The Queen on the Application of Fokou v London Borough of Southwark (2022) EWHC 1452 (Admin) (not on Bailii, judgment on Westlaw) THis was an application for interim relief in judicial review proceedings regarding suitability of accommodation and alleging...
Homelessness updates
Abdikadir v London Borough of Ealing (2022) EWCA Civ 979 Where an offer of out of borough accommodation had been made and refused, and a discharge of duty upheld on review, did the council's failure to notify the other council under section 208(2) Housing...
Affordability and intentional homelessness – assessments and guidance
Baptie v The Royal Borough of Kingston Upon Thames (2022) EWCA Civ 888 This was a second appeal, brought by RBKT from a s.204 appeal that had overturned their decision that Ms Baptie was intentionally homeless from a housing association property due to rent...
Everyone in – Lambeth lacking a policy
R(Cort) v London Borough of Lambeth (2022) EWHC 1085 (Admin) While in some ways this is a decision on an historic context (hopefully), there is a lot in this judgment on local authority approaches to housing in a public health emergency to consider. This was...
Failure of section 189B duty
Our grateful thanks to Daniel Grütters of One Pump Court for this note of a recent section 204 appeal judgment on Westminster City Council's performance (or lack thereof) of the s.189B Housing Act 1996 duty (the 'help to secure' or relief duty). Mr Miro...
Suitable for the likes of you
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...