Clause 5 - Provision of accommodation for persons not in priority need who are not homeless intentionally
Homelessness Bill
5:00 pm
Ms Sally Keeble (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions; Northampton North, Labour)
I am happy to do that.
The main provisions of the Bill are designed to strengthen the safety net for people who become homeless through no fault of their own and who have a priority need for accommodation. That is right, as many of those people are among the most vulnerable individuals in our society.
However, less vulnerable households also find themselves homeless, or are threatened with homelessness, through no fault of their own, such as single people and couples who do not have dependent children and, therefore, do not fall within the priority need categories. The duty owed to such people by a local housing authority is limited to the provision of advice and assistance to help them to secure accommodation. Provisions elsewhere in the Bill will strengthen that duty, but I shall not deal with them now. Clause 5 will give authorities more flexibility to provide assistance for homeless applicants who do not fall within the priority need categories: they will be able to use their discretion, so far as their resources allow.
Clause 5(1) will give local housing authorities a new power to secure accommodation for applicants who have become homeless unintentionally, but who do not fall within a priority need group. It will enable authorities to provide their own accommodation, to secure accommodation from another landlord, or to provide advice and assistance to ensure that accommodation becomes available. In fact, they can pursue any of the options that they can use to discharge a duty to secure accommodation for priority need applicants. We intend that it should be an especially effective provision in areas of low or mixed demand for housing.
Clause 5(2) provides a further power for local housing authorities to take reasonable steps to prevent households that do not fall within priority need categories from becoming homeless when they are faced with the prospect of homelessness within 28 days through no fault of their own. It will enable authorities to take steps to prevent homelessness for applicants who do not fall within priority need categories similar to those that they can take to discharge a duty towards applicants who are in priority need, and who face the threat of homelessness through no fault of their own.
The provisions in clause 5 will allow local authorities to be more flexible in their approach to helping applicants who do not fall within priority need categories and who are homeless, or are threatened with homelessness through no fault of their own. The extent to which individual authorities use those powers will be at their discretion—there will be no additional burden. However, through guidance, we shall encourage authorities—particularly those with the scope and resources to do so—to put those new powers to maximum use to assist homeless people who do not fall within priority need categories.
In the regulations that are intended to follow the Bill, the definition of people in priority need will be broadened.