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Membership of the same household
Got a case where recently married couple are living in two separate flats (owned outright) in an independent living complex. Wife claims PCGC as single person and her partner is due to receive very large inheritance.
We’ve advised previously that they’re probably being treated as separate households by DWP but I’m puzzled by a section of the DMG to Pension Credit which states:
Sheltered accommodation
77131 The elderly and infirm sometimes live in what is known as sheltered accommodation. That is separate self-contained accommodation with a warden or nurse to keep an eye on the occupants. Where both partners or all members of a polygamous marriage are permanently in such sheltered accommodation they are members of the same household.
I can find no authority for this statement and it’s not clear to me whether this is implying that the couple in question here should actually be being treated as normal married couple and their resources jointly assessed. Any one have any thoughts about this?
Always took the self-contained there to be referring to self-contained flats for couples. However, I’ve no authority for that. Have also never had an issue with it.
[ Edited: 27 Aug 2019 at 02:10 pm by Mike Hughes ]There is case law on married couples occupying separate units in the same scheme: CIS/671/1992 and R(IS) 1/99. These were care homes, where the individuals do not have enough personal responsibility for property-related outgoings to carve out their own discrete household. Sheltered is slightly different in that tenants have responsibility for their own fuel and Council Tax and normally they have to sort out their own meals as well, but that could be turned in favour of the claimants where each is separately liable for his/her own outgoings of that kind - that suggests two different households as opposed to none at all. But certainly not one single household.
Thanks both, I’ll search out the cases you’ve referenced Peter.
Paul - There is also case law on the meaning of ‘sheltered accommodation’ CH/322/10 = UB v Oxford City Council and SSWP (HB) [2011] UKUT 136 (AAC) - Court of Appeal decision reported as [2012] AACR 38. That case (the ‘lead case’ of 32) concerned whether an adult with learning disabilities who lived in a shared house but each occupant had individual tenancies and exclusive use of their own room were living in ‘sheltered accommodation’. The council had argued it was not ‘sheltered accommodation’ due to the high level (24 hr) of care & supervision provided to the residents collectively (i.e. in most of the properties concerned there was at least one worker on duty at all times).
R(IS) 1/99 concerned a couple who lived in one room in the care home section of accommodation provided by a not for profit organisation which also provided self-contained self-caring ‘sheltered accommodation’ within the same grounds (but not same building).
Given the variety of schemes now provided (including the provision of both self-contained, self-caring ‘sheltered accommodation’ units and care home units (which some providers referred to as ‘households’) within different sections of the same building / grounds owned / run by one organisation) I would suggest that if members of a married couple live in their own separate self-contained flats (which they separately own or rent) but within the same apartment block are not members of the same household.
R(IS) 1/99 and UB demonstrate how decision makers (and guidance) can get hung up on a narrow definition of the many different types of provision and/or the terminology used by providers for publicity purposes etc. which have no legal meaning within social security legislation (or care provision for that matter).
declared interest - they were both my clients
Nice one Peter, thanks very much for that.
You wouldn’t have a copy of UB and/or R(IS) 1/99 would you, I can’t find them on tinternet?
Cheers Shawn, much appreciated.