Page last updated at 09:13 GMT, Wednesday, July 6 2011
Homelessness
If you become homeless
If you are
homeless, or going to become homeless in the near future, you
should tell us as soon as you can. Contact the Housing Advice
section for advice on 023 8068 8165. You will be asked about
your present circumstances and advice will be given to you.
The Housing Adviser may give you an appointment to make a
homelessness application or, if you are homeless, you will be seen
straight away.
We will:
- give you advice on your legal rights which may prevent losing
your home
suggest ways you could resolve your problems
provide you and your family with another home, which may only be
for a temporary period
What is homelessness?
You're homeless if
you don't have a home that you can legally occupy. You're not
homeless if:
- you can legally stay in your home
- there's a second home which is available to you
You may be homeless if you have a home, but can't live
there for certain reasons:
- you've been evicted illegally from it
- it's not reasonable for you to stay in your present home, due
to domestic violence or threats of violence against you or a member
of your family
Prevention of homelessness
Our aim is to
help prevent your homelessness. We can offer help such as debt
counselling or negotiations with landlords to prevent or delay the
loss of your home.
Please contact us as soon as your landlord, bank or building
society threatens repossession action. If you lose your home due to
rent or mortgage arrears, which could have been avoided, you may be
considered to be intentionally homeless.
If we're unable to prevent your homelessness, we can give you
advice regarding other housing options that maybe available to you
through the private sector
Further information
Write to or visit -
Housing Services, Civic Offices, Leigh Road, Eastleigh SO50
9YN
Call us on 023 8068 8165
Email housing@eastleigh.gov.uk
If you email, please include a daytime telephone number and any
relevant information regarding your current circumstances for us to
understand your situation.
Explanation of Homelessness
If you
are homeless, or going to become homeless in the near future, you
should contact the Housing Advice section for advice on 023 8068
8165. You will be asked about your present circumstances and
advice will be given to you. The Housing Adviser may give you
an appointment to make a homelessness application or, if you are
homeless, you will be seen straight away.
If you make a homelessness application and are unhappy with the
decision, you can request a review of your case. The leaflet
'Procedure for requesting a review of your homelessness decision'
explains how to do this.
Temporary Accommodation
In some cases the local authority is required to provide you with
temporary accommodation. This could be Bed and Breakfast or
hostel accommodation.
- Homelessness Explained leaflet 2009 ( pdf ) explains
temporary accommodation in more detail.
To obtain copies of any of the leaflets mentioned above contact
the Housing Advice section on 023 8068 8165 or e-mail us
housing@eastleigh.gov.uk
Homeless Strategy
The Homelessness Act 2002, which came into force on 31 July 2002,
requires local authorities to carry out a review of homelessness in
its district and devise and implement a strategy for dealing with
homelessness.
A review of homelessness involves a local authority
investigating:
- the current level (and likely future levels) of
homelessness
- the activities which are being carried out to prevent
homelessness or contribute to the prevention of homelessness
- the activities being carried out to secure that accommodation
is (or will be) available to the homeless and for those who might
become homeless, and the activities that contribute to the securing
of accommodation
- the activities being carried out to provide support to those
who are, or who may become homeless, or who have been homeless and
need support to prevent them becoming homeless again
- the activities that contribute to the provision of support
- the resources available to the authority and other bodies for
carrying out those activities
The homelessness strategy must cover:
- the prevention of homelessness
- the securing of suitable accommodation for those who are, or
may become homeless
- the provision of satisfactory services to those actually or
potentially homeless
The Homelessness Act 2002 imposes a requirement that a new
homelessness strategy will have to be published at least every 5
years and that the first one must be published by 31 July
2003.
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