Today (Weds 11 May) the Govt sneaked out The Homelessness (Suitability of Accommodation) (Amendment) (England) Order 2022. This comes into effect on 1 June 2022 and is stated to expire on 1 June 2023 The regs amend The Homelessness (Suitability of...
No messing about.
R (Elkundi) v Birmingham and R (Imam) v Croydon (2022) EWCA Civ 601 (not on Bailii yet. Copy of the judgment here) Two joined appeals on local authority duties to provide suitable accommodation under section 193 (2) Housing Act 1996 were before the Court of...
Suitability, enquiries, gender reassignment and the public sector equality duty.
Biden v Waverley Borough Council (2022) EWCA Civ 442 An interesting Court of Appeal decision on the sufficiency of enquiries to establish suitability of accommodation offered in discharge of section 189B Housing Act 1986 duty where the homeless person has...
Homelessness – second applications and new facts threshold.
Minott v Cambridge City Council (2022) EWCA Civ 159 This was Mr Minott's appeal from a judicial review that upheld Cambridge's refusal to accept a second homeless application. Our note on the JR decision is here. In short, Mr M had applied to Cambridge as...
Suitability and affordability – Court of Appeal on assessing affordability
Paley v London Borough of Waltham Forest (2022) EWCA Civ 112 This was a second appeal to the Court of Appeal on the issue of whether Waltham Forest had taken to correct approach to assessing the affordability of an offer of a private tenancy in Stoke on...
R(ZLL) v SSHCLG: Everyone In a “call to action” not a policy
In this case, Fordham J scrutinised the nature of "Everyone In" and analysed whether it was a "policy", such as to impose public law duties on the Secretary of State on its curtailment. The judgment (2022) EWHC 85 (Admin) contains a detailed discussion of...
The shape of things to come – a video look forward.
I decided to ignore 2021 altogether this new year. Instead, here is a look forward (if not entirely an enthusiastic one) to potential policy and legislative changes in 2022, for England, at least. (If Wales finally brings in the Renting Homes (Wales) Act in...
Not unaware enough – intentional homelessness in the Court of Appeal
Ciftci v London Borough of Haringey (2021) EWA Civ 1772 A second appeal to the Court of Appeal on Haringey's decision that Ms Ciftci was intentionally homeless. Ms C lived in Switzerland, where she had a rented flat, which was suitable and affordable for...
Recitation is not application
SR v Lambeth London Borough Council, County Court at Central London, 21st October 2021 H40CL201 – HHJ Roberts (unreported elsewhere) Our thanks to Justine Compton of Garden Court Chambers for the following note of a section 204 appeal judgment on a priority...
Reasonable evidence of in reasonable condition – private sector discharge
Hajjaj v City of Westminster (2021) EWCA Civ 1688 Where a local authority proposes to discharge the homeless duty by an offer of private sector accommodation, what does it have to do to satisfy itself that the property is suitable, with regard to the...
9 years of unsuitable accommodation – LGO award of £27,000
Our thanks to Naomi Trewinnard of Harrow Law Centre for this note of a remarkable Ombudsman decision in which LB Brent was found to have left a homeless household in wholly unsuitable temporary accommodation for 9 years - yes, 9 years. I've never seen an...
Homelessness – renewed applications and overlooked facts
Ibrahim, R (On the Application Of) v Westminster City Council (2021) EWHC 2616 (Admin) This was a judicial review of Westminster's refusal to accept a third homelessness application from Ms Ibrahim, following a review decision upholding a decision that she...