November 2015

Carmel Ferguson, Housing Rights solicitor, looks at the case of Samuels v Birmingham City Council, in which a homeless applicant challenged the local authority's decision that she was intentionally homeless because she had been evicted from a previous property due to rent arrears.  The original decision maker had felt that Ms Samuels's rent was affordable when compared with her income.

In 2013, Northern Ireland followed the rest of the UK in introducing a statutory tenancy deposit scheme. The aim of the Scheme is to protect tenants’ deposits through an independent Scheme Provider.

Representatives from the Private Tenants’ Forum were delighted to speak at Housing Rights’ recent conference on the private rented sector ‘Fit for the Future?’

Tracey McKeating and Brigitte Anton spoke to the conference about their experiences in the private rented sector and what encouraged them to join the Forum. They also spoke about their achievements to date, including:

We had over 90 delegates attend our Private Rented Conference on Tuesday 17th November. The timely conference aimed to open up debate on how to ensure the Northern Ireland private rented sector is fit for purpose.

Days ahead of our private rented conference ‘Fit for the Future?’, the Minister for Social Development, Mervyn Storey MLA, has launched a landmark review into the future of the private rented sector.  Housing Rights welcomes the publication of the review

The Department for Social Development recently released a response report on proposals for a New Regulatory Framework for Social Housing Providers. The report follows on from the consultation exercise which was carried out a few months ag

We have rounded up the latest news developments so you are kept up to date.

Credit cards: Concerns over 'persistent' debt

Social housing's £1.15bn support to Northern Ireland economy

Living wage rate increased by 40p an hour