Homelessness in Bristol
The Role of the City Council
Introduction and Index
Bristol City Council has a series of fact sheets that explain their role in addressing the needs of homeless people. This document is based on those sheets.
Introduction and Index
What the Council needs to know
Q1. Are you homeless?
Q2. Are you in priority need?
Emergency Accommodation
Q3. Are you eligible?
Q4. Are you not intentionally homelessness?
Q5. Do you have a local connection with Bristol?
Emergency Rehousing Policy
Requesting a review of the suitability of an offer
Requesting a review of a decision
Local Area Offices providing Homelessness Services
What the Council needs to know
If you are homeless, Bristol City Council is required by law to make a number of enquiries about your situation. Each homeless case is, of course, different. The enquiries the council will make depend on the circumstances applying in your case, but all homelessness enquiries have to answer five main questions:
1Are you homeless?
2Are you in priority need?
3Are you eligible for assistance?
4Are you not intentionally homeless?
5Do you have a local connection with Bristol?
Each of these separate enquiries must be completed by the City Council.
If you seem to be homeless and in priority need, the Council will arrange emergency accommodation while they complete enquiries (see page 2).
If the answer to all five questions is ‘yes’, the Council will then have a duty to offer you suitable temporary accommodation. This is explained on page 4, along with the rules about re-housing into permanent accommodation.
Whether you are offered a temporary or a permanent tenancy you have a right to request a review of the suitability of that offer (see page 5).
If any of the five decisions go against you, you have the right to request a review of the decision (see page 5).
Q1. Are you homeless?
This is the definition the Council must work with. You are considered to be homeless if at least one of the following statements is true about you.
- You have no accommodation you legally occupy
- It is agreed that it is not reasonable for you to live in your accommodation
- You have accommodation, but you cannot gain entry to it
- You face violence, or are at risk of violence from someone living there
- You live in a place like a houseboat or caravan, and there is nowhere for you to place it and live in it
Q2. Are you in priority need?
You are in priority need if at least one of the following statements is true about you.
- You have at least one dependent child,
- You are pregnant,
- You are a woman who has become homeless because of domestic violence
- You have become homeless as a result of a disaster such as fire or flood
- You are vulnerable because of:
- old age and infirmity;
- mental illness or handicap;
- physical disability; or
- any other reason (e.g. you may be a young person at risk)
Priority need also applies to people who normally live with you or anyone else who we accept should reasonably be expected to live with you.
Emergency Accommodation
If you have answered yes to the first two questions, and the Council have not determined that the answer to one of the other three questions is no, then the City Council will arrange emergency accommodation for a short period.
There are three main types of emergency accommodation.
Bed & Breakfast. The Council only uses B&B in situations where there is no more suitable accommodation that is appropriate and available.
Hostels. The City Council has its own hostel for small families, and can access other hostels for single young mothers. Sometimes some of the larger Hostels also have family vacancies.
Refuges. The City Council has forged links with various refuges for women fleeing domestic violence.
Many agencies work together to ensure that all emergency accommodation is of a reasonable standard. Shelter, Missing Link, the environmental health service, social services, the health authority and the education service are amongst the agencies that cooperate with the homelessness service in ensuring that families have the help and support they need, no matter how short their stay may be.
Q3. Are you eligible?
You may not be eligible for assistance if one of the following statements is true about you.
- You have not lived in the UK, Republic of Ireland, Channel Islands or Isle of Man for the last 5 years, and you are not considered to be a settled resident here.
- You are a European national in breach of a “residence directive”.
- You have claimed asylum since arriving in this country from abroad (if you claimed asylum as you entered this country you will be eligible).
- You are an illegal immigrant.
- You have overstayed your leave to live in the UK.
- You have limited leave to remain in this country (like students and visitors), and are not allowed to claim public help with money or accommodation.
This is a complicated area of enquiry, and your homelessness officer will advise you in more detail, if applicable.
If you are an asylum seeker and not eligible for housing, the Council can still advise you about which other agencies might be able to help you.
Q4. Are you not intentionally homelessness?
The council may say that you are intentionally homeless if it feels that you have become homeless because of your own unreasonable actions.
Examples of intentional homelessness
- If you voluntarily gave up your accommodation, either in the UK or abroad, and it would have been considered reasonable for you to continue to live there.
- If you are evicted for arrears of rent or mortgage in circumstances where there is no good reason for non-payment.
- If you are evicted for antisocial behaviour, like harassment or drug dealing.
- If you chose to sell your house without good reason.
- If you chose to give up employment which included accommodation for no good reason.
Q5. Do you have a local connection with Bristol?
To have a local connection, you must have one of the following.
- You have lived in Bristol for 3 years out of the last 5 years
- You have lived in Bristol for 6 months out of the last 12 months
- You have stable employment in Bristol
- You have close relatives who have lived in Bristol for the last 5 years
- Any special circumstances, which the City Council accepts, which make you an exception to these rules
If you have no local connection anywhere, then the local council to whom you have applied must take responsibility. If you have a local connection in another council’s area (and no local connection in Bristol), then Bristol may refer your homelessness application to the other council.
Emergency Rehousing Policy
The Homelessness Duty
If all the enquiries are completed in your favour, the Council will accept its duty to offer you suitable temporary accommodation.
This duty lasts for at least 2 years, unless you have the opportunity to access other suitable accommodation in the meantime. This means that if the City Council is satisfied that you have another place where you could live, the homelessness duty to provide temporary accommodation ends.
For example, if you were offered a suitable permanent council or housing association tenancy (see below), the City Council may not provide you with any more temporary accommodation.
Rehousing Opportunities
As well as temporary accommodation, a homelessness case may also be given priority through the Bristol Housing Register for an emergency offer, subject to the rules on qualification for City Council tenancies.
Emergency Rehousing Policy
Offers of temporary or permanent tenancies are subject to the Emergency Rehousing Policy, which normally guarantees you an offer of accommodation within 12 weeks, but with no guarantee that it will either be in an area or a type of accommodation you have chosen. The officer interviewing you will give you more information on how this affects you.
Suitability of Offers
Each offer, whether temporary or permanent, must be “suitable”. If you feel any offer is not suitable, you have the right to request a review (see next section).
Requesting a review of the suitability of an offer
If, after viewing a temporary or a permanent property, you think that it is not a suitable offer, you only have two options.
You can accept the offer (therefore agreeing that it is suitable).
You can refuse the offer: the property will be offered to someone else and there will be no opportunity for you to be offered it again.
If you choose to refuse the offer, you have up to 21 days from receiving the offer to request a review of its suitability. The Council will reach a decision as quickly as the can, but they have 8 weeks from the date that you first ask for a review.
If the review goes in your favour, the Council will have to make you another offer, subject as before to the Emergency Rehousing Policy (see page 4).
If the review goes against you, the Council will have no further duty towards you as homeless and you will have to make your own arrangements for housing. You may continue your Bristol Housing Register application for accommodation.
Requesting a review of a decision
If you are told any of the following apply to you:
- Not homeless
- Not eligible
- Not in priority need
- Intentionally homeless
- No local connection
- Homelessness duty discharged by a suitable offer (see section above)
- Your case is being referred to another local authority
Then you have the right to request a review of that decision. There are five key points.
- A request for review of any decision must be made within 21 days from the date that you receive the above decision/offer in writing.
- You have up to 21 days from the date of your request, to submit details in support of your request.
- The City Council will take into account any information submitted by you or on your behalf.
- If you fail to submit any detailed information, the decision will be reviewed on the basis of all relevant information already to hand.
- The City Council must reach a decision on your request for review within 56 days of the date of your request.
If you are interested in more details on your right to request a review of a decision, please ask for a separate information sheet: “Your right to request a review of a decision”
Local Area Offices providing Homelessness Services
If you are homeless and you have a child or are expecting, please contact the nearest of the following area offices for advice and assistance.
South
Knowle Area Services Office, 147 Salcombe Road, Knowle ...... Tel. 977 5596
Bedminster Area Services Office, Zion House, Coronation Rd ...... Tel. 903 9991
Withywood Area Services Office, The Willows, 159 Four Acres .....Tel. 964 0170
Hartcliffe Area Services Office, Symes House, Peterson Square .....Tel. 964 0770
East
Fishponds Area Services Office, Robinson House, Hockeys Lane ....Tel. 965 4770
St George Area Housing Office, Blackswarth Road, St George ...... Tel. 939 3970
Barton Hill Neighbourhood Office, Avonvale Rd, Barton Hill ...... Tel. 983 0320
Brislington Area Office, Sinnott House, Broomhill Rd ...... Tel. 972 0061
Stockwood area Office, Delaware House, 129 West Town Lane .....Tel. 977 5133
Central
Easton Area Office, Guild Heritage House, Braggs Lane, St Judes ....Tel. 903 9899
Ashley Area Office, Ashley House, Grosvenor Rd, St Pauls ...... Tel. 903 8989
Clifton Area Office, College House, College Green ...... Tel. 922 2812
North
Henbury Area Office, Machin House, Machin Rd, Henbury ...... Tel. 903 9703
Southmead Area Office, Southmead House, Greystoke Avenue ...... Tel. 903 8700
Lockleaze Area Office,10 Lockleaze Rd, Horfield ...... Tel. 969 3125
Shirehampton Area Office, Napier House, Meadow Grove ...... Tel. 903 9731
Lawrence Weston Area Office, Ridingleaze House, Ridingleaze .....Tel. 903 1700
If you have no children with you and are not expecting a child, and are homeless, please contact The Hub Advice Centre, Cumberland Street, off Brunswick Square, tel. 909 6000.
In the case of an emergency out of hours, please contact the police on 927 7777.
If you have any queries, please contact the Housing Access Team, Sinnott House, Broomhill Road, Bristol BS4 4UD, tel. 908 2329/30.
The Council and Homelessness in BristolLast changed 11 June 2004
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