Terms & Conditions

[Madeline]

I know there has been a lot of discussion on Supported Accommodation in the recent past. Just wondering if anybody could direct me to the most up-to-date thread, with a link to any CDs on same.

Specifically does anybody know of any case law on the interpretation of ‘provided’ ‘voluntary’ and ‘landlord’ within the definition of Supported Accommodation and the term ‘managed’ within the definition of Hostel?

[i:41f766e243][i]On a related note, would you classify the following accommodation as a hostel, provided all of the other hostel criteria are met?

The accommodation is a 3 bedroom/1 living room house, owned by a private landlord. Care, support and supervision is provided by a limited company to the residents of the property. This company is a ‘NOT FOR PROFIT’ organization although it is NOT receiving funding from the Supporting People income stream and it is NOT a charity. The company is also the ‘landlord’ for Housing Benefit purposes, and help the residents complete their claim forms, liaises on their behalf with the HB department and any Housing Benefit due is paid to them directly etc., The owners of the property, have no input into the Housing Benefit process at all.[/i:41f766e243][/i]

I am really grateful for any help you can provide.

[jmembery]

Can’t immediatly help with the caselaw I am afraid.

On the specifics are you certain the company is a Voluntary Organisation?If they say they are not for profit I would check that. Ask to see two documents: the memorandum of association which regulates the company’s dealings with the outside world and the articles of association which regulate the company’s internal affairs. These should provide the evidence you need and are sometimes called a “constitution”.

[seanosul]

[quote:e50c6e3be4=”jmembery”]Can’t immediatly help with the caselaw I am afraid.

On the specifics are you certain the company is a Voluntary Organisation?If they say they are not for profit I would check that. Ask to see two documents: the memorandum of association which regulates the company’s dealings with the outside world and the articles of association which regulate the company’s internal affairs. These should provide the evidence you need and are sometimes called a “constitution”.[/quote:e50c6e3be4]

No need for that, the Companies House webcheck can be checked for whether they are a “not for profit” company.

http://www.companieshouse.co.uk

[Kevin D]

Only CD that even gets close to the current issues is [b:b2254f1984]CH/0423/2006[/b:b2254f1984] (on this site and on the Commissioners’ site).

I agree with Jeff that it’s a damn good idea to look at the Memorandum of Association & Articles of Association. However, the presence of “not-for-profit” terms does not necessarily mean the company is not-for-profit. It is conceivable that the terms are merely a device or sham created by a party (maybe the L/L) for the purpose of projecting an image which is not reflected in reality.

“[b:b2254f1984]Voluntary organisation[/b:b2254f1984]” has the meaning given in [b:b2254f1984]HBR 2(1)[/b:b2254f1984].
new.hbinfo.org.com/menu2/hbregs06/002_06.shtml

Curiously, “[b:b2254f1984]landlord[/b:b2254f1984]” does not get a definition in HBR 2. But, in [b:b2254f1984]DAR 3[/b:b2254f1984], there is a clear distinction between “agent” and “landlord”.
new.hbinfo.org.com/menu2/newdmaregs/da03.shtml . So, unless someone else can offer something more solid, you’re probably best to rely on dictionary definitions (or check with your legal department).

However, if the “landlord” does not have a sublease (agreement with the owner) registered with the Land Registry, I strongly suspect that your “landlord” is not a landlord in law – the landlord will be the owner of the property. BUT, I’m not a lawyer and property law is notoriously full of pitfalls – best to check with your legal dept.

Dictionary definition: “[b:b2254f1984]a man (in legal use also a woman) who leases land or property. 2 a man who keeps lodgings, a boarding house, or (Brit.) a public house”[/b:b2254f1984]. http://www.askoxford.com

I’m not sure why there is a problem with “[b:b2254f1984]provide(d)[/b:b2254f1984]”. It is almost certainly down to dictionary definition: “[b:b2254f1984]1[/b:b2254f1984] make available for use; supply. [b:b2254f1984]2[/b:b2254f1984] (provide with) equip or supply (someone) with. [b:b2254f1984]3[/b:b2254f1984] (provide for) make adequate preparation or arrangements for. [b:b2254f1984]4[/b:b2254f1984] stipulate in a will or other legal document”. http://www.askoxford.com

Other questions that come to mind:

1) do the tenancy agreements make any mention that the so-called L/L is under a legal duty, or obligation, to provide care, support, or supervision (CSS)? If not, in my view, it is not “exempt accommodation”.

2) apart from assisting clmts with benefit claims, what are ALL the other services provided by the L/L? Based on first hand knowledge, simply helping clmts with benefit claims will not be enough to count as CSS as envisaged by the “exempt accommodation” legislation. If a Tribunal was to find otherwise, I would not hesitate to take it to Commissioners and I’d (normally) be very confident of being successful on that narrow issue.

3) are any official bodies (e.g. Social Services) under any legal obligation to provide CSS? If so, the L/L certainly isn’t.

Whatever you do, don’t just accept what the L/L (or anyone else) tells you – do company searches, do land registry searches, investigate, ask for documents etc. If the L/L is genuine, and not just trying to get more HB by way of the “exempt accommodation” route, the L/L (and tenants) should be more than happy to cooperate. If they won’t cooperate, I think you would be within your rights to make a defective claim decision or, alternatively, make a decision based on inferences.

If, per chance, your owner and / or L/L are based on the north of England, feel free to pm me. I’d be happy to discuss this further….

Erm, well, seems like it’s happened again. Another not very short post on this subject……

Regards

[Madeline]

Thank you one and all for your replies. They are very helpful.

Ciara

[Author]

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