Preventing homelessness
If you are at risk of losing your home and becoming homeless, you can approach the City of London for free advice and information about your housing options. If you are threatened with homelessness within 56 days or already homeless, we will consider our statutory duties to either prevent or relieve your homelessness following a full assessment of your current situation.
As part of your application you will be issued a Personalised Housing Plan which details reasonable steps that the City of London will agree with you to best prevent you from becoming homeless. The actions in the Plan may include some of the following options or advice:
If you are asked to leave by friends or family within 56 days, we will attempt to negotiate with them for you to remain living in the property or for you to be given sufficient time to secure alternative accommodation.
A breakdown in the relationship with your landlord or the person you are living with may be resolved by mediation. You may be referred to services like the Southwark Mediation Centre for help with this.
If your rent arrears have been caused by a temporary change in your income, we may advise that you approach your local Jobcentre or Local Authority to access services that can help you clear any outstanding arrears.
If you would like information on domestic abuse and homelessness support, as well as information about domestic abuse support in the City, please see here:
If you are in an emergency situation, please call 999 in the first instance. If you require an emergency refuge placement out of hours, please call the National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.
If you want to discuss your housing options with the Homelessness Team or arrange an appointment, please contact us.
If you have a tenancy and you are struggling to pay the rent, we may ask you to contact your local Housing Benefit team to see if you are entitled to Housing Benefit or Universal Credit. We may also advise you to apply for a Discretionary Housing Payment if there is a significant shortfall between your rent and your Housing Benefit/Universal Credit award.
Your landlord must follow legal procedures to recover possession of a property therefore it is important to get legal advice to ensure this is done correctly. If your landlord is trying to evict you illegally, you may be able to stay in your home. As part of your Plan we may refer to you seek further help from City Advice throughout the possession process.
The City of London Rent Deposit Scheme can help people with the cost of moving into the private rented sector. You will need to find your own affordable property, giving you freedom of choice over the location and type of accommodation. The scheme is open to homeless, low-income households with a local connection to the City of London.
You may also be eligible for other private renting schemes in the area which you live. Crisis have a database of schemes available in each area.
During your assessment we may also identify areas where you can reduce your expenditure, maximise your income and manage any debts. We may use a benefit calculator and refer you to City Advice to help you make positive changes to your finances.
There are a number of charities that can provide help to prevent service personnel from becoming homeless. We may recommend that you engage with their services. The charities include Veteran’s Aid and SSAFA, and other organisations can be found on the GOV.UK website.
We will offer you advice on finding accommodation, schemes to help you secure private rented accommodation, and social housing in the event that we are unable to help you remain living in your own home. If we are unable to prevent you from becoming homeless, we will explore other options with you as soon as possible.
If you are currently living in social housing your Advice and Homelessness Officer may discuss the Pan-London Housing Reciprocal Agreement with you, if appropriate for your circumstances. This is a voluntary collaboration between local authorities and registered housing providers in London. The purpose is to prevent homelessness in cases of domestic abuse, violence against women and girls (VAWG), hate crimes, where people are at risk of harms from gangs or youth violence or other high risk reasons. People must have an existing social tenancy and be at risk in their borough, so in need of a reciprocal move.
'Key workers' with a connection to the City of London can access self-contained properties to rent in the Peabody managed scheme at Nile Street. Applicants must be eligible for the housing register and once accepted will be nominated to Peabody for available vacancies. (You are a keyworker if you work for the City of London, City of London Police, St Bart's Hospital, The Barbican Centre or are a teacher working within the Square Mile).
NHAS is a partnership between Shelter and Citizen’s Advice. They have produced factsheets on a number of areas that can be used by the public.