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Tenants Handbook

Some key facts...

Below are some of the key facts taken from the Tenants Handbook, click on a link below to go to the relevant section.

Or a full copy of the handbook can be viewed here

Right to view your personal file:

Joint tenancies:

(A joint tenancy is where two or more people sign the tenancy agreement and share the tenancy.)

All the joint tenants of a council property have the same full rights, and are equally responsible for meeting all the tenancy responsibilities.
This means that conditions of the tenancy agreement are the equal responsibility of the all joint tenants.
For example, each joint tenant is responsible for ensuring all the rent is paid, not just part of it, and for the whole amount of any arrears.
If you apply for re-housing with another adult, the council will offer you a joint tenancy with them, except where:
You were the sole tenant before your partner move in, you are moving as a transfer, decant or exchange, and you want to keep the tenancy in your name alone.
You have legal custody of children from a former relationship. In which case you will be offered a sole tenancy.
If you are a sole tenant and wish to change this to a joint tenancy with another adult, the council will only allow this where the other adult is someone who would qualify in law to inherit or "success" to the tenancy. This includes a wife or a husband or a registered partner, co-habitee, parent, child and other close relations.
If one of the joint tenants dies, the tenancy continues in the name of the surviving joint tenant, which becomes a successor. (See the next section for further details.) That person takes over all outstanding responsibilities of the tenancy, including the rent arrears.
If one of the joint tenants wishes to end his or her tenancy, then all the joint tenants should contact the area housing office. However, it is important to understand that a joint tenancy can be ended by any of the joint tenants giving notice alone, and without the other joint tenant(s) knowing. Please contact your housing officer for advice.

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Succession:

If you are a secure tenant, on your death the tenancy may pass to either:
Your spouse or registered partner, providing s/he was living with you as his or her only or principal home.

Another family member, proving they had been living with you as their only or principal home for the 12 months before your death.
A family member can be a co-habitee, parent, child, grandparent, brother, sister or other close relative.
The surviving spouse or registered partner or joint tenant automatically succeeds to the tenancy.
If there is more than one person qualified to succeed to the tenancy, they can choose between them who the successor should be. If they cannot decide then the council will chose the successor, taking into account all the circumstances.
The council will not grant a joint tenancy to a successor.
If you are a successor, in certain circumstances you may be asked to move to another home. This could happen if the property is too big for your needs or is you are left in a home that is adapted for a specific need and you or your family do not have that need. The council would have to find you suitable alternative accommodation if you were asked to move on these grounds.
A secure tenancy can be handed on only once, so if you are already a successor then on your death the secure tenancy cannot be passed on to anyone else. However, the council recognises that this may produce unfair hardship in exceptional circumstances. In these cases the council may use its discretion to offer a further secure tenancy.
You should see your housing office for all matters relation to succession. The housing officer must be told if a tenant dies.

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Assignment:

Assignment means completely signing over your tenancy rights to someone else and moving out of your home.
It is a condition of your tenancy that you must not assign your tenancy without obtaining the written consent of the council first.
If you do assign your tenancy with this consent, you will be in breach of your tenancy agreement and the council will normally seek a possession order against you. This would mean you or whoever is living in your home would be evicted.
In general, the council will not agree to assignments, except in circumstances where the tenant wishes to pass on his or her tenancy to a person who would normally be qualified to inherit or succeed to the tenancy on the death of the present tenant, or where a court order has been obtained as part of matrimonial proceedings. If you wish to apply to assign your tenancy you must contact your housing officer.
Lodgers and sub-letting part of your home
There is a legal difference between a lodger and a sub-tenant. A lodger is someone who pays you rent, lives with you as part of the family and who eats meals with you.
You have the right to take in a lodger, and you do not need the council's permission to do so. However, please contact your housing officer or an advice agency if you want to have a lodger, just in case there would be any problems.
A sub-tenant is someone who pays you rent, who lives separately from you and your family and who cooks their own meals.
You have the right to sub-let part of your home, but you must get the council's permission first. The council cannot refuse permission without good reason, (e.g. it would cause overcrowding). If the council gives permission, it cannot attach any condition.
If permission is refused, then the reasons will be given in writing. If you feel this is unreasonable, you have the right to challenge the refusal in court. The council will have to prove its case, not you. The court will look at all the circumstances in deciding whether the refusal was unreasonable, paying attention to the possibility that subletting could lead to overcrowding, and any plans the council may have to make changes to your home.
If you sub-let part of your home without the council's permission, you may be asked to evict the sub-tenant. If you do not do this, you will have broken the conditions of your tenancy and the council might apply to court for a possession order.
The difference between a lodger and a sub-tenant is very complex in law, but the simplest test of the difference is that a lodger would normally live and eat with the family as part of the household; a sub-tenant would normally live separately from the household, under a more formal arrangement.
In no circumstances are you permitted to sublet the whole of your property. You must always live there yourself as your only or principal home. If you do sub-let the whole property, then you make your tenancy insecure, and the council would take court action to repossess the property.

There are some important legal points about taking in lodgers and sub-tenants. For instance:

You will become the landlord of the lodger or sub-tenant, which means there are legal responsibilities for both parties.
It is your responsibility to make sure the lodger or sub-tenant does not do anything that breaks your tenancy agreement with the council.
A lodger or sub-tenant cannot take over the tenancy, and must vacate the home if you do. The council has no responsibility for re-housing them.
You should have a written and signed agreement with the lodger or sub-tenant.
You should give your lodger or sub-tenant a rent book or receipts for the rent paid.
You are therefore strongly advised to take legal advice before you commit yourself to any arrangement, especially if you are not sure whether the person living with you would be a lodger or sub-tenant.
If you are getting housing benefit you must contact the area housing office, because the rent you are paid from a lodger or sub-tenant will count as part of your income and might affect the amount of housing benefit you are entitled to get. If you don't tell the council about the rent, you could receive too much benefit and you will be expected to repay it.

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Family break-up:

If your family has to break up you may have problems about your accommodation. For instance, you may find it difficult to keep up regular rent payments or you may feel threatened and unable to continue occupying your home.
In all cases you should contact your housing officer as quickly as possible, who can give you advice and information on your best course of action.
Sometime the council can help with re-housing. However, as this is not always the case, advice on divorce and custody matters is available from some of the advice agencies listed in the "Useful addresses and telephone numbers" chapter [hyper link].

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Ending the tenancy:

You must give the council four weeks' notice in writing that you want to end the tenancy. The notice must end on a Monday. You should do his even if you are moving to another council property otherwise the council may charge you extra rent. If you think you have good reason to give less than four weeks' notice, you must contact your housing officer to discuss this. The area housing office can give you a form to write your notice on.
Send your notice to your housing officer. If you have a joint tenancy, then all the joint tenants should sign the letter. If it is not possible for everyone to sign, for instance if one person has left, then the signatures will still be valid on their own. Tell your housing officer the actual date you are moving so that the council can make sure the property is locked up properly.
At the end of a tenancy the council must have vacant possession. This means your family and any other occupants must move out at the same time as you. You may be responsible for court charges if anyone remains in occupation.
Do not remove any fixtures and fittings that belong to the council or you will be charge for any work the council does to replace them similarly, you will be charged for any damage to the property considered to be above and beyond normal wear and tear.
Anything you leave behind becomes the property of the council and may be disposed of.
When you leave, you must return all keys to the area housing office. This includes garage, entryphone and shed keys. Please label them. You will then receive a dated receipt to prove you returned them. If you keep any keys after the date the tenancy ends, the council may charge you for new locks or lost rent, or make a claim against you if squatters move into the property [hyper link to squatters and unauthorised occupants].

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Right to view your personal file:

As your landlord, the council holds information about you and your family. You have the right to access this information, and you can ask to see your file by contacting the housing officer at your area housing office, to arrange and appointment.
You may challenge the accuracy of any of the information held on your file. If we agree the information is inaccurate, we must correct it. If we don't agree, then we must note on the file that you dispute what is written there, and you are given a copy of the statement. We also have to write to you explaining our reasons for not amending the file as you have asked.
You can request copies of the information on your file, and a charge of 10p per copy will be made.

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