Modern slavery: Are British victims being failed in the UK? – BBC News
‘Michael was homeless when he was approached by a couple to sell drugs.’
BBC News, 2nd September 2019
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Category: homelessness
Shelter crowd funds legal action over alleged failure by council to offer homeless people temporary accommodation – Local Government Lawyer
‘Housing charity Shelter Scotland is seeking to crowdfund legal action over what it says is Glasgow City Council’s unlawful failure to offer homeless people temporary accommodation.’
Local Government Lawyer, 21st August 2019
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Discrimination claims and s204 appeal – Local Government Lawyer
‘The Court of Appeal has ruled that there is no home for discrimination claims in section 204 appeals, write Dean Underwood and Riccardo Calzavara.’
Local Government Lawyer, 13th August 2019
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Equality and Homeless Appeals – Nearly Legal
‘Adesotu v Lewisham London Borough Council (2019) EWCA Civ 1405. We first saw this case as a county court appeal where the central issue was whether Equality Act 2010 issues could be raised and decided within a section 204 Housing Act 1996 homelessness appeal. HHJ Luba QC held that they could not, and the matter went to the Court of Appeal.’
Nearly Legal, 11th August 2019
Source: nearlylegal.co.uk
Court of Appeal rules on Equality Act breaches and homelessness appeals – Local Government Lawyer
‘The Court of Appeal has held that a homeless person cannot raise alleged breaches of the Equality Act 2010 in a homelessness appeal before a county court judge.’
Local Government Lawyer, 8th August 2019
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Justice secretary urges evidence-led approach to cut crime – Ministry of Justice
‘Justice Secretary David Gauke today called for an “evidence-led” approach to tackling reoffending in order to crack down on crime and reduce the number of victims.’
Ministry of Justice, 18th July 2019
Source: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice
County council admits flawed practice of turning homeless children away, settles judicial review challenge – Local Government Lawyers
‘Essex County Council has settled a judicial review challenge brought on behalf of a 16-year-old homeless child, admitting that it had operated an unlawful practice of turning homeless children away from care in breach of section 20 of the Children Act 1989.’
Local Government Lawyer, 4th July 2019
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
JusticeWatch: Growing ‘justice gap’ in discrimination cases – Legal Voice
‘Victims of discrimination were being denied access to justice and offenders going unchallenged as a result of a ‘failing’ legal aid system, as reported in the Justice Gap.’
Legal Voice, 21st June 2019
Source: legalvoice.org.uk
Supreme Court quashes decision to declare mother ‘intentionally homeless’ – UK Human Rights Blog
‘Samuels v Birmingham City Council [2019] UKSC 28. In unanimously allowing an appeal against a decision to declare the appellant intentionally homeless due to her inability to pay her rent, the Supreme Court affirmed that non-housing benefits are not designed to create a surplus that can be used to account for insufficient housing benefits.’
UK Human Rights Blog, 18th June 2019
Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com
Judge rejects application by Official Solicitor for council to pay costs in s.21A proceedings – Local Government Lawyer
‘A Court of Protection judge has rejected an application by the Official Solicitor (OS), acting as litigation friend, for the London Borough of Harrow to pay its costs in proceedings under Section 21A of the Mental Capacity Act 2005.’
Local Government Lawyer, 18th June 2019
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
High Court rejects challenge over refusal of legal aid for bid to quash PSPO prohibitions – Local Government Lawyer
‘ A High Court judge has rejected a judicial review challenge brought by human rights group Liberty over the refusal to grant civil legal aid for the pursuit of an application to quash prohibitions contained in a public spaces protection order (PSPO).’
Local Government Lawyer, 18th June 2019
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Reasonable Expenses and intentional homelessness – Nearly Legal
‘Samuels v Birmingham City Council (2019) UKSC 28. The Supreme Court, finally, has delivered its judgment on the issue of the assessment of “reasonable expenses” when considering the affordability of rent in homelessness decisions.’
Nearly Legal, 16th June 2019
Source: nearlylegal.co.uk
Supreme court rules in favour of single mother declared ‘intentionally homeless’ – The Guardian
‘The supreme court has ordered a council to reconsider its decision to declare a single mother of four to be “intentionally homeless” because she was unable to afford the rent.’
The Guardian, 12th June 2019
Source: www.theguardian.com
London borough defeats appeal over licence and secure tenancy – Local Government Lawyer
‘The London Borough of Barnet has defeated an appeal over whether a woman found to be intentionally homeless but who continued to be housed under the Children Act 1989 had security of tenure.’
Local Government Lawyer, 26th April 2019
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
I’m still at a loss’: Windrush victims who were forced into homelessness and debt due to scandal still living in anguish and destitution a year on – The Independent
‘On 16 April 2018, Amber Rudd – then home secretary – stood up in the House of Commons to formally acknowledge the Windrush scandal for the first time. The treatment of immigrants by her department’s “hostile environment” was appalling, she said, vowing to deal with cases within two weeks and put things right. But exactly one year later, the suffering goes on. Many are yet to receive a response to their application to the taskforce, leaving them in a “state of limbo” with little or no information about how their case is progressing.’
The Independent, 16th April 2019
Source: www.independent.co.uk
Two-thirds of councils say they can’t afford to comply with homelessness law – The Guardian
‘The Homelessness Reduction Act, in operation for the past 12 months, is potentially the greatest piece of homelessness legislation for 40 years in England, according to Southwark council in south London. The Labour-run council pioneered the government’s new flagship act, and is upbeat about it. While homelessness went up in the borough last year, as it did across London, the rise was less steep than expected: 8.6% for families placed in temporary accommodation and a similarly small increase for rough sleepers. At the same time, there was also a 50% increase in the number of people the council helped to stay in their home. “It shows the act works,” says the council’s cabinet member for housing, Stephanie Cryan.’
The Guardian, 10th April 2019
Source: www.theguardian.com
Council wins Court of Appeal battle over moving homeless applicant – Local Government Lawyer
‘Someone who does not appeal against a local authority review decision that it has discharged its duty towards them as being homeless cannot later challenge that decision in a subsequent application, the Court of Appeal has ruled.’
Local Government Lawyer, 27th March 2019
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
DWP defeats public sector equality duty challenge over method of communication with homeless man – Local Government Lawyer
‘The Department for Work & Pensions has successfully defended a High Court challenge brought by a homeless man who claimed that its approach to communication was in breach of its duties under the public sector equality duty.’
Local Government Lawyer, 11th March 2019
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
How many reviews? – Nearly Legal
‘In R(B) v Redbridge LBC [2019] EWHC 250 (Admin), Jeremy Johnson QC, sitting as a Deputy Judge, was required to adjudicate on what is, as far as I am concerned, a really important point of practice, given the nature and continuing obligations of suitability of accommodation in homelessness cases, and the increasing number of suitability reviews (especially following the 2017 Act). He also came to the wrong result imho – I wonder if there is an appeal, even if it becomes academic (which it might). Ms B was offered accommodation and sought a review. It was one of those ones where affordability is raised, but, given that one doesn’t know what the bills are going to be for the property at the outset, the reviewer and applicant make approximations. The review went against her, albeit on marginal grounds (and there are various consequential proceedings from that first review and appeal). For the purposes of this application for JR, however, what happened was that Ms B’s actual electricity bill arrived and it was more per week than had originally been estimated. She sought a further review, to which Redbridge did not respond, and which, ultimately, led to these proceedings as Redbridge did not conduct that further review.’
Nearly Legal, 15th February 2019
Source: nearlylegal.co.uk
