Local Government and Housing Act 1989

Restrictions on grant aid

107 Certain dwellings and works excluded from grant aid

(1) In each of the cases in subsection (2) below, the local housing authority may not approve an application for a grant unless—

(a) it is an application which they are required to approve by virtue of section 112 below and completion of the relevant works is necessary to comply with a notice under section 189 of the [1985 c. 68.] Housing Act 1985 (repair notice requiring works to render premises fit for human habitation); or

(b) it is an application which they are required to approve by virtue of section 113 below.

(2) The cases referred to in subsection (1) above are as follows—

(a) if, in the case of an application in respect of a dwelling or house which is not fit for human habitation, the local housing authority consider that the carrying out of the relevant works will not be sufficient to cause the dwelling or house to be fit for human habitation;

(b) if or to the extent that the relevant works have been completed before the date of service of the notice of refusal under section 116(1) below;

(c) if, within the period of three months beginning on the date of service of the notice of refusal, the authority intend to make a closing or demolition order relating to the dwelling, house or building under section 264 or section 265 of the Housing Act 1985;

(d) if, within the period of twelve months beginning on the date of service of the notice of refusal, the authority intend to declare a clearance area under section 289 of the Housing Act 1985 for an area which includes the dwelling, house or building;

(e) if the dwelling, house or building is or forms part of a building of a class designated under section 528 or section 559 of the Housing Act 1985 (defective dwellings), the applicant is eligible for assistance under Part XVI of that Act in respect of a defective dwelling which is or forms part of the dwelling, house or building concerned and the relevant works are, within the meaning of that Part, work required to re-instate that defective dwelling; and

(f) if, in the case of an application for a common parts grant, the local housing authority consider that the carrying out of the relevant works will not be sufficient to cause the building to meet the requirements mentioned in paragraphs (a) to (e) of section 604(2) of the Housing Act 1985.

(3) Where a group repair scheme has been approved by the Secretary of State, a local housing authority may not approve an application for a grant in so far as it relates to works which will be carried out in pursuance of agreements entered into, or to be entered into, in pursuance of the scheme.

(4) A local housing authority may not approve an application for a grant so far as it relates to works which are of a description excluded from grant aid by directions made by the Secretary of State.

(5) Unless it is an application which they are required to approve by virtue of section 113 below, a local housing authority may not approve an application for an HMO grant so far as it relates to works—

(a) which relate to means of escape from fire or other fire precautions; and

(b) which are required to be carried out under or by virtue of any enactment (whenever passed).

(6) If directions made by the Secretary of State under subsection (4) above specify a description of works for which grant aid is not to be available without his consent, a local housing authority may not approve an application for a grant, so far as it relates to works of that description, unless the Secretary of State has given his consent with respect to those works.

(7) Directions under subsection (4) above may be made with respect to local housing authorities generally or to a particular local housing authority.

(8) The Secretary of State may give his consent for the purposes of subsection (6) above—

(a) with respect to local housing authorities generally or to a particular local housing authority; or

(b) with respect to applications generally or to a particular description of applications.

108 Restriction on grants for works already begun

(1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3) below, a local housing authority may not approve an application for a grant if the relevant works have been commenced before the application is approved and shall serve a notice of refusal to that effect on the applicant.

(2) Subsection (1) above does not apply to—

(a) an application which the local housing authority are required to approve by virtue of section 112 below if completion of the relevant works is necessary to comply with a notice under section 189 of the Housing Act 1985 (repair notice requiring works to render premises fit for human habitation); or

(b) an application which the local housing authority are required to approve by virtue of section 113 below.

(3) Where the relevant works have not been completed, the authority concerned may approve the application for a grant if they are satisfied that there were good reasons for beginning the works before the application was approved.

(4) Where an authority decide to approve an application in accordance with subsection (3) above—

(a) they may, with the consent of the applicant, treat the application as varied so that the relevant works are limited to those that remain to be completed at the date of the application; and

(b) in determining for the purposes of sections 112, 114 and 115 below the physical condition of the dwelling, common parts or house or other building concerned, they shall consider the condition of the premises at the date of the application.

109 Owner-occupiers and tenants

(1) Where an application for a grant is accompanied by an owner-occupation certificate, a tenant’s certificate or a special certificate, then, if the financial resources of the applicant exceed the applicable amount, the amount of any grant which may be paid shall be reduced from what it would otherwise have been in accordance with regulations made by the Secretary of State with the consent of the Treasury.

(2) For the purposes of this Part, the Secretary of State may by regulations made with the consent of the Treasury—

(a) make provision for the determination of the amount which is to be taken to be the financial resources of an applicant for a grant; and

(b) make provision for the determination of the applicable amount referred to in subsection (1) above.

(3) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (2) above, regulations under this section—

(a) may make provision for account to be taken of the income, assets, needs and outgoings not only of the applicant himself but also of his spouse, any person living with him or intending to live with him and any person on whom he is dependent or who is dependent on him;

(b) may make provision for amounts specified in or determined under the regulations to be taken into account for particular purposes.

110 Landlords

(1) Subject to section 126 below, this section applies—

(a) where an application for a grant is accompanied by a certificate of intended letting with respect to a dwelling and is not a tenant’s application; and

(b) where an application for an HMO grant is accompanied by a certificate under section 106(7) above; and

(c) where, by virtue of section 136 below, sections 104 and 106 above do not apply to an application for a grant; and

(d) where an application for a grant is a landlord’s common parts application.

(2) Subject to the following provisions of this section and to section 116(5) below, the amount of the grant (if any) shall be such as may be determined by the local housing authority, having regard to—

(a) the cost of the relevant works;

(b) if the dwelling is currently let or subject to a statutory tenancy, the amount of the rent payable and of any increase which might reasonably be expected in that rent to take account of the relevant works, when completed;

(c) if paragraph (b) above does not apply, the amount of the rent which might reasonably be expected to be obtained on a letting of the dwelling on the open market under an assured tenancy (assuming that no premium is paid); and

(d) such other matters as the Secretary of State may direct.

(3) In considering the matters in paragraphs (b) and (c) of subsection (2) above, the local housing authority may seek and act upon the advice of rent officers; and, for this purpose, in section 121 of the [1988 c. 50.] Housing Act 1988 (additional functions of rent officers) at the end of subsection (1) there shall be added the words “and applications to which section 110 of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 applies”.

(4) Where the applicant is a charity or the application is in respect of glebe land, the local housing authority shall also have regard—

(a) to any obligation or practice on the part of the applicant to let dwellings at a rent less than that which could be obtained on the open market;

(b) to any financial resources available to the applicant in addition to the rent from the dwelling; and

(c) generally to the circumstances of the applicant concerned.

(5) In the case of an application for an HMO grant, in subsections (2) and (4) above, any reference to rent shall be construed as a reference to the aggregate of the consideration under licences or lettings of the house in question and any reference to letting a dwelling shall be construed accordingly.

(6) Where the application is for a grant in respect of the residence house of an ecclesiastical benefice, paragraphs (b) and (c) of subsection (2) above shall not apply and the local housing authority shall also have regard—

(a) to any financial resources available to the applicant; and

(b) generally to the circumstances of the applicant.

(7) In a case where the application is a landlord’s common parts application, each of the dwellings in the building concerned shall be taken into account under paragraph (b) or paragraph (c) of subsection (2) above so as to determine an aggregate rent for the purposes of that subsection.

111 Tenants' common parts applications

(1) This section applies where an application for a grant is a tenants' common parts application.

(2) The local housing authority shall decide how much of the cost of the relevant works is attributable to the applicants (in this section referred to as “the attributable cost”); and, for the purposes of this section, the attributable cost is an amount equal to the proportion, referred to in subsection (3) below, of the cost of the relevant works.

(3) The proportion mentioned in subsection (2) above is as follows—

(a) where it can be ascertained, the proportion that the aggregate of each of the applicant’s respective liabilities to carry out or contribute to the carrying out of the relevant works bears to the aggregate of all such liabilities on the part of all persons (including the applicants) so liable; or

(b) where the proportion mentioned in paragraph (a) above cannot be ascertained, the proportion that the number of applicants bears to the number of persons (including the applicants) liable to carry out or contribute to the carrying out of works to the building;

and in any case where the interest by virtue of which the liability referred to in paragraph (b) above arises is held jointly by two or more persons, those persons shall be regarded as a single person in deciding for the purposes of that paragraph the number of persons so liable.

(4) The local housing authority shall then apportion the attributable cost to each of the applicants—

(a) in a case where the attributable cost is calculated by reference to the proportion mentioned in paragraph (a) of subsection (3) above, according to the proportion that his liabilities to carry out or contribute to the carrying out of the relevant works bears to the aggregate of the applicants' liabilities mentioned in that paragraph; or

(b) in a case where the attributable cost is calculated by reference to the proportion mentioned in paragraph (b) of that subsection, equally;and the amount of grant payable shall be the aggregate of the grants that would be payable to each of the applicants under section 109 above or, in the case of a participating landlord, section 110 above if each of the applicants was an individual applicant under section 109 above or, as the case may be, section 110 above in respect of his apportionment of the attributable cost under paragraph (a) or, as the case may be, paragraph (b) above.