The Housing (Homeless Persons) (Property and Staff) Order 1977

Transfer of officers

8.—(1) Every officer allocated by any scheme made under article 7 for transfer to a district council shall, to the extent of the allocation, be transferred on the appointed day to the employment of that council.

(2) (a) Subject to sub-paragraphs (b) and (c), any other officer of a county council—

(i) who was, immediately before the appointed day, under any arrangements made by the county council with a district council, employed wholly or mainly in the discharge by the county council of any of the functions of the district council under the Act, or

(ii) whose services were, immediately before the appointed day, under any agreement entered into by the county council with a district council, wholly or mainly at the disposal of the district council for the purposes of any of those functions,

shall on the appointed day be transferred to the employment of the district council.

(b) Sub-paragraph (a) shall not apply to any person unless—

(i) he was employed, or his services were available, wholly or mainly in premises transferred by article 3 to the district council on the appointed day, or

(ii) he was operating wholly or mainly from such premises, or

(iii) he was otherwise employed, or his services were otherwise available, wholly or substantially so in relation to the district.

(c) sub-paragraph (a) shall not apply to any person who immediately before the commencement of the Act was employed wholly or mainly in the discharge of any of the county council's social services functions, not being a person whose duties in that employment were wholly or mainly of an administrative nature or consisted wholly or mainly in the carrying out of manual work.

(d) In sub-paragraph (c) the expression “social services functions” has the meaning assigned to it by section 3(3) of the Local Authority Social Services Act 1970.

(e) Sub-paragraphs (f) to (h) shall have effect in the application of sub-paragraph (a).

(f) Where on the appointed day any officer has not taken up the duties of his appointment he shall for the purposes of sub-paragraphs (a) to (c) above be deemed to have done so.

(g) Where any officer is on the appointed day absent from his normal duties for the purposes of undergoing training sub-paragraphs (a) and (b) shall apply—

(i) if it was part of the arrangements under which he is so absent that at the completion of such training he should be employed in a place, situation or employment different from the place, situation or employment which he occupied prior to the commencement of the training, as if he was, on the appointed day, occupying such different place, situation or employment;

(ii) otherwise as if he was, on the appointed day, occupying the place, situation or employment which he occupied immediately prior to the commencement of such training.

(h) Where any officer is on the appointed day absent from his normal duties otherwise than for the purpose of undergoing training he shall be deemed to be discharging such duties, and to be discharging them in, or from the premises in, or from, which he normally discharges them.

(3) The transfer effected by paragraph (2) in its application to any authority applies in the case of a person not in the whole-time employment of the authority to the extent of that person's employment with the authority.

(4) Any officer who is likely to be transferred by paragraph (2) shall be notified by the county council of such likelihood not later than one month before the appointed day, and (unless such copy has already been supplied) shall be supplied with a copy of articles 7 to 16.

(5) (a) The following questions by an officer of any authority, namely—

(i) any question of hardship; and

(ii) any question whether paragraph (2)(a) applies to him,

shall be determined in accordance with the arrangements applicable to the determination of disputes as to employment and terms and conditions thereof between the officer and the authority.

(b) Any question described in item (ii) of sub-paragraph (a) shall be raised as soon as may be and in any case not later than the expiration of 2 months (or such longer period as may be agreed by the authority) from the notification under paragraph (4).

(c) Where any question described in sub-paragraph (a) has been determined before the appointed day in such manner that no transfer of the officer is appropriate the officer shall not be transferred by this article.

(d) Where any such question is so determined in such manner that a transfer of the officer otherwise than in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (1) or (2) is appropriate the officer shall be transferred on the appointed day in accordance with the determination.

(e) Where any such question is determined on or after the appointed day in such manner that a transfer or further transfer of the officer is appropriate the officer shall be transferred in accordance with the determination at the expiration of 28 days from the date thereof or such other date as may be agreed by the authorities concerned and the officer.

(f) Where it is determined that an officer will sustain or has sustained hardship in consequence of his transfer (and sub-paragraph (c), (d) or (e) is not applicable) the authority to whom he will be or has been transferred shall in consultation with the officer and representatives of their employees seek a remedy and, to later than the expiration of two months (or such longer period as may be agreed by the officer) following the notification of the determination, notify the officer of any remedy which they are able to offer him or that they are unable to offer him any remedy but that an allowance would be paid to him in respect of the hardship.

(g) In either event, the officer shall be informed that he may, subject to sub-paragraph (j), request that his employment be terminated and of his entitlements if it is so terminated.

(h) Any remedy offered under sub-paragraph (f) may be accepted by the officer within the 2 months following the notification thereof, or within such longer period as may be agreed by the authority.

(i) An allowance in respect of hardship shall be by periodic payments of such amount as may be determined by agreement between the officer and the authority or failing such agreement in accordance with the arrangements applicable to the determination of disputes as to employment and terms and conditions thereof between them. In the event of any change of circumstances the payment of the allowance or the amount thereof may be reviewed by such agreement or failing agreement in accordance with such arrangements.

(j) No such request as is described in sub-paragraph (g) shall be made after the expiration of 2 months from the determination of the amount of the periodic payments of the allowance.

(k) Article 15 shall not apply to any officer to whom an allowance is payable under this paragraph.

(l) If the remedy offered is, with the agreement of the authority from whose employment the officer was transferred, transfer back to the employment of that authority, and that remedy is accepted by the officer and he is so transferred, paragraph (12) of article 9, and articles 10 to 16, shall cease to apply to him. Otherwise, such provisions shall apply to any officer transferred under sub-paragraph (f) as they apply to officers transferred by this article.