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Spare bedroom or not?
Hi all
my working age client is a HA tenant, living in a 2 bed property. Had been caring for her disabled working age partner who has now gone into a care home permanently (prior to this HB had accepted that my clients could not share a bedroom) - they now receive benefits as single people
However, it may be that the partner will be returning to stay with my client for between 2 - 3 days a week (as this is of benefit to his mental health) - if this is the case can we argue that my client does not in fact have an under occupied bedroom and she is not subject to a 14% reduction in her rent?
Very slim chance. The range of options for the Council is:
- they remain a couple and, since they cannot share, they get a bedroom each
- they are no longer a couple because they are no longer part of the same household, but he still occupies the dwelling as his normal home and therefore attracts a bedroom as a single person, as does she. Not saying it’s impossible, but it’s a very narrow strip of legal territory. Most often arises where a couple are estranged from each other under the same roof: relationship has broken down to the extent that they now form two separate households while occupying the same dwelling. More or less the polar opposite of what has happened in your case unfortunately
- he neither occupies the dwelling nor belongs to the same household anymore. Likeliest outcome I think.
Well, it’s a remote chance but can’t someone in this situation be considered as occupying two homes? Is there a reason why the home can’t be considered as the main one? They were “normally occupying” it, they have left it and intend to return regularly. They are not claiming HB for the care home. This wouldn’t give an extra bedroom unless they needed an overnight carer when they were at home. I am struggling with a slightly similar UT submission at present about an adult autistic child returning, say, for a weekend a month, so any comments (I’m looking at you HB Anarak) on either case would be welcome
Ruth