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.
Eligibility for homelessness help in Wales
18 October 2021
This page has been updated to include a reference to the Allocation of Housing and Homelessness (Eligibility) (Wales) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2021 SI 2021/1147. From 15 October these regulations provide for two additional classes of people who are eligible for homelessness assistance in Wales. These are certain people granted limited leave who have come to the UK from Hong Kong, and Afghan citizens granted leave under a resettlement scheme or who left Afghanistan in connection with the collapse of the government in August 2021.
View amended articleCivil remedies for harassment and illegal eviction
15 October 2021
Interim injunctions to re-enter are among the remedies available to occupiers who have been illegally evicted. If the County Court refuses to grant an interim injunction, the occupier can appeal to the High Court. They should seek legal advice beforehand, because if the appeal is not successful, they may be liable for some or all of the landlord's court costs. In Mahandru v Nielson [2021] EWHC 2297 (QB), the High Court dismissed an appeal against the County Court decision not to grant an interim injunction to re-enter and ordered the occupier to pay some of the landlord's costs. In this case the landlord moved into the property while the occupier was in hospital. The High Court judge outlined the correct approach when deciding whether an interim injunction should be granted.
View amended articleStatutory rules for service charges
15 October 2021
In Aviva Investors Ground Rent GP Ltd & Anor v Williams & Ors [2021] EWCA Civ 27, the Court of Appeal held that a term of a lease stating the landlord was entitled to vary a set percentage of service charges was not valid. S.27A(6) Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 provides that only the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) has that jurisdiction. This case confirms previous decisions of the Upper Tribunal.
View amended articleBanning orders against landlords and letting agents
15 October 2021
This page has been updated following LB Camden v 1) Simple Properties Management Ltd 2) Mr Miguel Cabeo Cespedes. In this case the First Tier Tribunal held that while it could not take into account a spent conviction, it was entitled to take into account a person's inclusion on the Mayor of London's database of rogue landlords in relation to that conviction.
View amended articleCovid-19: Homelessness
14 October 2021
This and related Shelter Legal pages have been amended to reflect recent changes to paragraph 8.45 of the Homelessness code of guidance for local authorities that advises local authorities on assessing priority need of vulnerable homeless applicants during the Covid-19 pandemic.
View amended articlePossession proceedings process
14 October 2021
The Rental Mediation Service pilot was launched on 1 February 2021 and was available to landlords and tenants at the review hearing stage of possession proceedings. This and related pages on Shelter Legal have been amended to reflect the fact that on 13 October 2021 the government guidance on the Rental Mediation Service was withdrawn and the ‘Understanding the possession action process: A guide for private residential tenants in England and Wales’ was amended to reflect the end of the pilot mediation scheme. The current version of the guide and the ‘COVID-19 and renting: guidance for landlords, tenants and local authorities’ offer general information about mediation as an option during possession proceedings and how to access mediation services.
View amended articlePeople who are excluded from claiming housing benefit
13 October 2021
This page has been updated to include a reference to the housing benefit Circular A10/2021 in which the DWP confirms that housing benefit claimants who apply to the EU Settlement Scheme after 30 June 2021 and receive a certificate from the Home Office can claim benefits until the outcome of their application or appeal.
View amended articleEligibility for universal credit
7 October 2021
This page has been updated to include a reference to the government guide to the EU Settlement Scheme, which currently states that people who resided in the UK on 31 December 2020 and missed the 30 June 2021 deadline for applying to the EU Settlement Scheme are not entitled to benefits until they make a ‘valid’ application to the Scheme. After they apply, their rights are protected until they receive a decision on their application or appeal.
View amended articleLeaving the home after domestic abuse
7 October 2021
From 1 October 2021, Part 4 Domestic Abuse Act 2021 introduces local authority duties to assess housing needs of survivors of domestic abuse and their children. Every local authority must publish their strategy for the provision of accommodation based support to survivors of domestic abuse by 5 January 2022 under reg 3 The Domestic Abuse Support (Local Authority Strategies and Annual Reports) Regulations 2021 SI 2021/990. This page now contains information about bringing a joint tenancy to an end.
View amended articleCourt orders to remove the perpetrator and prevent abuse
7 October 2021
This new page contains details of all the court orders available for a person experiencing domestic abuse to remove the perpetrator from their home and prevent abuse. It includes information about the process for applying for Family Law Act 1996 and Protection from Harassment Act 1997 orders, the difficulties with each, and how they are enforced.
View amended article