Homelessness
This information explains the duties of this Council if you are homeless or likely to be homeless soon. It only gives a guide to the law. If any further information is required about homeless procedures please speak to a Homelessness Officer at Three Rivers House who will be happy to advise you further. Alternatively, the Citizens' Advice Bureau will offer advice to persons threatened with homelessness.
What are my rights if I am homeless?
If you are homeless or threatened with homelessness within four weeks we have a duty to help you in some way. For some homeless people we will have to find a permanent home but for others we may only have to provide temporary accommodation or advice.
Homelessness does not just mean being on the streets. For example, you can apply as homeless if you have a home but cannot stay there because there is no supply of services like water and electricity.
If you are actually homeless and in a priority need group the Council will:
Who is homeless?
The law says you are homeless if:
- you have nowhere to live
- you have been taken to Court by your landlord or mortgage lender and the Court has said you must leave
- you have been living with friends or relatives who have told you to leave
- you are afraid to go home because someone living there has been or may be violent to you or your family
- you have been separated from your family and cannot live together
- you do not have the owner's permission to stay, for example you are a squatter
- you have been locked out of your home and told not to come back
- you have somewhere to stay but it is not reasonable for you to remain there. This may be because of violence, statutory overcrowding or the condition of your home. To decide if it is reasonable to remain we may compare your housing situation with that of other local people.
If you have to leave where you are living in more than four weeks' time you may still contact us and get advice. If you are leaving hospital or prison, you should ask the hospital social worker or probation officer to help you apply.
What must the council do?
Three Rivers must help applicants who apply to us as homeless. How much help we have to give you depends on your situation. First we will check two things:-
- that you are or soon will be homeless; and
- that you are in one of the priority need groups.
We will ask for information, so bring any important papers with you, such as a Court Eviction Order or Notice to Quit, your rent book, etc.
Usually we can complete our check on these two things very quickly but if we need more time and there is any reason to think that you might be homeless and in one of the priority need groups, we may provide you with Temporary Accommodation.
You should try to answer our questions fully and not give wrong information. It is illegal to give false information and could result in prosecution.
What is priority need?
You are in priority need if:
- you are leaving an institution (HM Forces);
- you are responsible for dependent children (usually those under 16 or under 19 if they are in full time education);
- you, or someone you live with, is pregnant;
- you are homeless as a result of flood, fire or other disaster;
- you, or someone you live with, is old, disabled (either physically or mentally), suffering from a mental illness, or vulnerable for some other special reason;
- if you are 16 or 17 years of age;
- if your children are unable to live with you because of your housing problem you are in priority need. You may still be in priority need if your children are in care because of your housing problems;
- people over 60 years of age are in priority need.
You say I'm homeless and in priority need. What happens next?
We will want to check two other things:-
- that you are not intentionally homeless;
- whether you have a local connection anywhere.
While we make enquiries we will ensure that you have somewhere to live. This may mean providing temporary accommodation such as a bed and breakfast hotel or a hostel.
When we finish our enquiries we will write to tell you what our decision is and give reasons if we decide not to house you.
Do I have to pay for my temporary accommodation?
You will have to pay something towards the cost of temporary accommodation. This will be between approximately £90 per week but you may be eligible to receive help towards the costs through Housing Benefit.
What happens to my furniture?
If you are homeless and in priority need we help you look after your belongings if it might get damaged or lost. This is likely to be the provision of a garage for which you will have to pay rent of approximately £8.00 per week, excluding VAT.
What if you say I'm not in priority need?
Even if we decide you are not in priority need, we will offer you advice and assistance to help you find somewhere else to live or to help you keep your home. We will offer you advice about paying for housing and tell you about finding other accommodation, such as with Housing Associations or private landlords. You may be allowed to join the Housing Register which is a list of households seeking a Council or Housing Association property.
What if I am told I'm intentionally homeless?
This means that the Council thinks that you chose to leave a home which you could have stayed in or you could have avoided losing your home.
If you are intentionally homeless we must still find you somewhere to stay, but this will only be for a limited period to give you the opportunity to find somewhere else to live.
What if the council says another council must help me?
If you apply to Three Rivers District Council as homeless, we must deal with your application and give you a decision in writing.
If Three Rivers District Council decides that you are homeless, in priority need and are not intentionally homeless, but do not have a local connection with this area, we can ask another Council to help you.
If we say that you have a connection elsewhere and you do not want to move to that area or you don't agree with this decision, get advice. You can't be sent to the other Council until the proper steps have been followed and the other Council has agreed to help you.
What is a local connection?
You have a local connection if you:
- live, or have lived, in the area for some time - usually at least six months in the last year or three of the last five years
- have a permanent job in the area
- have a close relative (eg parent, child) you wish to live near who has lived in the area for some time - usually five years.
Make sure that the Council knows of any special reason why you need to live in their area. Time spent in the armed forces, college, prison, hospital or special accommodation such as mother and baby homes or refuges will not usually count as a local connection. If you have been living in one of these places get advice.
What if I have a local connection with more than one council?
If you have a local connection with the Council you applied to they cannot usually ask another Council to rehouse you. If you have no local connection with the Council you first went to but have ties with more than one other Council they should ask you which of the areas you would prefer to live in before they ask one of these Councils to rehouse you.
What if I have no local connection with any area?
If you have no local connection anywhere (maybe you've been in prison or hospital for some time), the Council you first go to must help you.
A reasonable offer is generally as follows:
|
Category
|
Property
|
| 1 Child Family (Child under 4) |
1-bedroomed property
|
| 1 Child Family (Child over 4) |
2-bedroomed property
|
| 2 Child Family |
2/3-bedroomed property
|
| 3 Child Family |
2/3-bedroomed property
|
| 4 or more Children |
3/4-bedroomed property
|
| Single Person |
Bedsit/bungalow/studio flat
|
| Couple |
1-bedroomed property
|
| Elderly Person |
Bedsit/1-bedroomed flat,
|
| Elderly Couple |
1-bedroom property,
|
What if I don't like the property that the council offers me?
Homeless families receive two reasonable offers of permanent accommodation in the Three Rivers District. This may not be Council accommodation. It could be a place supplied by a Housing Association.
You may have a good reason for thinking the offer is not suitable. For example, an offer may not be suitable because of your health or a risk of violence from a former partner.
If you do not accept your second offer, you will be asked to put the reasons for your refusal in writing. This will be considered by the Housing Review Panel, who will decide if the offer made is reasonable for your needs. If it is considered to be reasonable, the Council may refuse to help you any more and any temporary accommodation may be withdrawn.
If you are unhappy with the offer the Council has made, get advice before you refuse it.
Can I appeal against the council's decision?
If you are told that we do not have an obligation to secure you accommodation, you will receive written notification of our decision. This notification will advise you of your right to appeal against the decision and how to go about making an appeal.
What is the appeals procedure?
Appeals are made by writing to the Director of Housing within 21 days of the date of the decision letter.
Your case will be considered by the Housing Review Panel, who will look at the information on your file, along with your written submission and any further evidence in support of your appeal.
You will be notified of the outcome in writing, as soon as possible following the meeting of the Panel.
What is the Housing Review Panel?
The Housing Review Panel comprises Senior Managers who are independent of the original decision.
Do you have an equal opportunities policy?
It is the Council policy that all housing applicants should be treated equally, regardless of their race, colour or ethnic origin. To ensure that this policy is carried out, all applicants will be asked to state their ethnic background. The information will be treated as strictly confidential. It will not be taken into account by officers selecting applicants for offers of accommodation. A translation of the transfer form is available from Housing Services at the Rickmansworth Office.
Where else could I go for help?
A list of helpful contacts follows. Advice may help you keep your home if you are behind with your rent or mortgage, or if you have been told to leave. If you are in danger of being made homeless always get advice before leaving your home if at all possible.
After seeking advice you have the choice of going to any Council's Homeless Persons Section which is often in the Housing Department. Ask for the person dealing with homelessness.
It is important to make it clear that you are now homeless or soon will be. Applying as homeless is not the same as signing on the Housing Register but you should ask if you are eligible to join.
Where to go for advice if you need to leave a violent partner
Women's Aid refuges provide temporary accommodation and advise women with or without children who have to leave home because of domestic violence. Look in the phone book or contact the national office for your nearest refuge.
Useful addresses
Housing Needs Officers, Three Rivers District Council, Three Rivers House, Northway, Rickmansworth, Herts WD3 1RL.
Tel: 01923 776611
Citizens Advice Bureau:
Abbots Langley Office, The Old Stables, St Lawrence's Vicarage, Abbots Langley, Herts Tel: 01923 267949
Rickmansworth Office, Northway, Rickmansworth, Herts
Tel: 01923 720424
South Oxhey Office, Bridlington Road, South Oxhey, Herts
Tel: 020 8421 0911