County court appeals

This content applies to England only.

Housing laws vary between England and Scotland. This page applies to England only. Get advice relating to Scotland

If the council reviews its decision about your homelessness application and you are still not happy with the decision, you may be able to appeal to the county court. You may be able to get accommodation from the council until the appeal is completed.

You will probably need advice and help with the appeal. You can use our directory to find a housing aid centre, citizens advice bureau or other local advice centre in your area. Please see the section on court action for more information on the procedures involved.

What kind of decisions can be appealed?

You can only appeal to the county court if you can show that the council has come to a decision that is legally incorrect. This includes decisions about whether:

• you are eligible for assistance
• you are homeless or threatened with homelessness
• you are in priority need
• you are homeless intentionally
• you can be sent to another area because you don't have a local connection
• accommodation the council has provided is suitable for you.

When can I appeal?

County court appeals have to be started within 21 days of you being notified of the review decision. The 21 days start from the day that you receive the letter, not the date printed on the letter.

In some circumstances, it is possible to begin an appeal after the 21 day time limit has passed, but this is unusual. It is normally only allowed if you have a very good reason for not applying sooner. This might be because you have been seriously ill or did not receive the council's decision letter. Get advice immediately if you need to make a late appeal.

Will I need help?

Appeals in the county court can be very complicated, so you should get independent advice before taking any action. When you receive written confirmation of the review decision, contact a local advice agency. An adviser can:

• check whether the council's decision was legally correct
• check whether you have a good case for an appeal
• help with filling in court forms and preparing for hearings
• check whether you are eligible for help with legal costs.

Will the council house me during the appeal?

If you need accommodation until the date of the appeal, ask the council to provide it. The council may be willing to provide accommodation even if it hadn't done so before you started the appeal.

However, councils don't have a legal responsibility to do so and in areas where there is very little housing available, many councils will refuse. If you are in this situation, get advice immediately. An adviser may be able to:

• convince the council that it should provide accommodation
• help you to make a separate appeal to the county court if the council still refuses to house you until the appeal.

The court can order the council to provide accommodation until your main appeal hearing if it believes that you have a strong case, which you will have difficulty bringing without accommodation, and will suffer particularly badly if accommodation is not provided.