Duty to refer
The Homelessness Reduction Act 2017 introduced a duty on specified public authorities to refer those who they think may be homeless or threatened with homelessness to local authority homelessness or housing options teams. This is for people who are likely to become homeless within 56 days.
The duty will help to ensure that services are working together effectively to prevent homelessness. They do this by ensuring that peoples’ housing needs are considered when they come into contact with public authorities.
Before making a referral a public authority must -
- have consent from the individual
- ask the individual which housing authority in England they would like the notification to be made to
- have consent that the individual's contact details can be shared so they can be contacted
This duty applies to -
- emergency departments
- hospitals in their function of providing inpatient care
- Jobcentre’s in England
- prisons
- probation services (including community rehabilitation companies)
- Secretary of State for defence in relation to members of the regular armed forces
- secure training centres
- secure colleges
- social service authorities (both adult and children’s)
- urgent treatment centres
- young offender institutions
- youth offending teams
If you are a public body that wants to refer a household that is homeless or threatened with homelessness to our Housing Options Team, email HRA.referrals@hullcc.gov.uk.