What's new on Shelter Legal
The pages on Shelter Legal are updated regularly to reflect changes in the law.
This page lists the most recent updates to Shelter Legal.
Local authority duties on preference in housing allocation
16 April 2024
In AK, R (On the Application Of) v Westminster City Council [2024] EWHC 769 (Admin), a local authority allocations policy was found to be unlawful when it treated transfer applicants from the borough more favourably than reciprocal transfer applicants who lived outside the borough. The policy indirectly discriminated against women who needed to move area to flee violence. Although the policy was unlawful, it was not quashed as the court found that the policy could be amended to become lawful.
View amended articleHousing benefit calculation rates 2024 to 2025
12 April 2024
This page contains housing benefit calculation rates for 2024 to 2025 including applicable amounts, premiums, treatment of capital, disregards, non-dependant, fuel, and meal deductions.
View amended articleRegulation of social housing providers
10 April 2024
The Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023 (Commencement No. 2 and Saving Provisions) Regulations 2024 bring into force key provisions from the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023 from 1 April 2024. The provisions include new enforcement powers for the Regulator of Social Housing. The regulator can carry out inspections and surveys, require registered providers to produce performance improvement plans and carry out emergency remedial action where required.
View amended articleCourt and tribunal fees
8 April 2024
On 6 April 2024 the £90 fee for a debt relief order application was abolished. The application can now be made free of charge. This and related pages have been updated.
View amended articleRent levels in private registered providers of social housing
8 April 2024
The Rent Standard sets out the limits on annual rent increases in social housing. The Regulator of Social Housing has published the new figures for 2024-2025, which came into force from 1 April 2024. The guidance contains adjusted tables to help providers ensure that they use the correct annual percentage to inflate their rent.
View amended articleSuccession to a tenancy
8 April 2024
In Rahimi v Westminster City Council [2024] EWCA Civ 73 the Court of Appeal held that an absent joint tenant succeeded to the tenancy on the death of the other tenant under survivorship. The tenancy then ceased to be secure. The court found there was no evidence that both tenants had consented to the end of the tenancy or the grant of a new sole tenancy. The local authority had amended internal records, including ticking a box which said ‘joint to sole’ and making a note that the absent tenant was to be removed from the rent account, but they had not updated the tenancy start date, suggesting no new tenancy had been agreed. The deceased joint tenant's grandson would have been entitled to succeed if the tenancy had been changed to a sole tenancy.
View amended articleCourt orders to remove the perpetrator and prevent abuse
8 April 2024
The Domestic Abuse Protection Orders (County Court: Relevant Proceedings) Regulations 2024 SI 2024/253 come into force on 8 April 2024. Under regulation 2 of these Regulations, a domestic abuse protection order can be made in the County Court in the course of possession proceedings. The court must have evidence of domestic abuse and both the perpetrator and the victim must be parties to the proceedings. Domestic abuse protection orders have been introduced by the Domestic Abuse Act 2021.
View amended articleComplaints against social housing providers
2 April 2024
From 1 April 2024, the Housing Ombudsman's complaint handling code is a statutory requirement for social landlords. The code introduces timescales for acknowledging and dealing with complaints, as well as a requirement for a 2-stage complaints process. The Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023 requires the Housing Ombudsman to monitor social landlords' compliance with the code.
View amended articleMarried and civil partner joint tenant court orders
19 March 2024
In Tousi v Gaydukova [2024] EWCA Civ 203, the Court of Appeal ruled that the parties to a legally void marriage could be treated as a cohabiting couple for the purpose of transferring a joint tenancy under section 53 of the Family Law Act 1996. A void marriage has no effect on the couple’s status and therefore, in this case, the parties to the ceremony were within the scope of para 3 of Schedule 7 to the 1996 Act.
View amended articleEviction from land not owned by Travellers
15 March 2024
In Wolverhampton CC v London Gypsies and Travellers [2023] UKSC 47, the Supreme Court considered the issue of local authorities obtaining injunctions against unknown and unidentifiable persons, referred to as ‘newcomers’, in order to prevent setting up unauthorised encampments. The Supreme Court held that an injunction against newcomers would be justified if the local authority could show that it was the only measure capable of protecting civil rights or enforcing public law.
View amended article