Housing Act 1996

Part I Housing management

Repeal of Part IV of the Housing Act 1988

1 Part IV of the [1988 c. 50.] Housing Act 1988 (change of landlord: secure tenants) is hereby repealed.

Payments to encourage local housing authority tenants to move to other accommodation

2 (1) A local housing authority may make payments to or for the benefit of a tenant or licensee of a dwelling-house within its Housing Revenue Account with a view to assisting or encouraging that person to move to qualifying accommodation.

(2) In sub-paragraph (1) “qualifying accommodation” means a dwelling-house made available to the person concerned as tenant or licensee by any of the following—

(a) the local housing authority making the grant or any other local housing authority; or

(b) a registered social landlord.

(3) The reference in sub-paragraph (1) to a dwelling-house being within the Housing Revenue Account of a local housing authority is to a dwelling-house to which section 74(1) of the [1989 c. 42.] Local Government and Housing Act 1989 for the time being applies.

(4) In this paragraph—

• “dwelling-house” has the meaning given by section 112 of the [1985 c. 68.] Housing Act 1985; and

• “tenant” does not include a tenant under a long tenancy as defined in section 115 of that Act.

Consultation with respect to housing management

3 (1) Part II of the Housing Act 1985 (provision of housing accommodation) is amended as follows.

(2) After section 27B insert—

“Consultation with respect to housing management

27BA Consultation with respect to management

(1) The Secretary of State may make regulations for imposing requirements on a local housing authority to consult tenants, or to consider representations made to them by tenants, with respect to the exercise of their management functions (including proposals as to the exercise of those functions), in relation to any of the authority’s houses or other land held for a related purpose.

(2) The regulations may include provision requiring a local housing authority to consult tenants, or consider representations made by tenants, with respect to—

(a) the terms of a written specification to be prepared by the authority of functions proposed to be exercised by the authority or another person;

(b) a proposal of the authority to exercise management functions themselves;

(c) any person whom the authority propose to invite to submit a bid to exercise any of their management functions;

(d) the standards of service for the time being achieved by the authority or (as the case may be) the person with whom they have entered into a management agreement;

(e) a proposal to enforce the standards of service required by a management agreement.

(3) The requirements imposed on a local housing authority by the regulations may include provision with respect to—

(a) the tenants to be consulted or whose representations are to be considered;

(b) the means by which consultation is to be effected (including the arrangements to be made for tenants to consider the matters on which they have been consulted);

(c) the arrangements to be made for tenants to make representations to the authority;

(d) the action to be taken by the authority where representations are made.

(4) The regulations may include provision requiring a local housing authority to consult representatives of tenants, or to consider representations made to them by such representatives, as well as (or instead of) the tenants themselves; and accordingly, references in subsections (1) to (3) above to tenants include references to such representatives.

(5) The regulations may include provision for particular questions arising under them to be determined by a local housing authority on whom they impose requirements.

(6) Nothing in subsections (2) to (5) above shall be taken as prejudicing the generality of subsection (1).

(7) Regulations under this section—

(a) may make different provision with respect to different cases or descriptions of case, including different provision for different areas,

(b) may contain such incidental, supplementary or transitional provisions as appear to the Secretary of State to be necessary or expedient, and

(c) shall be made by statutory instrument which shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.

(8) Except as otherwise provided by the regulations, in the case of secure tenants, the provisions of the regulations shall apply in place of the provisions of section 105 (consultation on matters of housing management).

(9) Except as otherwise provided by the regulations, in the case of introductory tenants, the provisions of the regulations shall apply in place of the provisions of section 137 of the Housing Act 1996 (consultation on matters of housing management).

(10) References in this section to the management functions of a local housing authority in relation to houses or land shall be construed in the same way as references to any such functions in section 27.”

(3) In section 20(1) (application of housing management provisions) for “section 27B” substitute “section 27BA”.

(4) In section 27 (management agreements), after subsection (5) insert—

“(5A) Nothing in section 6 of the [1988 c. 9.] Local Government Act 1988 (restrictions on authority carrying out functional work) shall apply in relation to any management functions which, in pursuance of a management agreement, are carried out by the manager as agent of the local housing authority.”

(5) In section 27AB (management agreements with tenant management organisations), in subsection (7)(b)(i), for the words from “section 27A” to the end substitute “regulations under section 27BA (consultation with respect to management)”.