Advisers' briefing guide final 26th April 06.pdf - Newcastle City Council

What is ineligibility and what does the law and guidance sayYour Homes Newcastle administers the Choice Based Lettings scheme (YCH) on behalf ofthe Council and partner Housing Associations in Newcastle. Currently anyone aged 18 orover (regardless of their current housing situation) can apply to join YCH; however, the lawsays that two groups are not eligible to join the scheme:o People from abroad without access to public fundso Individuals considered to be unsuitable as tenants because of their unacceptablebehaviourThe Homelessness Act 2002 says that Housing Authorities and Housing Associations may nolonger decide that groups of applicants can be excluded from their lists. Instead, they can saythat individual applicants are considered to be unsuitable as tenants because of“unacceptable behaviour”. This can be because of:• Rent arrears – only significant rent arrears should be taken into account in deciding thatthe applicant is not suitable to be a tenant –• Past poor behaviour – only evidence of recent anti-social behaviour should be taken intoaccount, or previous poor behaviour which is still current and relevant to the tenancy.In either case, the housing organisation must be certain that they could have got anabsolute possession order (one that is not suspended), had the applicant already beena tenant.Definition of unacceptable behaviourThe types of behaviour which can lead to an absolute possession order include:• That the rent had repeatedly not been paid for some time or a substantial level of arrearshas built up, or• That another important condition of the tenancy has been broken e.g. that the tenant or amember of the tenant’s household had been guilty of nuisance or annoyance toneighbours, or convicted of using the home for illegal or immoral purposes or of anarrestable offence in the home.It is important to remember that the applicant does not need to have been a tenant of YCH orthe council at the time of the behaviour concerned/alleged. It is only necessary to show thatthe behaviour would have been serious enough to get an absolute possession order had theybeen a tenant.Ineligibility guide FINAL 26 th April 05 2

How might an applicant be found ineligible?In order for someone to be made ineligible on the Your Choice system as a result of the“unacceptable behaviour”, the housing manager needs to establish that:o The applicant (or a member of his household) has been guilty of unacceptablebehaviour which, if the applicant was a secure tenant of the authority, would entitle theauthority to a possession order, ando That the unacceptable behaviour is serious enough to make the applicant unsuitable tobe a tenant of the authority. (e.g. if considered in court would not simply result in asuspended possession order); ando That the applicant is unsuitable to be a tenant in the circumstances at the time theapplication is considered. (Previous unacceptable behaviour may not justify a decisionto consider the applicant as unsuitable where that behaviour can be shown to haveimproved.)The unacceptable behaviour being taken into account needs to be relatively recent; there isno clear rule but, for example, the Housing Corporation guidance for Housing Associationssuggests that it should have been dealt with through enforcement action within the last 2years. However the onus is placed on the applicant to prove that her/his past unacceptablebehaviour should no longer be held against her/him.What can be considered to be unacceptable behaviour?Nuisance or anti-social or criminal behaviour: cases involving noise problems, domesticviolence, racial harassment, intimidation and drug dealing would be likely (although notalways) to result in the granting of an absolute possession order.If you can show that the person has changed, because of appropriate use of enforcementmeasures such as an injunction or Anti-Social Behaviour Order, through medical or socialservices help or intervention, or through the person’s engagement in a drug treatmentprogramme or Probation or DIP programme, the person should not be deemed ineligible; it isunlikely that a court would have granted an absolute possession order in these circumstancesif the applicant had already been a tenant.Rent arrears: this is the most common cause of ineligibility decisions.Rent arrears can lead to an absolute possession order, but only if they resulted from theapplicant’s deliberate act or omission, and not if they resulted from actions outside theapplicant’s control. For example, the following would not be likely to lead to an absolutepossession ordero A failure by the local authority to pay Housing Benefit. If past rent arrears have arisenas a result of unpaid Housing Benefit, this should not disqualify the applicant fromeligibility for social housing. Where the housing authority decides that an absoluteIneligibility guide FINAL 26 th April 05 3

Step 2 Where the applicant wants to ask for a review of the decision to treat themas ineligible:See attached letters for suggestions as to what information the review support letters shouldcontain. The aim of the support letter is to provide the housing officer making the decisionabout eligibility with information that they might not previously not been aware of about whythe applicant considers that they are suitable to become a tenant of YHN. This could be, forexample, a clearer picture of the work the client has done since then in order to change andtry and turn their life around, or information about the support that is or would be availablefrom other agencies if the person is made eligible and rehoused.This pack contains two standard letters:o Appendix 1 - letter to ask for a review of the decision when it is on the grounds ofcriminal activity or other unacceptable behaviouro Appendix 2 - letter to send when they have been made ineligible for rent arrearsYou need to show in your request for a review that the client is addressing theconcerns that led to ineligibility. This could include:Unacceptable behaviourWe want to develop a culture of providing support to help people to address their problems.Applicants need to show that they are actively seeking help to change their behaviour andthat this is working. It is important that you show for example that:• If they have served a custodial sentence, what education/training did they take part in?Are they currently involved with any training/education/work?• Progress made since last offence/release from prison.• If there were drug/alcohol problems which contributed to offending, are they engaging withtreatment? With whom? How often? What changes have there been in their behavioursince they started the treatment?• Any involvement with Probation or the Drug Interventions Programme? What support sioffered to the client? How often do they have contact? What support could Probation orPolice (if the client is working with Prolific and Priority Offender Team) offer the housingoffice if things begin to go wrong?The more factual information you provide that supports/evidences how the client haschanged, the easier it will be for the housing manager to review the case in light of all theappropriate information. This will hopefully result in them making the person eligible.If there are no plans to put a support package in place it may be useful to explain why thisdecision has been reached. For example:• The person has proved that they could manage their own tenancy OR• If your organisation is not going to offer support but you are aware of another organisationwhich is, state this and ask the other organisation to provide a supporting letter showinghow their support will overcome the problems identifiedIneligibility guide FINAL 26 th April 05 5

Rent ArrearsYou need to help your client understand that as a tenant, they are responsible for ensuringthat the rent is paid.You should establish whether the client had any control over the accumulation of rent arrears.For example you need to consider:• Are the arrears based one or more missed Housing Benefit payments which was not dueto an omission by the client?• Are arrears from a joint tenancy where the client had no knowledge of the arrears?• Did they accumulate after the client left the tenancy and handed the keys back to thehousing office?• Is the rent debt due to an overpayment of Housing Benefit• If the rent arrears were in the control of the client, have they demonstrated a willingness tostart to pay these off?Starting to pay the rent arrears off regularly needs to be considered from the earliestpossible date. If this has been started, you should explain to the housing officer what thepayment plan is, and how long and how regularly the client has been sticking to this plan.If the rent arrears are very old, there is an argument that they alone should not be a reason tomake someone ineligible. For example, if someone has rent arrears from a tenancy they hadwhen they were 16 and they are now in their thirties and have no recent rent arrears, youcould argue that this does not demonstrate that they would be an unsuitable tenant. Howeveryou may need to show why have they not made any attempt to pay them off in 15 years. Ifthey have been paying them back a little each week, then you could use this in support oftheir review.It may be worthwhile providing information about why the rent arrears accumulated and whythis is not likely to happen again. For example if they were accrued during a period ofinstability and this has now been resolved, this may help to show that the applicant is nowless likely to be unsuitable as a tenant.Any information you can provide about how your client has changed and moved onfrom their past will help the housing manager make their decision about whether theyshould reconsider the ineligibility decision.If there are no plans to put a support package in place it may be useful to explain why thisdecision has been reached. For example:• The person has proved that they could manage their own tenancy OR• If your organisation is not going to offer support but you are aware of another organisationwhich is, state this and ask the other organisation to provide a supporting letter showinghow their support will overcome the problems identifiedIneligibility guide FINAL 26 th April 05 6

Appendix 1 Sample letter: Criminal Activity or other Unacceptable BehaviourDear Housing ManagerRe: Name of client and YCH registration numberI am writing in support of [name] who is asking you to review the decision to make themineligible on the Your Choice Homes SchemeI understand the decision to make [name] ineligible was based on information about his/hercriminal activity.I have been working with [name] for [XX] months/years and during this period they have takenthe following steps to address their offending behaviour.INSERT ADDITIONAL INFORMATION (SEE NOTES)If applicable…If [name] were to be successful in obtaining their own tenancy contact with[state agency] would continue. We would be able to offer [state what support you will give tothe client in their own tenancy and why.]If you require any further information please do not hesitate to give me a call.Yours truly,Ineligibility guide FINAL 26 th April 05 7

Appendix 2 Sample letter: rent arrearsDear Housing ManagerRe: Name of client and YCH registration numberI am writing in support of [name] who is asking you to review the decision to make themineligible on the Your Choice Homes Scheme.I understand the decision to make [name] ineligible was based on information about his/herrent arrears.I have been working with [name] for [XX] months/years and during this period he/she havebeen making efforts to reduce these rent arrears. [name] has been paying £[XX] per week forthe last x months and plans to continue this.INSERT ADDITIONAL INFORMATION (SEE NOTES)If applicable…If [name] were to be successful in obtaining their own tenancy contact with[state agency] would continue. We would be able to offer [state what support you will give tothe client in their own tenancy and why.]If you require any further information please do not hesitate to give me a call.Yours truly,Ineligibility guide FINAL 26 th April 05 8