Homelessness - What we need to know
There are five enquiries which need to be made to find out what kind of help we have a duty to provide you with. It is important that you provide full and truthful information when requested.
We will look at whether:
Are you eligible for assistance?
You will be eligible for assistance unless:
- you are subject to immigration control (with certain exceptions)
- we decide that (with certain exceptions) you are not habitually resident in the UK, the Republic of Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man.
Are you homeless?
You will be considered to be homeless if you are one of the following:
- you or your family have no accommodation which you are all entitled to occupy
- you have a home but cannot gain entry to it
- you have a home but we consider that if you continue to live there it is probable that this will lead to violence against you or a member of your family
- you have a home but we consider that it is unreasonable for you to go on living there.
Are you in 'Priority Need'?
You will have a Priority Need if:
- you have a dependant child normally living with you
- you or someone living with you is expecting a baby
- you are 16 or 17 and have not previously been looked after by social services
- you are 18, 19 or 20 and have been previously in care
- we consider that you or someone living with you is vulnerable because of old age, mental illness/disability, physical disability or other special reason. We consider that you are vulnerable because of:
- having been in care and you are over 21
- having been in the armed forces
- having been in custody or on remand
- having suffered violence or threats of violence
- you are homeless following a fire, flood or similar emergency
Are you intentionally homeless?
We may decide that you have become intentionally homeless if we believe that:
- you have given up accommodation that you could have continued to occupy
- you have lost accommodation through your own fault or action
- you have made an arrangement with somebody in order to take advantage of the homeless legislation
It is unlikely that you will be treated as being Intentionally Homeless if you are homeless through no fault of your own and in circumstances beyond your control.
If you think you may lose your home, get advice immediately as there may be ways of preventing you becoming homeless. Do not leave your home while you have a right to remain there, unless you have arranged somewhere else to live on a long term basis.
Do you have a 'local connection'?
You will usually have a Local Connection with a council if you, or anyone who usually lives with you, have:
- lived in the Dover district for 6 months in the past year or 3 years in the last 5 years
- been permanently employed in Dover District
- close family who have lived in the district for the last 5 years
- any other special connection with the Dover district
The help we can give you will depend on an assessment of your circumstances:
- we will normally interview you to find out if you meet certain legal criteria
- we may come to see where you are living now
- we may ask you to produce evidence and we may contact other people to back up what you tell us
When we have finished our enquiries we will write to you and tell you:
- what our decision is and the reasons for it
- what your options are to help you decide what to do next