Local Government and Housing Act 1989

Restrictions on grant aidE+W

107 Certain dwellings and works excluded from grant aid.E+W

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

(a)it is an application which they are required to approve by virtue ofsection 112 below and completion of the relevant works is necessary to complywith a notice under section 189 of the M1Housing 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 ofsection 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 whichis not fit for human habitation, the local housing authority consider that thecarrying out of the relevant works will not be sufficient to cause thedwelling or house to be fit for human habitation;

(b)if or to the extent that the relevant works have been completed before thedate 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 ofthe notice of refusal, the authority intend to make a closing or demolitionorder relating to the dwelling, house or building under section 264 or section265 of the Housing Act 1985;

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

(e)if the dwelling, house or building is or forms part of a building of aclass designated under section 528 or section 559 of the Housing Act 1985(defective dwellings), the applicant is eligible for assistance under Part XVIof that Act in respect of a defective dwelling which is or forms part of thedwelling, house or building concerned and the relevant works are, within themeaning 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 localhousing authority consider that the carrying out of the relevant works willnot be sufficient to cause the building to meet the requirements mentioned inparagraphs (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 faras it relates to works which will be carried out in pursuance of agreementsentered into, or to be entered into, in pursuance of the scheme.

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

(5)Unless it is an application which they are required to approve by virtueof section 113 below, a local housing authority may not approve an applicationfor 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) abovespecify a description of works for which grant aid is not to be availablewithout his consent, a local housing authority may not approve an applicationfor a grant, so far as it relates to works of that description, unless theSecretary of State has given his consent with respect to those works.

(7)Directions under subsection (4) above may be made with respect to localhousing 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 particularlocal housing authority; or

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

108 Restriction on grants for works already begun.E+W

(1)Subject to subsections (2) and (3) below, a local housing authority maynot approve an application for a grant if the relevant works have beencommenced before the application is approved and shall serve a notice ofrefusal 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 approveby virtue of section 112 below if completion of the relevant works isnecessary 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 approveby virtue of section 113 below.

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

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

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

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

109 Owner-occupiers and tenants.E+W

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

110 Landlords.E+W

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

(a)where an application for a grant is accompanied by a certificate ofintended 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 certificateunder section 106(7) above; and

(c)where, by virtue of section 136 below, sections 104 and 106 above do notapply 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 bythe 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, theamount of the rent payable and of any increase which might reasonably beexpected 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 mightreasonably be expected to be obtained on a letting of the dwelling on the openmarket 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 rentofficers; and, for this purpose, in section 121 of the M2Housing Act 1988 (additional functions of rent officers) at the endof subsection (1) there shall be added the words “and applications to whichsection 110 of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 applies".

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

(a)to any obligation or practice on the part of the applicant to letdwellings 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 therent 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 theaggregate of the consideration under licences or lettings of the house inquestion and any reference to letting a dwelling shall be construedaccordingly.

(6)Where the application is for a grant in respect of the residence house ofan ecclesiastical benefice, paragraphs (b) and (c) of subsection (2) aboveshall 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 accountunder paragraph (b) or paragraph (c) of subsection (2) above so as todetermine an aggregate rent for the purposes of that subsection.

111 Tenants’ common parts applications.E+W

(1)This section applies where an application for a grant is a tenants’ commonparts application.

(2)The local housing authority shall decide how much of the cost of therelevant works is attributable to the applicants (in this section referred toas “the attributable cost”); and, for the purposes of thissection, the attributable cost is an amount equal to the proportion, referredto 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 ofthe applicant’s respective liabilities to carry out or contribute to thecarrying out of the relevant works bears to the aggregate of all suchliabilities on the part of all persons (including the applicants) so liable;or

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

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

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

(a)in a case where the attributable cost is calculated by reference to theproportion mentioned in paragraph (a) of subsection (3) above, according tothe proportion that his liabilities to carry out or contribute to the carryingout 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 theproportion mentioned in paragraph (b) of that subsection, equally;and the amount of grant payable shall be the aggregate of the grants thatwould be payable to each of the applicants under section 109 above or, in thecase of a participating landlord, section 110 above if each of the applicantswas an individual applicant under section 109 above or, as the case may be,section 110 above in respect of his apportionment of the attributable costunder paragraph (a) or, as the case may be, paragraph (b) above.