Veterans who are facing homelessness or housing issues can access expert legal advice and support under the partnership between Shelter and the Royal British Legion (RBL).
Published August 2026.
The partnership between Shelter and RBL
Shelter and the Royal British Legion (RBL) have been working in partnership for 9 years. Under the partnership RBL staff can:
refer their service users for advice and casework
consult a specialist adviser from Shelter's Expert Housing Advice Service
access housing and homelessness training
Referrals for advice and casework
Since 2017, Shelter's Helpline Plus advisers have opened more than 4,400 cases from RBL referrals. The team's specialist housing advisers provide expert legal advice, casework and tailored support on housing issues, homelessness, evictions and more.
The service carries out casework remotely by phone, email and post, meaning people can receive support wherever they are.
In this article, Helpline Plus advisers share recent cases from RBL. They explain how they advocated for their clients to achieve a successful outcome.
Read the first part of this series about RBL and Shelter’s partnership.
Challenging an unsuitable offer
Pancham told us about a recent referral he'd received for a veteran with health issues who'd received a negative homelessness decision from the council.
I spoke to the client who explained to me that she had many physical health problems that left her in chronic pain. She was also experiencing mental health issues, including PTSD, which meant she was finding it difficult to advocate her needs to the local authority.
She made a homeless application and the council had accepted the main housing duty. This meant she was in temporary accommodation provided by the council, pending a longer term offer.
The private rented sector offer
The client received a final private rented sector (PRS) offer from the council to end the council's duties towards her.
She was concerned the property was unaffordable and unsuitable for her needs, but she accepted the tenancy. She then had an honest discussion with the landlord - they were both concerned that she couldn't afford it, so as a result, the landlord informed the council that they couldn't accept the client as a tenant.
After this, she received a letter from the council, stating that they were discharging their main housing duty as she had rejected the offer. RBL referred her case to Shelter to see if we could help challenge the council's decision.
Challenging the council's decision
I spoke to the landlord and got written confirmation of why she had rejected the tenancy. The landlord confirmed that it was due to affordability concerns, rather than the client’s behaviour.
So I submitted a section 202 review to the council, arguing that the offer was not suitable as it was not affordable, and that it was the landlord who refused the tenancy, not the client. I referred to relevant case law and legislation to argue that the council were wrong to blame the client’s behaviour for the rejection of the tenancy.
The client also received notice to leave her temporary accommodation, which put her at imminent risk of street homelessness, so I asked that the council extend her accommodation pending the review.
The outcome
Following our request for review, the council withdrew their negative decision. The council accepted that it still owed the main housing duty and needed to provide temporary accommodation while both the client and the council look for longer term housing.
I explained to the client that any other accommodation offer she receives must be affordable and suitable for her needs. While she awaits another potential offer, she's also getting support to look for accommodation herself.
Securing interim accommodation and priority banding for a homeless veteran
Salma told us about a recent referral she received for a veteran who had been homeless for many years.
I spoke to the client who explained that he had been homeless for a long time, and had been sleeping in his car or sofa surfing. He'd been medically discharged from the armed forces and had severe health problems and limited mobility.
RBL were helping him with hotel accommodation, but this was due to end soon. He needed support with making a homeless application urgently.
Priority need for veterans
A local authority has a duty to provide emergency accommodation for a homeless applicant if there is reason to believe they are in priority need.
Service in the armed forces does not give an automatic priority need, but the local authority must consider whether someone is vulnerable as a result of their time in the armed forces, or for other reasons such as health conditions.
What I did
I submitted an urgent homeless application on his behalf, requesting that the council provide emergency accommodation. I argued that the council had strong reason to believe the client was in priority need, as he was vulnerable due to his:
severe health conditions
limited mobility
service in the armed forces
I provided evidence to support the application, showing that the client had been medically discharged from the armed forces and was receiving enhanced personal independence payment (PIP).
In the meantime, RBL agreed to extend the accommodation they were providing to prevent him from becoming street homeless. This gave him time to attend the council offices and meet them face to face.
The outcome
The council accepted the homelessness application. On the same day the RBL accommodation ended, the council placed him in emergency accommodation in a ground floor flat.
The council also placed him into band B on the housing register. I reviewed the council's allocations policy and found that it gives the highest priority to ex-services personnel with an urgent housing need, who suffer from a serious injury, illness or disability linked to their service.
I explained to the client that he should qualify for the highest priority band A, because he is a veteran and receiving enhanced PIP. The client's housing officer agreed that she would try to help him to be placed in band A.
When I closed the case, the client thanked me and said he was very grateful for our 'wonderful' support.
