Homelessness Update – Doughty Street Chambers
‘Annual Review of Developments in Homelessness Law presentation slides.’
Doughty Street Chambers, 17th November 2017
Source: www.doughtystreet.co.uk
Category: homelessness
Home Office faces High Court hearing over policy on rough sleeping EEA nationals – Local Government Lawyer
‘The High Court is today [21 November] set to begin hearing a judicial review challenge to the Home Office’s policy towards rough sleeping EEA nationals.’
Local Government Lawyer, 21st November 2017
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
How long has this been going on? – settled accommodation – Nearly Legal
‘The issue in this second appeal was what amounts to ‘settled accommodation’, sufficient to break the chain of causation of intentional homelessness.’
Nearly Legal, 29th October 2017
Source: nearlylegal.co.uk
Panayiotou v Waltham Forest LBC; Smith v Haringey LBC – Arden Chambers
‘The Court of Appeal has held that whether a person has a priority need for accommodation by reason of vulnerability requires consideration of whether he is “significantly” more vulnerable in a way that is relevant to his ability to deal with the consequences of homelessness; the question is qualitative, not quantitative.’
Arden Chambers, 19th October 2017
Source: www.ardenchambers.com
Vulnerability, medical evidence & Now Medical – Nearly Legal
‘Thomas v Lambeth LBC, County Court at Central London, 16 March 2017. This is a s.204 appeal in the County Court of a vulnerability decision by Lambeth. Of particular interest is that the judgment concerns and indeed turns on Now Medical reports on the homeless applicant and the use made of them by LB Lambeth on s.184 decision and on s.202 review.’
Nearly Legal, 3rd October 2017
Source: nearlylegal.co.uk
An uncaring indifference to wrong and right – Nearly Legal
‘Behind every homelessness statistic sits a story – or, more accurately – 88410 stories. Stories of people fleeing violence or abusive relationships. Stories of people struggling with ill-health and addictions. Stories of care leavers being left to struggle thorough. And, increasingly, stories of people who just can’t afford the rent. Some – the “lucky” or “deserving” few, find their way into temporary accommodation. Some sleep rough. Some turn to prostitution as a way of getting a roof for the night. It is a desperate situation.’
Nearly Legal, 18th September 2017
Source: nearlylegal.co.uk
Homeless man jailed for Hyde Park murder – The Guardian
‘A homeless man has been jailed for at least 26 years for murdering a “kind and peace-loving” carer in London’s Hyde Park after the authorities failed to deport him on at least six occasions over two years.’
The Guardian, 24th August 2017
Source: www.theguardian.com
High Court quashes assessment that child was not ‘in need’ – Local Government Lawyer
‘The High Court has quashed an assessment by the London Borough of Lambeth after it failed to re-assess whether a child – after a diagnosis of autism – was in need of assistance.’
Local Government Lawyer, 17th July 2017
Source: localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
David Miller murder: Four jailed for killing ‘vulnerable’ man – BBC News
‘Four homeless street drinkers have been found guilty of killing a “vulnerable” man who was attacked in his own home.’
BBC News, 12th July 2017
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Not looked into enough to be unaware – Nearly Legal
‘A second appeal of a homeless decision that Ms T was intentionally homeless, on the issues of whether Ms T’s actions were “an act or omission in good faith on the part of a person who was unaware of any relevant fact” as per s.192(2) Housing Act 1996.’
Nearly Legal, 11th July 2017
Source: nearlylegal.co.uk
Allocations: Local Lettings and Undisclosed Policies – Garden Court Chambers
‘The defendant, Islington Borough Council, maintained an allocation scheme which provided that certain categories of people were excluded from joining the housing register, including those who had lived in the borough for less than three out of the previous five years. However, the scheme allowed for exceptions to be made. In particular, in respect of homeless applicants to whom a long-term housing duty under Part 7 Housing Act 1996 had been accepted.’
Garden Court Chambers, 5th July 2017
Source: www.gardencourtchambers.co.uk
Revised Benefit Cap Unlawfully Discriminates Against Lone Parents With Children Under Two, High Court Rules – Garden Court Chambers
‘In a robustly worded judgment handed down today, Mr Justice Collins found the revised benefits cap operated to unlawfully discriminate lone parents with children under the age of two and those children under the age of two.’
Garden Court Chambers, 22nd June 2017
Source: www.gardencourtchambers.co.uk
R (C) v Islington LBC – Arden Chambers
‘The Administrative Court has held that priority within a housing allocation scheme providing that existing social housing tenants are to be preferred over other applicants, such as the homeless and women fleeing domestic violence, for certain local lettings of eg new and refurbished accommodation was justified and accordingly had not been unlawfully discriminatory for the purposes of art.14 and ss.19, 29 Equality Act 2010; the introduction of the local lettings policies had complied with s.149 Equality Act 2010 and s.11 Children Act 2004; but the operation of a system of direct offers, used particularly to allocate accommodation to homeless applicants, had not been sufficiently set out in the scheme and was accordingly unlawful.’
Arden Chambers, 31st May 2017
Source: www.ardenchambers.com
Making it up as you go – Nearly Legal
‘C was accepted for the full housing duty by Islington, with her 3 children, as a result of domestic violence. C is profoundly deaf. She had been living in Southwark, but following the DV, was in refuge in Islington and applied as homeless there. She was, eventually, given 3 bed temporary accommodation in Islington.’
Nearly Legal, 6th June 2017
Source: nearlylegal.co.uk
Regrette rien – Nearly Legal
‘R (oao Sambotin) v London Borough of Brent (2017) EWHC 1190 (Admin). Once a local authority has made a homeless decision under section 184 Housing Act 1996, can it change its mind? That was the issue in this judicial review.’
Nearly Legal, 21st May 2017
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
Poshteh v Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea – Arden Chambers
‘The Supreme Court has declined to depart from its previous judgment in Ali v Birmingham CC that the right to homelessness accommodation under s193 Housing Act 1996 was not a civil right under art 6, despite a decision of the ECtHR to the contrary in Ali v UK; it has affirmed the dicta of Lord Neuberger in Holmes-Moorhouse v Richmond upon Thames LBC that a “benevolent approach” is to be taken to homelessness review decisions under s202; and said (obiter) that the principles governing the right of appeal to the county court under s204 had been authoritatively established by the House of Lords in Runa Begum v Tower Hamlets LBC and other cases including Holmes-Moorhouse, and should be taken as settled.’
Arden Chambers, 10th May 2017
Source: www.ardenchambers.com
A bluffers guide to the Homeless Reduction Act 2017 – Nearly Legal
‘The Homelessness Reduction Act has now received royal assent. The Act itself is here. There is no date yet for it to come into force – there will need to be statutory guidance produced first – and the current guess is that it is likely to be in 2018. Of course, what the Act mostly does is amend Housing Act 1996 Part VII.’
Nearly Legal, 14th May 2017
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
Supreme and Strasbourg Courts square off on Art. 6 and housing – UK Human Rights Blog
‘Poshteh v Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea S [2017] UKSC 36, 10 May 2017. For the last 15 years, whether the right of the homeless to suitable council accommodation is an Art.6(1) ECHR civil right has been argued over in the courts. And the question arose again in today’s judgment of the Supreme Court.’
UK Human Rights Blog, 10th May 2017
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
Supreme Court backs decision of reviewing officer over accommodation offer – Local Government Lawyer
‘The Supreme Court has upheld a reviewing officer’s decision that it was reasonable for a refugee to accept an offer of accommodation which she claimed reminded her of prison in Iran.’
Local Government Lawyer, 10th May 2017
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
One in three councils targeting rough sleepers with enforcement measures: Crisis – Local Government Lawyer
‘More than one in three councils (36%) are targeting rough sleepers with enforcement measures such as Criminal Behaviour Orders (CBOs) and Public Space Protection Orders (PSPOs), research by national homelessness charity Crisis has suggested.’
Local Government Lawyer, 4th April 2017
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
