Advice needed. Been made homeless

Hump

The following is no substitute for professional advice.......

Assuming the Council which covers your partner's mother's address is in England;

Insist on making a homelessness application and ensure that whatever process they put you through tomorrow will eventually end in a homelessness decision letter (s184 Housing Act 1996)

If his mother has lived in that Council area (same or different addresses makes no odds) for 5 years or longer then you have a local connection and can't be referred elsewhere or fobbed off. This is the least important issue in law but is always the first question any Council will ask.

Assuming at least one of you is a UK citizen who has lived in the UK for at least the past two years (holiday's excepting) then you will be eligible for assistance.

You must then convince the Council you are homeless - 2 issues raise their head here - 1. was the move to his mother's only ever meant to be temporary? - if yes, then 2. the Council will look into how/why you left your flat - you should try to take proof that your licence/tenancy has ended (tenancy/ licence agreement and notice from landlord if you have both).

If you had a tenancy then they might run an argument along the lines of '4 weeks notice wasn't long enough and by leaving the flat under these circumstances that you have in someway made yourself intentionally homeless' - you'll say something like 'we didn't know the landlord had to give us 2 months notice' - they'll point to some obscure page of your tenancy agreement where it says the landlord 'has to give 2 months notice to bring the tenancy to an end' - if this happens you're definitely going to need an advocate i.e. Shelter or local Housing Aid Centre. If the agreement doesn't mention ending the tenancy then you can argue that 'you didn't know your rights' (assuming you didn't)

If you had a residential landlord at the flat and you rented a room off them i.e. you were a lodger - then they will probably try to work out whether you were given 4 weeks notice because of something you had deliberately done (or forgot to do) like pay the rent, do the washing up, pay the telephone bill etc. Even if your 4 week notice doesn't mention anything some Councils will phone up the landlord and ask!

Whatever happens you must be clear in your own mind from the outset exactly why you left the flat share - you can expect them to give you a hard time - especially if it seems that you either voluntarily left the flat (even if you were unaware of your rights), or that you were compelled to leave because of something you did/failed to do.

The final part of the jigsaw is whether one of you is 'in priority need' - it appears you've jumped this hurdle already as they sound as if they would place you in a B&B - they wouldn't do that unless they thought one of you was a priority.

Given how many Councils now operate you are very likely to need help - if you can find an agency which still has funding ......

Am88_2

Thank you Hump for the thorough advice. I will see what happens tomorrow.
Thanks to everyone

pamelamalcolm

Hi, were you able to find a way to get a home? You should have benefits especially since you're husband is registered as disabled.

Am88_2

Went to council this morning. They were fairly helpful but gave us some advice and then pretty much said 'you're on your own!' We filled in a form for a charity that can help with a deposit which is a start.
Next step is to go round estate agents and try to convince them to let a property out to us!!!
CAB weren't helpful at all. The woman who saw us just read advice off of the website which we have already looked at! I expected more personalised advice.
Oh well...

Am88_2

Really struggling with this. Feel completely lost. Current situation is so awful, can't wait to escape it but terrified of what is ahead of us.

tbs624

OP - don't just use LAs . Check online /the Yellow Pages for a local LL association and/or whether the local Council's private sector rentals officer has a list of accredited private LLs, so that you can contact the LLs direct. Consider placing your own "accommodation wanted" ad

squinty

I suggest you contact the Council again and insist that you have a proper homeless interview.

Unfortunately at some councils front line staff act as 'gatekeepers' and restrict acess to the homlessness team. However, they should not do this and any person is entitled to make a claim as homeless.

If they are making this difficult you may want to seek local specialist advice - this may be a Housing Aid Centre, Shelter or the CAB. However be aware that although they can offer support and advice it is only the local council who can make the decision on a homlessness application.