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In R (Safi) v The Borough Council of Sandwell [2018] EWCA 2876 the Court of Appeal for England and Wales clarified the factors which are relevant in determining whether a household is homeless for the purposes of section 175(3) of the Housing Act 1996.
The High Court ruled today that the DWP's treatment of UC claimants who are paid twice in one assessment period is unlawful, with the judgment descriping DWP's approach as "odd in the extreme".
The High Court in England and Wales has recently heard a challenge relating to Universal Credit assessment periods. Joined claims from CPAG and Leigh Day solicitors were heard by the court on the 27 and 28 November.
Our helpline has fielded lots of calls in recent weeks relating to unlawful evictions. In many of these cases, the landlord had furnished the tenant with a “licence” agreement, rather than a tenancy agreement. However, the fact that a person’s contract refers to them as a licensee does not override the facts of the matter. If, on investigation, it is established that a tenancy in fact exists the landlord must follow the correct legal process to recover possession of the dwelling.
The case of Anon v LB Lewisham clarifies that the standard of suitability of accommodation is not lower for temporary accommodation, and there is no distinct category of ‘temporary accommodation’ in the relevant legislation. A reviewing officer cannot use a lower threshold of suitability for temporary accommodation than more permanent accommodation.
The Court of Appeal for England & Wales has found that a local authority failed to comply with its Public Sector Equality Duty and erred in its decision that an applicant for homelessness assistance was not homeless because it was reasonable to expect her to remain in her home. Victoria Taylor, a recent Queen's University Graduate who is currently undertaking an LLM in Human Rights and Criminal Justice and volunteering with Housing Rights, discusses the case.
The Department for Communities has issued guidance on the effect of a recent upper tribunal decision concerning the meaning of the phrase “A person is responsible for a child or qualifying young person who normally lives with them”, which appears in the Universal Credit legislation.
The UK Upper Tribunal has found that a First Tier Tribunal erred in law by deciding that a person who sold his former home and rented it back could not receive Housing Benefit. In an important decision, the court ruled that the test of whether someone could continue to occupy their home without relinquishing ownership is one of practical compulsion, rather than legal compulsion and does not necessitate that the lender has started legal action to recover possession of the property.
Carmel Ferguson LLB, discusses how Housing Rights successfully helped a client who was being evicted from his home by getting his tenancy declared as protected.
Practitioners will be aware that since the implementation of the Private Tenancies (Northern Ireland) Order 2006, no new protected tenancies can be created.
