Homelessness

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If you think you might have to leave your present home, it is important that you seek advice as soon as possible. North Norfolk District Council may be able to assist you in keeping your home. The sooner you let us know, the sooner we can assist you. Please call our freephone advice line on 08000 855889.

We have produced our Strategy.

We can make an appointment for you to see a Housing Options Officer. An interview can be conducted in private and appropriate advice and assistance given. Please bring with you any papers that may relate to the matter, ie. Tenancy Agreement, Notice to Quit etc.

The Housing Act 1996 (Part VII - Homelessness) states that Councils have a legal obligation to find housing for certain people. To be offered accommodation by North Norfolk District Council, you

• must be eligible for assistance
• homeless or threatened with homelessness within 28 days and
• in priority need
• not intentionally homeless, and
• have a local connection to the District of North Norfolk.

Are you eligible for assistance?
Broadly speaking, you are not eligible for assistance if you are a person from abroad and unable to make a claim for housing benefit. However, there are some circumstances when this might not apply. Your Housing Options Officer will be able to advise you on this point.

Are you homeless?
You are homeless if:

• you have a home but are at risk of violence from a member of your household
• you have nowhere to live with your family or people you would normally live with
• you have been living where you have no legal right to remain
• you have nowhere to spend tonight.

Do you have a Priority Need?
People are considered to have a priority need if they:

• have dependent children living with them
• are pregnant or live with a pregnant woman
• are a person aged between 16 - 17
• a person under 21 who was i care or fostered betwen the ages of 16 - 18
• are vulnerable because they are elderly, have a physical or mental disability, or suffer from mental illness
• are vulnerable due to time spent in care, in HM forces, in prison or as a result of violence from another person
• have lost their home because of fire, flood or other emergency.

If you are eligible, homeless or threatened with homeless and have a priority need, the Council may have a duty to arrange accommodation for you. If it is not possible to make you an offer you of permanent accommodation, you may be offered interim accommodation, and this could include:

• bed and breakfast accommodation
• private rented accommodation
• hostel accommodation

However, if you do not have a priority need, the Council has a duty to provide you with advice and assistance as may be appropriate to help you in securing accommodation. The Council does not have a duty to provide interim or permanent housing to you when not in priority need.

Are you intentionally homeless?
When a homelessness application is made, the Options Officer will need to check if you have done something or failed to do something which resulted in you losing your accommodation. If you are considered to be intentionally homeless, North Norfolk District Council may only provide interim accommodation for a reasonable period of time while you make arrangements to find your own accommodation.

Do you have a Local Connection?
A person has a local connection with North Norfolk if you, or a person you would normally live with, has:

• lived in North Norfolk for a certain period of time or
• family associations within North Norfolk or
• permanent employment within North Norfolk or
• other special circumstances.

Do you have other suitable accommodation available?
The Council needs to be satisfied that no other suitable accommodation is available for occupation by you in the District. You may be asked what attempts you have made to secure accommodation for yourself and family. Depending on what duty the Council has to you, you may be given advice and assistance to help you secure accommodation in the private rented sector or it may be that the Council will find accommodation for you. Your Housing Advisory Officer will advise you of the duty owed to you.

What happens next?
When you come in for your interview, your Housing Options Officer will talk to you about your situation. We complete an application form which is called a Part VII application form. The information that you give during this interview will be the basis on which our decision as to the duty owed to you by the Council will be made. It is important that you bring with you any papers that relate to your homelessness application. Once the application form is complete, you will be asked to read and sign it.

The interview is conducted in private and the information that you give is confidential. However, in some cases it may be necessary to contact a third party, ie bank, building society, Social Services or other local authority in order to complete the necessary enquiries. You will be asked to give your authorisation to contact this third party.

During the interview, the Options Officer will offer you advice in accordance with your housing situation. This advice will really depend on your own circumstances. The officer will be happy to try to answer any questions or queries that you may have.

Once the interview is complete, the officer will make such investigations as is necessary. Again, this will depend on the circumstances. When these investigations are complete, a decision will be made on your matter. The Council have 28 days from the date of application in which to reach a decision. You will be notified in writing of the Council's decision and the reasons for it.

If you are not happy with the Council's decision, you have the right to request a review. If you wish to request a review of the decision, you must do so in writing within 21 days from the date on the decision letter. If you have any queries, your Housing Advisory Officer will be pleased to help. Our Review of Decisions Procedure page contains information regarding your right to request a review of a decision made by North Norfolk District Council.

To make an appointment please phone our Freephone advice line 08000 855889

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This information can be downloaded in leaflet form in a variety of languages:

| Download this Homelessness information in leaflet form (English - pdf 94kB) |

| Homelessness Information (Kurdish - pdf, 107kb) |

| Homelessness Information (Mandarin, 123kb) |

| Homelessness Information (Russian - pdf, 124kb) |

| SHERBIMI I KESHILLIT TE STREHIMIT TE QENURIT PA STREHE (Albanian - pdf 101kB) |

| SANS LOGEMENT? (French - pdf 105kB) |

| DESABRIGADOS (Portuguese - pdf 73.2kB) |

| ESTAR SIN VIVIENDA (Spanish - pdf 80.1kB) |

| KAWALAN NG TIRAHAN (Tagalog/Filipino - pdf 19.8kB) |

| KONUTSUZLUK (Turkish - pdf 167kB) |