Housing

Round-up of recent decisions from the Housing Ombudsman

Shelter research finds that private renters who complain about disrepair are more than twice as likely to be served with an eviction notice

Housing charity urges government to urgently introduce Renters Reform Bill to put an end to unfair evictions, drive up standards, and hold landlords to account

Technical drafting amendments to provisions relating to cost of living protections for tenants in Scotland

New statutory instrument

Government sets out details of final New Burdens funding in relation to council tax energy rebate scheme

DLUHC Letter to local authorities in England also provides information on how initial grant payments will be reconciled and how councils should handle ineligible payments

Department for Communities publishes statutory review of Caravans Act (Northern Ireland)

Review concludes that while existing legislation and mechanisms provide a pathway for resolution for the majority of concerns, caravan owners need more clarity about terms and conditions and their rights of recourse if things go wrong

Ombudsman’s special investigation into Rochdale Boroughwide Housing finds that prevailing culture of ‘othering’ was at the heart of repeated complaint handling failures

Report notes 'dismissive and discriminatory' attitude to residents' complaints in investigation prompted by death of child from respiratory condition caused by prolonged exposure to damp and mould

Average Band D council tax bills in England to exceed £2,000 for the first time in April 2023

New DLUHC statistics also confirm that almost all local authorities with social care responsibilities have opted to use some or all of the social care precept flexibilities to increase bills by up to 2 per cent

Welsh Government to launch a consultation on establishing a single, unified tribunal system for Wales

Bringing tribunals together and establishing an appellate court in Wales for the first time will give the nation a simple, modern and fair tribunal structure, says Minister

Shelter welcomes victory in landmark complaint against ‘no kids’ rental practices

Property Ombudsman confirms that it will investigate any cases of such discrimination if the agent is a member of the Scheme

Councils continue to miss opportunities to prevent homelessness five years on from the Homelessness Reduction Act coming into force

Warning that getting things wrong early in the process can ‘snowball’ into increasing fault and injustice, Ombudsman uses examples from casework to identify learning for local authorities going forward

Extension of temporary cost of living protections for tenants in Scotland

New statutory instrument modifies and extends private sector rent cap and extends pause on enforcement of evictions for all tenants until 30 September 2023

Welsh Government confirms that it will increase ‘thank you’ payments for Ukraine hosts to £500 per month from 1 April 2023

Social Justice Minister also outlines plans to help Ukrainian guests in Wales find longer-term accommodation over the next year

Scottish Housing Regulator confirms that social housing rents in Scotland will increase by average of 5 per cent in 2023/2024

New report based on survey of RSLs and local authorities highlights that average weekly rent increase will be £4.38

Changes in consequence of the transfer of the functions of valuation appeals committees to the new Local Taxation Chamber of the First-tier Tribunal in Scotland

New statutory instrument

Housing Ombudsman issues special report on Catalyst Housing finding that it routinely failed to recognise formal complaints, and aspects of its service were ‘arbitrary, disjointed and concerning’

Decision to launch investigation into 'systemic failings' follows Ombudsman having made 31 findings across 13 cases from 2020/2021, with a maladministration rate of 90 per cent

Almost 7,500 households presented as homeless in Northern Ireland in the second half of 2022

New Department for Communities figures also show that more than 5,000 households were placed in temporary accommodation in the same period

Welsh Government welcomes findings of research on its council tax intervention policies

Government-commissioned reports show broadly positive responses from councils and third parties on changes including the introduction of a Council Tax Protocol for debt recovery and the standardisation of SMI exemptions