In most cases, we would say you are homeless if you have
nowhere to stay or will have nowhere to stay in the next 28
days.
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There is a legal definition of homelessness and if you
contact us, we will ask you to provide us with information to help
us decide what type of assistance we can provide for you.
When considering if you are homeless, we need to ask the following
four questions:
- Are you eligible for assistance?
Explanation: we need to know if you were born outside the United
Kingdom because the help we are able to offer may depend on your
status.
- Are you actually homeless?
Explanation: we need to know if you have suitable accommodation
available to you which it is reasonable for you to occupy.
- Are you intentionally homeless?
Explanation: have
you done something on purpose which has caused you to become
homeless - for example, have you not been paying your rent?
- Are you in priority need?
Explanation: the
homelessness law says that certain households will be in 'priority
need' which means that the council must provide
certain services to this type of household.
Examples of people who are considered to be in priority need
are:
- applicants who are pregnant or who have dependent
children
- people who are vulnerable
- those who have suffered an emergency such as a fire or a
flood
- aged 16/17 years old
- homeless due to threats of violence likely to be carried
out
- some former prisoners and looked-after children
If you think that you may be homeless, please do not hesitate to
call our Homeless Helpline. Our trained advisors will treat your
call in the strictest confidence.
You can find the number for the Homeless Helpline by clicking on
'How to contact the Housing Service' on the right-hand side of this
page. | |
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| Please note - Some documents published before
1st December 2006 may contain incorrect contact
numbers. |
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