The Housing Needs and Advice service can advise you which
documents you need to bring.
Advice on homelessness
Advice for homeless people and those threatened by homelessness
is available from our Housing Options and Advice Service.. We will
do everything we can to prevent you becoming homeless and to help
you find housing which meets your needs.
Preventing Homelessness - Homeless Visiting Officers
Our Homeless Visiting officers are responsible for confirming
clients’ housing history and current homeless status. They are
What assistance may be provided?
We will speak to your landlord or the person asking you to leave
and negotiate with them for you to stay in the accommodation until
we can find an alternative for you.
We will also advise you of different housing options or refer
you to specialist advice services such as the Tenancy Relations
service or Environmental Health available to negotiate with
landlords over the length of notice given, while attempting to
prevent homelessness through mediation.
Where required we can also provide referral to appropriate
homelessness prevention schemes.
How do I access the service?
A visit will usually be arranged when you make a homeless
application. You can also ask for a visit if you have a disability
and cannot get to our office.
What happens next?
Once the visit is completed the outcome will be reported to the
Assessment officer who is dealing with your homeless application.
Alternatively your details may be passed on to another council
officer who can provide you with specialist advice or information
on alternative housing options.
This section on homelessness explains the help which can be
given to homeless people. Please ask if you need a further
explanation.
You can contact us by phone on 0207 332 1237 /3452 / 1804 or by
email on
housing.advice@cityoflondon.gov.uk.
Preventing homelessness
The earlier you let us know about your housing problem the more
we can do to help.
Most homelessness is preventable, but only if early action is
taken before the situation gets worse. We are committed to helping
you keep your home or find safe and secure accommodation that is
the right choice for you.
If you are at risk of becoming homeless, our aim is to prevent
you losing your accommodation, or help you find a home that best
meets your needs.
Don't wait until homelessness is upon you before you seek help.
Together we can find a solution to your housing problem and avoid
the trauma and stress of homelessness.
To speak to someone about your housing problems, contact the
Temporary Housing Services
Not everyone is eligible for temporary accommodation. Most
homelessness is preventable if you act promptly.
Our Housing Options and Advice Service will do everything they
can to prevent you becoming homeless in the first place or make a
referral for you to get help to secure suitable alternative settled
accommodation for you and your family by way of direct lettings in
the private rented sector.
A Housing Options Officer at an assessment interview will
consider if you are legally homeless or threatened with
homelessness and in priority need and eligible for accommodation
and assistance as set out under Housing Act 1996, Part VII.
If you are eligible for assistance, homeless and in priority
need, temporary accommodation may be offered whilst your homeless
application is being looked at or if the council has made a
positive decision that it has accepted a duty to rehouse you and
you are waiting permanent housing.
If we agree to provide temporary accommodation this might be one
of the following:
- Hostel accommodation
- A property leased in the private rented sector
- Housing association stock
- Bed and breakfast accommodation
What you can expect of us?
If you come into the Housing needs Team office to make a
homeless application a member of Needs Team will see you within 1
hour. However we advise that you phone and make an
appointment to to see the Homelessness and Advice Officer so that
the correct amount of time can be proivded
Whilst we assess your application we will place you in temporary
accommodation immediately if required. We will take into
consideration any disability or long term health problems that you
have when we assess your homeless application. We have our own
medical advisor and you do not have to pay for reports from your
doctor. We will aim to assess your application within 28 days,
unless there are circumstances which require a longer period.
We offer help in completing application forms, ie benefit
forms
If English is not your first language we will use Language Line for
a translator. We offer an out of hours service if you need help
between the hours of 5.00pm and 9.00pm and at weekends.
What will be expected of you?
We would like you to provide us with all information requested
of you to help with the assessment process. We would expect you to
provide your benefit details. When provided with temporary
accommodation we would expect you to pay rent charges keeping your
rent account up to date. We will give you a rent card to maintain
these payments.
What if I want to know more?
This section on homelessness explains the help which can be
given to homeless people. Please ask if you need a further
explanation. You can contact us by phone on 020 7332 1804 / 1237 /
3452 or by email on
housing.advice@cityoflondon.gov.uk.
If you want independent advice you can consult:
City Advice
Toynbee Hall
You can access advice at a range of locations across the City of
London For details or your nearest service, please see below or
call 0207 392 2919 for more details.
Email:
city.advice@toynbeehall.org.uk
Website:
www.toynbeehall.org.uk/cityadvice
Further independent advice can be sought at:
http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_advice/homelessness
Documents you should bring if you are going to apply as
homeless
If you are going to apply to the Council for housing because
you are homeless, please bring the following documents to your
interview:
- Proof of your identity: your birth certificate; passport; a
document confirming your National Insurance number.
- Details of your income: your Child Benefit payment book;
details of any savings you have such as your latest bank statement,
Building Society book, Post Office Savings book, etc.
- if you are employed, your last 5 weeks’ payslips (or your last
two months’ salary slips).
- If you haven’t kept these, you will need a letter from your
employer giving your gross pay over the last 5 weeks
- if you are unemployed or retired, your payment book. If you are
unemployed and are signing on, bring with you the form showing the
amount you receive weekly.
- If you have children, full birth certificates for any children
under the age of five who are included in your application for
housing and either full or short birth certificates for any
children over five. Please bring any divorce or separation papers
which show arrangements concerning the children.
- If you are pregnant, your Maternity Certificate or hospital
notes
- If you have been renting your home, the tenancy agreement that
you were given at the start of the tenancy and any contract that
you were given later; if no contract was given, a rent book or a
letter from your landlord confirming the tenancy; and any notice
that your landlord gave you, either before or during the term of
the tenancy, including any notice to leave your home.
- If your home is to be sold, confirmation from your solicitor of
the sale of the property, specifying the value of the home, the
amount of mortgage still to be paid, and the amount of capital you
will receive once it has been sold.
- If legal action is being taken to repossess your home, the
Court Summons for Possession, with details of the Application for
Possession, the Court Order for Possession, and the Bailiff’s
Warrant for Possession, if applicable.
- If the Home Office is dealing with, or has dealt with, an
application from you to stay in this country,letters from the
Immigration and Nationality Department confirming this, or a letter
notifying you of the decision on your application, if
applicable.
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