Homelessness Advice

The Council has duties laid down in legislation about how it must respond to homeless applicants. Firstly, it has to take an application from anyone who is homeless or feels they may be homeless shortly. Secondly, it must then follow the framework laid out in the Housing Act to determine what assistance the Council must offer.

The Council must also publish a Homelessness Strategy, which is based on a review of Homelessness in the district. View the Homelessness Review here, or to view the Homelessness Strategy 2003-2008 here. If you require a full colour copy of the Homelessness Strategy, please contact us

The framework of homelessness legislation has five tests. The Council has a duty to find a home for households who:

• are homeless by definition of the Housing Act 1996 (as amended by the Homelessness Act 2002)
• are eligible for public funds (this is an Immigration issue)
• are in priority need
• are unintentionally homeless
• have a local connection

If you are not within one of these groups, you may be offered advice and assistance to help you find your own accommodation. In either case you need to contact the Housing Options Centre to seek assistance.

What does being homeless mean?

You are homeless if you:-

• Have no accommodation you are legally entitled to occupy anywhere in the UK or the world
• Have accommodation but you cannot gain entry to it
• Face threats of violence or actual violence at home
• Find it is not reasonable for you to occupy your current accommodation
• Live in movable accommodation such as a houseboat or caravan and there is nowhere for your to place it and live in it

You may find yourself homeless for many reasons. Maybe parents or relatives have asked you to leave because they are overcrowded, or your landlord wants to end your tenancy. You may not be safe in the home where you live, or you may have been excluded from it by someone. You might find your accommodation is not affordable and is pushing you into debt. Whatever your situation, the most important thing is to Seek Advice as soon as possible, before the situation goes too far. There may be things that can be done to prevent you losing your home, or might mean that you can move in a planned way without actually becoming homeless.

Are you eligible?

In order to qualify, you must:-

Be eligible for public funds - there are certain groups of people who are ineligible for homeless assistance in accordance with the Asylum and Immigration Act 1996.

However, this does not prevent them receiving housing advice. Please contact the Housing Options Centre, run by New Charter Housing Trust for details.

Are you in Priority Need?

You are in priority need if:-

• You have dependent children
• You or your partner is pregnant
• You are 16 or 17 years old
• You are 18-20 years old and have been in Local Authority care.
• You are vulnerable due to old age, mental illness, physical disability, as a result of being in Local Authority care, the armed forces or prison, or for any other special reason, for example, as a result of domestic violence.

To be considered vulnerable you must have some reason as shown above. This may affect your ability to find and maintain accommodation.

Are you unintentionally homeless?

You must be unintentionally homeless

You may be deemed to be homeless intentionally if:-

• You are found to have caused the loss of your home
• Or you failed to prevent it being taken from you
• And the accommodation would have been available to you otherwise and it would have been reasonable for you to occupy

This is the fourth test and involves people who may have 'caused' their own homelessness. This could be people who were evicted from a tenancy due to anti-social behaviour, or people who had the money to pay their mortgage but did not prioritise the mortgage when they knew their home was at risk. These people will not get rehoused. This is why it is especially important to seek advice as soon as you know you are threatened with homelessness. Not only could something be done to prevent you becoming homeless, but you will have demonstrated that you have done what you can to avoid the situation.

If you are concerned about being found to be homeless intentionally, you should get advice immediately. Do not wait until your home is under threat to get advice about legal rights, how to deal with arrears, Housing Benefit, etc.

Do you have a local connection?

You must have a local connection within Tameside.

You can have a connection with this area through living here, working here or having relatives who have lived here for over 5 years.

This is the fifth and final test that must be applied. If the Council is satisfied that you meet all the above criteria, it has a duty to make sure that accommodation is available for you and your household to solve your homelessness.

Where do I go to apply for help?

The Council has a contract with New Charter, formerly the Council's Housing Department, to provide the homelessness service on behalf of the Council. The Housing Options Centre will advise applicants on all areas of housing matters, and can refer you on to other services for more specialist advice such as debt or immigration matters. The Housing Options Centre is also where all households will need to make applications for homelessness assistance.

Temporary Accommodation

Homeless households sometimes require temporary accommodation in the period between making their application and finding out whether they will get rehoused under the homelessness legislation. In the first instance, New Charter's hostel at Gibson Terrace is used. This houses up to 23 households who will live there until their homeless applications have been determined, and they will usually move on to permanent accommodation. If Gibson Terrace is full, other accommodation has to be found such as self-contained leased apartments, or New Charter stock, or in extreme cases, Bed and Breakfast accommodation.

If your case is accepted, this means that the Council, via New Charter, will have a duty to find you permanent accommodation. Usually, this will be done by placing your details on the housing waiting list and awarding you a high level of points to reflect the fact that you are homeless. You will then be able to receive an offer of accommodation from a Registered Social Landlord (Housing Association).

What if I am not accepted?

At any stage of the enquiries, a negative decision can be made by your case officer (ie that you are not homeless, not eligible, not in priority need or homeless intentionally through your own actions). If you are found not to have a local connection with Tameside, usually you will be referred to a Council where you do have a connection.  If a negative decision is made, you will have the right to housing advice to assist you to secure your own accommodation in the area and you can also appeal against the decision. Details of how to appeal are included in every negative decision letter and you can also approach other agencies who offer housing advice such as Shelter, the Citizens' Advice Bureau or a solicitor for help with this.

Shelter are based at Swan Buildings, 20 Swan Street, Manchester. Telephone Number 0161 834 4809.
CAB are at 9 George Street, Ashton-under-Lyne. Telephone Number 0161 330 2156.

You can find local solicitors listed in the local telephone directory.

What other options are there?

Homes4rent
Details of both public and private rented properties in Tameside are now available for browsing on the website at homes4rent.tameside.gov.uk

Housing Associations
There are many other Housing Associations who offer tenancies in Tameside from a register. Alternatively you can find the information from the Housing Options Centre. The Tameside Housing Partnership has a Joint Housing Register which provides details of housing association properties which are available for letting.

Privately Renting
You may be able to find your own private accommodation through a landlord via a Lettings or Estate Agent (details of local lettings or estate agents), the newspaper or advertised in local shop windows or through word of mouth. To get advice on renting privately, you should contact the Housing Options Centre.

Buying a property
If you are working and have some savings, you may be able to consider getting a mortgage and buying a property. Most banks or building societies will give you free quotation on whether you could get a mortgage with them, and how much your repayments would be. Getting a mortgage can be difficult though if you have previous debts and have a bad credit rating.

Hostels
There are many hostels in Tameside who are intended to assist those people who may not be able to live independently. They may have a previous record of offending, a learning disability, a mental health problem or be a vulnerable young person. A list of supported Housing providers and who they are for is available from the Housing Options Centre.

Contact Information
Send us a Message	Housing Strategy Tameside MBC Council Offices Wellington Road Ashton under Lyne Lancs OL6 6DL View local map
0161 342 3942