Homelessness Reduction Act 2017

The Garden Court Chambers Housing Team will hold a special seminar on the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017 on Tuesday 23 May 2017 18:30 - 20:00.

The Homelessness Reduction Act, which received Royal Assent on 27 April 2017, will transform how local housing authorities deal with homeless people. Councils will be required to help all those who are threatened with homelessness to stay in their accommodation (prevention) or find alternative accommodation (relief).

The help must be practical and substantive and applies whether or not someone has a priority need or become homeless intentionally. The days when the “advice and assistance” duty comprised the council just handing over a list of letting agents will be over.

The Homelessness Reduction Act 2017 was a Private Members’ Bill, passed with cross-party support. It was initiated by Crisis, the national charity for homeless people.

Speakers will give an overview of the Act and an indication of what real change might mean in practice.

Speakers

Deborah Garvie, Senior Policy Officer, Shelter

Deborah is Shelter’s lead on homelessness, including the Homelessness Reduction Bill and changes introduced by the Localism Act 2011 (offers of private tenancies). She is co-author of Desperate to Escape - the experiences of homeless families in emergency accommodation (November 2016) and Using the private rented sector to tackle homelessness in your area (March 2013).

Deborah was policy adviser on 'Sustain', the ground-breaking Shelter and Crisis, Big Lottery-funded longitudinal study of housing outcomes and well-being in private rented accommodation (2010-2014).

As editor of Shelter’s Bedsit Briefing magazine, she campaigned for improvements to private rented housing. This culminated in the Housing Act 2004, which introduced the Housing Health and Safety Rating System, licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation and protection of tenancy deposits.

Liz Davies, barrister, Garden Court Chambers

Liz is an expert on the law of homelessness and allocation of social housing. She has numerous reported cases in the Court of Appeal and s.204 homelessness appeals in the County Court.

She is the co-author, with Jan Luba QC and Connor Johnston, of Housing Allcoation and Homelessness: Law and Practice (Jordans, 4^th ed, 2016). She was a consultant to Crisis and advised on the drafting of the Homelessness Reduction Bill.

This event is free to attend and includes light refreshments.

If you are interested in attending, please contact seminars@gclaw.co.uk.