Problems with council housing application!!

xylophone

Bromley is Kent, Lewisham is not

http://www.bromleytimes.co.uk/news/the_big_debate_is_bromley_in_london_or_kent_1_2266055

seasideme

xylophone wrote: »

http://www.bromleytimes.co.uk/news/the_big_debate_is_bromley_in_london_or_kent_1_2266055

Yes I know that, I've just moved from there, just the same as Croydon being in Surrey but comes under Greater London.

It's more the fact someone calling Lewisham Kent, it gets confusing as some area's under Lewisham have Bromley postcodes.

t0rt0ise

As someone else says above, you need to evict them. Once they are to be homeless they'll get something. But only in the area that they actually live.

BigAunty

t0rt0ise wrote: »

As someone else says above, you need to evict them. Once they are to be homeless they'll get something. But only in the area that they actually live.

But not necessarily a social housing property, (in case that's not clear to people coming to this thread). A few years ago, the law relating to a local council's obligation to offer social housing to those in priority need was scrapped. Now councils in England can discharge their homelessness cases by offering settled accommodation, which can include a 1 year private tenancy.

They presumably introduced this because many councils in England struggled to offer social housing to even just those in priority need.

The law obliged them to do so, so in some areas they built up huge backlogs of tenants who were willing to put up with interim accommodation like private sector flats leased by the council, B&Bs and hostels because they knew they'd eventually be parachuted into social housing. It was only going to get harder to fulfill this legal obligation due to population growth, shrinking stock, Housing Benefit changes.

Also, I think the govt was aware of how weary private landlords were getting at the practice of local council homelessness departments telling private tenants to ignore the notice their landlords served, forcing them to take them to court. They did this as part of a 'gate keeping' practice to try and keep down numbers trying to use their housing services (and in defiance of the Local Councils ombudsman's advice that they shouldn't resist in cases where the S21 was likely to be accepted by the court).

Many landlords also colluded with tenants to serve notice in order to get them catapulted over the heads of others on the social housing waiting lists. The days (in England anyhow) of a private tenant in a priority need group taking an S21 to their local council in the hope of getting guaranteed social housing is over. English councils can offer social housing but now don't have to.

The Shelter website is an excellent source of information for the current homelessness application process with local councils.

sulphate

Agreed with the gist of what the other posters have said.

You have 3 bedrooms and 6 people living there. 2 people in each room - two couples and two children - is not considered overcrowded. I don't quite understand why you have 4 people in one room and the other room empty sometimes but that's up to you of course. Your step daughter is not resident all the time so she doesn't count. The council doesn't view someone who stays in two properties as having a right to their own bedroom in both properties.

They will only be offered council housing if you evict them.

You may not feel that the house is big enough for them all, but it is by the council's standards. Council accommodation is no longer given out freely to those with children.

Can I ask what led to this situation? Did they move in with you because of hard times or did your son just never leave? As you are obviously and understandably keen for them to fly the nest as soon as possible, I'm curious as to why you allowed them to move in in the first place.

mrsiwannabefree

The house belongs to my husband, we moved in with him when we married, the "spare" bedroom is out of bounds for my son & his family as it belongs to his daughter....his house his rules!
We live in Bromley, Kent but it falls just within LB Lewisham
Son's partner was feeling really ill, and then found out she was pregnant (she was already living with us as mum disappeared & left her at the age of 16) then had the shock of expecting twins ~ pregnancy wasn't planned & needless to say husband wasn't/isn't happy about them all living with us
Thank you to all the helpful comments, and can I just say that it really doesn't help someone when you post a sarcastic answer to a genuine post from someone asking for help/suggestions

dodger1

mrsiwannabefree wrote: »

The house belongs to my husband, we moved in with him when we married, the "spare" bedroom is out of bounds for my son & his family as it belongs to his daughter....his house his rules!

Errr no, that's not how a marriage works. Things are discussed and agreement made, no single person in a partnership should make the rules.

densol_2

Aaaw I feel sorry for you - under pressure from both sides. Your husband needs to understand in a marriage there is NO 'his' property as you are legally married ! It's the matrimonial home - so no rules !

BigAunty

sulphate wrote: »

They will only be offered council housing if you evict them.

No, though this has the potential to include an offer of social housing (as generally homeless households with children are considered a priority), the law changed a few years ago.

This means that if the OP serves notice, the council can now discharge their statutory obligations by offering settled accommodation, and this can include the offer of a 1 year tenancy in the private sector in suitable accommodation.

http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/myservices/housing/find/Pages/homeless.aspx

lighting_up_the_chalice

BigAunty wrote: »

No, though this has the potential to include an offer of social housing (as generally homeless households with children are considered a priority), the law changed a few years ago.

This means that if the OP serves notice, the council can now discharge their statutory obligations by offering settled accommodation, and this can include the offer of a 1 year tenancy in the private sector in suitable accommodation.

http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/myservices/housing/find/Pages/homeless.aspx

It's also worth noting that the homeless route will trigger the "one offer" policy. As long as they make a reasonable offer in or near your areas of choice, private or social, if it is refused then the priority will be lost and you will, effectively, go to the back of the queue.

If the extent of your ambition is the crappiest SH property in the crappiest part of town, the homeless route may well work for you.