Homelessness

Homelessness

The primary homelessness legislation, Part VII of the Housing Act 1996 (HA 1996), and Part 2 of the Housing (Wales) Act 2014 (H(W)A 2014) provides the statutory underpinning for action to prevent homelessness and provide assistance to people who are threatened with or are actually homeless.

The relevant code of guidance in England is the Homelessness code of guidance for local authorities February 2018 (2018 Code) and in Wales is the Code of guidance for local authorities on the allocation of accommodation and homelessness (Wales) (Welsh Code).

Homelessness services and assessment duties

Under the Homelessness Act 2002 there is an obligation on every LHA to produce a local homelessness strategy. The strategy must be renewed at least every five years. The social services authority must provide reasonable assistance to the LHA in producing a strategy bespoke for the LHA’s area.

The overarching strategic aims for LHAs should be to address:

•
homelessness prevention
•
securing sufficient accommodation for the homeless
•
providing support for the homeless

The strategy must be based on the results of a homelessness review—therefore a concurrent obligation arises to carry

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