Housing

Housing Services

Homelessness

Who should I contact if I am homeless?
What kind of help can I expect?
What enquiries will be made?
The decision
What help will I be entitled to?
What kind of help will this be?
Your right to a review
Useful names and addresses
Homelessness Strategy

Who should I contact if I am homeless?

If you are homeless, or might become homeless then this booklet will explain what you should do.

By law, the Council has a duty to provide people who are homeless or threatened with homelessness with advice and appropriate assistance.

If you are homeless or threatened with homelessness you should contact Dover District Council straight away. There are free phones at the area offices to contact the Duty Housing Officer who is based at the Castle Street Office Mon-Fri 9-4pm (Wed pm at the Whitfield Office), where you can talk to a trained Housing Officer about your situation and what can be done to help you. The Housing Officer may be able to prevent you from losing your home (if you have one). If you need help outside of office hours please telephone 01304 821199.

When you are interviewed you will be asked how you became homeless or why you are likely to lose your home. You should take with you any documents that you have which would be useful to help to explain what has happened such as a notice to quit or mortgage account.

What kind of help can I expect?

The kind of assistance you are entitled to depends on your circumstances and how you became homeless. The Housing Act 1996 as amended by the Homelessness Act 2002 states that enquiries must be made about all homeless applications to find out whether the Council has a duty to help you, and if so, what kind of help you should be given.

Every council in the country must, by law, ensure that certain enquiries are made into all homeless applications.

What enquiries will be made?

There are five enquiries which need to be made to find out what kind of help the Council has a duty to provide you with. It is important that you provide full and truthful information when requested.

1. ARE YOU HOMELESS?

The Housing Act 1996 as amended by the Homelessness Act 2002 states that you are homeless if you have no accommodation available in the United Kingdom or elsewhere. This means that if you have suitable accommodation anywhere in the world which is available to you then you are NOT homeless. The Housing Act also says that you are threatened with homelessness if you are likely to become homeless within 28 days. You are also considered to be homeless if you have accommodation available to you but:

It is not reasonable for you to live there with the people who would normally live with you as members of your family. This includes partners, children and carers.
You are not legally entitled to occupy it because you have had a court order requiring you to leave, or you are a tenant with no right to remain where you are.
Your accommodation is not reasonable for you to occupy. For example, it is in poor physical condition and is beyond reasonable repair, or you cannot get it repaired for a good reason.
You are at risk from violence in the property.

If you are worried about becoming homeless you should get advice as soon as possible. There is no need to wait until you are actually homeless or “threatened with homelessness within 28 days”. In fact, it may be possible for you to get advice which could prevent you from losing your home. If you need to find other accommodation you can get advice about this too.

2. ARE YOU ELIGIBLE FOR ASSISTANCE?

Everyone is entitled to housing advice from their Local Council. If you need further assistance then the Council must find out whether you are eligible to receive further assistance.

You will not be eligible for assistance if you are subject to immigration control, although there are exceptions. You will be subject to immigration control if you are not in one of these groups.

A British Citizen or a Commonwealth Citizen (this will be shown on your passport) who has the right to live here.
A Citizen of one of the following countries: Austria; Belgium; Denmark; Finland; France; Germany; Greece; Ireland; Italy; Luxembourg; the Netherlands; Portugal; Spain; Sweden; and the United Kingdom.

The exceptions to this rule, which mean you MAY be eligible for assistance although you are subject to immigration control are listed below.

You have been granted refugee status in the United Kingdom.
You have been given permission to enter or stay in this country (providing you have not been told you cannot use public funds).
You have permission to enter or stay in this country with no time limit.
You are a citizen of Turkey, Malta, Iceland, Norway or Cyprus.
You receive an income-based job seekers allowance or are in receipt of income support.

In addition, you must be “habitually resident”, in other words you must live in this country. This means that even if you are a British Citizen, if you have lived away from the country for a length of time you may not be eligible for assistance.

The “habitually resident” rule does not apply to you if:

You have refugee status.
You have exceptional permission to enter or stay in the country.
You are an asylum seeker who is eligible for assistance.
You are a “worker” for the purposes of EEC regulations.
You have the right to live outside the UK under an EEC council directive.

If you are NOT “eligible for assistance” then you will be given advice about how you can find accommodation, and it may be possible to put you in contact with other organisations who might be able to help you.

If you ARE “eligible for assistance” then further enquiries will be made as explained below.

3. ARE YOU “IN PRIORITY NEED”?

If you are homeless and eligible for assistance, then the Council needs to determine whether you are also in priority need. This is because the Council has a duty to provide immediate temporary accommodation, if needed, for people who are homeless eligible for assistance and who may be in a priority need.

You are considered to be in priority need if:

You, someone you live with or someone who might reasonably be expected to live with you, is pregnant.
You have dependant children living with you or who might be expected to live with you.
You are vulnerable as a result of old age, mental illness or handicap or physical disability or other special reason, or someone who lives with you or might be expected to live with you is vulnerable for these reasons.
You are vulnerable in certain circumstances as a result of having been a member of Her Majesty’s regular naval, military or air forces.
You are vulnerable in certain circumstances as a result of having served a custodial sentence, having been committed for contempt of court or any other similar/relative offence, or having been remanded in custody.
You have ceased to occupy accommodation because of violence from another person or threats of violence from another person, which is likely to be carried out.
You are aged 21 or over, and are vulnerable as a result of having been looked after, accommodated or fostered (as defined by s.24(2) of the Children Act 1989).
You are under 21, and were (but no longer) looked after, accommodated or fostered between the ages of 16 and 18 (except for a person who is a “relevant student” as defined by s.24(B) of the Children Act 1989).
You are aged 16 or 17, and are not:
- A relevant child (a child aged 16 or 17 who has been looked after by a local authority for at least 13 weeks since the age of 14 and has been looked after at some time while 16 or 17 and who is not currently being looked after) or,
- A child in need who is owed a duty under s.20 of the Children Act 1989 (The Children Act 1989 (s.20(3)) places a duty on social services authorities to provide accommodation for a child in need aged 16 or over whose welfare is otherwise likely to be seriously prejudiced if they do not provide accommodation).
You are homeless as a result of flood or other disaster.

If you are not “in priority need” you are entitled to advice and assistance to help you to find your own accommodation, or to prevent you from losing any accommodation you may have at the moment.

If you are homeless or threatened with homelessness and in priority need then further enquiries need to be made.

4. ARE YOU INTENTIONALLY HOMELESS?

By law, it is necessary to find out whether you are homeless through no fault of your own. If you lost your accommodation through a deliberate act which you knew would make you homeless then you can be found to be “intentionally homeless”.

For example, you are “intentionally homeless” if:

You sell or give up your home when there is no need to and you do not find other suitable accommodation before you sell or give up your home.
You do not pay your rent or mortgage repayments when you can afford to.
You ignore housing advice which would have prevented the loss of your home.
You are evicted because of anti-social behaviour.
If you are intentionally homeless then you will be entitled to advice and assistance to help to prevent you from losing your home (if you have one).

If you are already homeless then you may be entitled to accommodation for a reasonable period of time, usually 28 days, while you find accommodation of your own.

If you are not intentionally homeless then you may be entitled to further assistance.

5. DO YOU HAVE A “LOCAL CONNECTION”?

You have a “Local Connection” with Dover District Council if:

You normally live here, or lived here in the past, of your own choice.
You are employed here (other than in the Armed Forces).
You have close family living here.
There are other special circumstances which connect you to this area.

If you have a Local Connection with Dover District Council then any assistance you are entitled to will be provided.

If you do not have a Local Connection with Dover District Council, but you have a connection with another area then this Council will refer you to a Council where you have the Local Connection. If there is more than one Council where you have a Local Connection then you can choose which one you would like to go to.

You will not be referred to another Council if you are at risk from domestic violence there.

You do not have to go to the Council where you have the strongest Local Connection. Providing you have a Local Connection with the Council where you apply as homeless you will not be referred elsewhere.

If your case has been referred to another Council then you may be entitled to accommodation until the other Council agree to accept your case.

If you do not have a Local Connection in any area, then the first Council you applied to as homeless has the duty to provide you with advice and assistance.

You cannot be referred to another Council if you are homeless or threatened with homelessness intentionally.

The Decision

When you make a homeless application you will be asked to fill in a homeless application form. Dover District Council will then make enquiries using the criteria in this leaflet, and the Council will examine all of the evidence about your situation and make their decision based on the information obtained in relation to the five enquiries outlined in this leaflet.

All applicants will be notified of this decision in writing within three working days of the decision being made.

If you disagree with the decision then you can ask for a review to take place. You must do this within 21 days of the date you received the decision letter. More information about the review procedure is given further down this page.

What Help will I be Entitled to?

If you are:

not homeless or threatened with homelessness; or
not eligible for assistance; or
not in priority need;

then the Council has a duty to provide you with appropriate housing advice and assistance, which everyone is entitled to.

If you are:

homeless or threatened with homelessness; and
eligible for assistance; and
in priority need; and
you did not make yourself homeless intentionally;

then the Council has a duty to provide you with advice and assistance to help you to find other accommodation. If there is no other suitable accommodation available for you, the Council has a duty to ensure that suitable accommodation is available.

The Council may discharge their housing functions under Part VII of the Housing Act 1996 (s.206(1)) only by:

Securing that suitable accommodation provided for the applicant by the Council is available.
Securing that suitable accommodation can be obtained for the applicant from some other person (e.g. an offer of permanent accommodation from a Registered Social Landlord as a result of a nomination from the Housing Register).
Securing a flat in a Hostel in the District.
Nominating to a private sector leased property managed by a Housing Association.

The Council will no longer be subject to the duty under Part VII of the Housing Act 1996 (s.193(5)) if the applicant:

Refuses an offer of accommodation, having been informed of the possible consequences and
The Council are satisfied that this is a suitable offer and have notified the applicant that the duty has been discharged.

The Council will no longer be subject to the duty under Part VII of the Housing Act 1996 (s.193(6)) if the applicant:

Ceases to be eligible for assistance
Becomes homeless intentionally from accommodation that was made available by the Council for the applicant’s occupation
Accepts an offer of accommodation under Part VI (allocation of housing) or,
Voluntarily ceases occupation of the accommodation that was made available for the applicants occupation as their only/principal home.

The Council will no longer be subject to the duty under Part VII of the Housing Act 1996 (s.193)(7)) if:

The applicant has been informed of the possible consequences of refusing an offer of accommodation under Part VI and refuses an offer.
The Council are satisfied that the accommodation was suitable for the applicant and that it would be reasonable for the applicant to accept the offer.
The Council notify the applicant of their decision within 21 days of the date of the applicants refusal.

If this applies to you but you have not lost your home yet (in other words you are threatened with homelessness) then the Council will give you all the advice and assistance you need to find other accommodation.

If you are:

homeless or threatened with homelessness; and
eligible for assistance; and
in priority need;
but you made yourself homeless intentionally ;

If you have not yet lost your home (in other words you are threatened with homelessness) then the Council will give you advice and assistance to prevent you from losing your home.

If you have already lost your home and there is nowhere else you can stay, then the Council may provide you with up to 28 days emergency accommodation, to enable you to find somewhere to live. This is likely to be in a Bed and Breakfast establishment which may be located outside the District.

If the Council has reason to believe that you may be intentionally homeless or not eligible for assistance and your household includes a dependant child, the Council can, where consent is given, contact the social services authority on behalf of your family to seek assistance under Part 3 of the Children Act 1989 for a child in need.

What kind of help will this be?

Everyone is eligible for advice and assistance.

You can get advice and assistance relating to any aspect of housing. For example:

How to prevent you from losing your accommodation.
Your rights as a tenant or owner occupier.
How to find your own accommodation.
Other organisations who may be able to help you.
Where to get advice about money or legal matters.
Please ask if you need assistance to complete housing forms.

Contact Dover District Council for further details.

You should be aware that you will not be allocated social housing as a direct result of your homelessness. Council and Housing Association accommodation in this District is allocated to households on Dover District Council’s Housing Register. You can get an application form for the Register from any of the Dover District Council's Area Offices.

Your right to a review

If you disagree with a decision which has been made about your homeless application then you have the right to ask for a review. You must do this within 21 days of receiving the decision and it should be in writing. The purpose of the review is to enable you to state your grounds for requesting a review and to enable the Council to obtain any new information you may have in relation to the review.

The review will be dealt with by a senior officer at the Council, who was not involved in the original decision, and you will be told the result of the review within a maximum of 56 days from the date you requested the review.

If you disagree with the review decision, or are not notified of the decision within the time limits above, then you can go to the County Court to appeal. You must do this within 21 days of the date of the review decision (or the date when you should have been notified).

You can also go to the Local Government Ombudsman if you think you have been treated unfairly.

Useful Contact Details

Citizens Advice Bureaux
The Cedars, 26 Victoria Road, Deal, Kent
Maison Dieu Gardens, Maison Dieu Road, Dover, Kent.
Shelter Kent Housing Aid Centre
Bull Yard, High Street, Ashford Kent, TN24 8SN Telephone 01233 610669
Local Government Ombudsmen
Local Government Ombudsman, 10th floor, Millbank Tower, Millbank, London SW1P 4QP
Homeless UK website - holds information on services that can help homeless people and those at risk of homelessness. Includes details of hostels and day centres.

Homelessness Strategy

Homelessness Strategy

Directory of Housing Needs Services (PDF file)

Produced in partnership with Canterbury City Council and Thanet District Council, the Directory of Housing Needs Services lists housing-related services that are available in East Kent. It also includes a range of support services which may be of use to people requiring support with the wider issues associated with homelessness and housing need.
Directory of Housing Needs Services (PDF file)

E-mail: housing@dover.gov.uk