Suitability, disability discrimination and dogs – temporary accommodation – Nearly Legal

‘AB & Anor, R (On the Application Of) v Westminster City Council (2024) EWHC 266 (Admin). This was a judicial review of both the suitability of accommodation provided to a homeless couple, and also of Westminster’s policy of sourcing temporary accommodation, which was claimed to indirectly discriminate against disabled people.’

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Nearly Legal, 17th March 2024

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

Leasehold Upper Tribunal roundup By Giles Peaker – Nearly Legal

Posted March 11th, 2024 in consultations, housing, landlord & tenant, leases, news, repairs, service charges by tracey

‘Some quick notes on various recent (ish) Upper Tribunal decisions.’

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Nearly Legal, 10th March 2024

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

Making out of borough offers – Local Government Lawyer

Posted March 11th, 2024 in housing, local government, news by tracey

‘Jeremy Ogilvie-Harris and Hannah Taylor look at how conscientious and lawful out of borough offers of accommodation under Part 7 of the Housing Act 1996 can be made.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 8th March 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Implementation – deviation from plans – Local Government Lawyer

Posted March 11th, 2024 in appeals, change of use, housing, judicial review, local government, news, planning by tracey

‘Roderick Morton analyses a recent case which examined, amongst other things, whether a permission can be considered implemented if there is deviation from the approved plans.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 8th March 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Councils warn of impact of proposed Building Safety Levy on s106 contributions – Local Government Lawyer

Posted March 8th, 2024 in building law, housing, local government, news, repairs by sally

‘The Government’s proposed Building Safety Levy could damage the delivery through section 106 agreements of affordable housing and infrastructure, and leave homeowners and councils footing the bill for building defects.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 8th March 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Councils call for “realistic and achievable timetable” and allocation of new burdens funding for implementation of Awaab’s Law – Local Government Lawyer

‘The Local Government Association has called on the Government to work with the social housing sector to set a “realistic and achievable timescale” for implementation of Awaab’s Law.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 6th March 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Affordability and suitability – getting the numbers right – Nearly Legal

Posted March 4th, 2024 in appeals, families, housing, local government, news by tracey

‘Ake v Lewisham Borough Council (2024) K40CL060 (Central London County Court 4 February 2024). This was a statutory appeal pursuant to section 204 of the Housing Act 1996 (‘the 1996 Act’), against a review decision made by Lewisham Borough Council on 27 February 2023. The issue on appeal was whether the review decision took an unlawful and/or unreasonable approach to the assessment of the affordability of accommodation it had secured for Ms Ake in Bow.’

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Nearly Legal, 3rd March 2024

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

Landlords behaving badly corner – racial discrimination and harassment – Nearly Legal

‘Hickmet and Cheerz Express Limited v Dragos (Luton County Court, 19 January 2024). Ms Dragos was the assured shorthold tenant of Cheerz Express, with the tenancy beginning 1 June 2017. A depot of £1,100 was paid. The tenancy became a statutory periodic on 1 June 2018. A further fixed term tenancy began on 1 August 2018, then another statutory periodic on 1 August 2019. A notice seeking possession on grounds 8, 10 and 11 was served in November 2021, and a possession claim was issued in March 2022. Oddly, this was in the name of Mr Hickmet, who was the sole director of Cheerz Express Ltd, with Cheerz being added to the claim at a later stage. Mr Hickmet maintained up to trial that he had a “tenancy by estoppel”. This might be considered an early indicator that things weren’t going to go well for the landlord…’

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Nearly Legal, 3rd March 2024

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

Deadly experiment? UK asylum sites criticised for ‘horrific’ level of despair – The Guardian

Posted February 29th, 2024 in asylum, housing, mental health, news, self-harm, suicide by sally

‘Twice in January, ambulances rushed to the former RAF airbase at Wethersfield in a remote part of Essex, now the Home Office’s biggest mass asylum accommodation site, to attend to suicide attempts. On each occasion, an asylum seeker was admitted to hospital. Both survived.’

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The Guardian, 28th February 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

No-fault evictions: Ministers discuss watering down renter reforms – BBC News

Posted February 28th, 2024 in bills, government departments, housing, landlord & tenant, news, repossession by sally

‘Ministers are consulting backbench Tory MPs on watering down planned protections for renters in England.’

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BBC News, 28 February 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Wrong in principle – Nearly Legal

Posted February 26th, 2024 in disclosure, housing, injunctions, news, notification, pre-action conduct, repossession by tracey

‘Morgan v Business Mortgage Finance 5 Plc (2024) EWHC 309 (KB). This was a High Court hearing of an ex parte application for an “emergency injunction” to stay an eviction (amongst other things).’

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Nearly Legal, 25th February 2024

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

Out of borough accommodation and the homelessness relief duty – raising issues on review – Nearly Legal

Posted February 26th, 2024 in appeals, homelessness, housing, local government, news by tracey

‘Moge v London Borough of Ealing (2023) EWCA Civ 464. A second appeal to the Court of Appeal from a s.204 appeal. Ms Moge was owed the section 189B Housing Act 1996 relief duty as homeless by LB Ealing. Ealing made an offer of a 24 month private tenancy in Hounslow, a neighbouring borough, in discharge of that duty. Ms M did not accept that offer within 7 days. Ealing then decided that she had refused the offer, that its relief duty was ended and, further, it did not owe the full housing duty under section 193.’

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Nearly Legal, 25th February 2024

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

UK housebuilders investigated over possible information-sharing – The Guardian

Posted February 26th, 2024 in competition, housing, local government, news, ombudsmen, planning by tracey

‘The UK competition watchdog has opened an investigation into eight housebuilders after evidence they may be sharing commercially sensitive information.’

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The Guardian, 26th February 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Supreme Court to hear appeal by Welsh council next week in Japanese knotweed case – Local Government Lawyer

Posted February 21st, 2024 in appeals, damages, housing, local government, news, nuisance, Supreme Court, Wales by sally

‘The Supreme Court will next week hear a council’s appeal of a Court of Appeal judgment which overturned lower court rulings that found diminution in value in Japanese knotweed cases was irrecoverable economic loss and ordered the council to pay damages to a property owner.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 20th February 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Remediation Orders: What you need to know – Local Government Lawyer

Posted February 19th, 2024 in building law, housing, landlord & tenant, local government, news, repairs by tracey

‘Joe Walker and Helen Arthur explain what a remediation order is and look at two recent cases to see how the First-Tier Tribunal has interpreted the framework for these.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 16th February 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

ASB and disqualification from the housing register – Nearly Legal

‘Willott, R (On the Application Of) v Eastbourne Borough Council (2024) EWHC 113 (Admin). A judicial review of Eastbourne’s allocation policy and of Eastbourne’s decision to exclude Ms Willott from joining the housing register on grounds of “serious anti social behaviour.”’

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Nearly Legal, 18th February 2024

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

High Court rejects judicial review over adequacy of accommodation, policy on permitting animals – Local Government Lawyer

Posted February 15th, 2024 in animals, homelessness, housing, judicial review, local government, news by sally

‘A vulnerable man and woman who needed to be housed with their dog have lost a case in the High Court, with a deputy judge telling them judicial review had been an inappropriate route for much of the case.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 15th February 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Intentional homelessness from a half way house – Nearly Legal

Posted February 12th, 2024 in appeals, drug abuse, homelessness, housing, local government, news by tracey

‘Kyle v Coventry City Council (2023) EWCA Civ 1360. Mr K was homeless and addicted to class A drugs. During the relevant period for this second appeal, he was on a methadone treatment prescription. He had applied to Coventry as homeless. He had been given s.188 Housing Act 1996 accommodation in hostel supported accommodation (a “halfway house”).’

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Nearly Legal, 11th February 2024

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

A lack of candour over a lack of discretion – Nearly Legal

Posted February 12th, 2024 in homelessness, housing, judicial review, local government, news, pre-action conduct by tracey

‘Montano, R (On the Application Of) v London Borough of Lambeth (2024) EWHC 249 (Admin). A short note on this judicial review. Ms M had requested that Lambeth exercise a discretion to back date her entry on the housing register (for greater priority) to the date of her homeless application. Lambeth denied that it had any discretion to do so under its allocation policy.’

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Nearly Legal, 11th February 2024

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

Redaction of names of junior civil servants in judicial review proceedings – Local Government Lawyer

‘In a unanimous judgment, the Court of Appeal has dismissed the government’s appeal of a High Court judgment which proscribed the government’s practice of routinely redacting the names of junior civil servants when supplying disclosure in judicial review proceedings. Christian Grierson and Jonathan Blunden analyse the judgment.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 9th February 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk