HB & Supported Accommodation- The Difficult Questions
HB & Supported Accommodation: Key Issues - An In-Depth Look At Practitioners’ Trending FAQs
The Workshop is primarily aimed at local authority HB officers making decisions about supported accommodation cases, and managers planning the shape of their future services. The programme changes regularly to incorporate “hot” discussion topics.
Next Workshop:
Thursday, 1st October, 2026.
Extra Date Addded:
Thursday, 12th November, 2026.
Full-Day Workshop: (9:40 - 4:30)
Workshop Fee: £280 (No VAT)
Book 3 places and receive a 4th place FREE.
Also available for In-House Bookings for individual organisations, either On-Site or Online.
HB & Supported Housing - Key Issues
An In-Depth Look At Practitioners’ Trending FAQs
The Workshop focuses on a selection of frequently discussed issues raised by local authorities in our postbag and on discussion forums.
We begin with connections between non-profit bodies and the for-profit businesses from whom they procure various services, especially leased accommodation. The 2015 Wirralcase set the bar very high for any local authority seeking to “go behind” the Articles of Association of a non-profit body and allege that it is in reality no such thing; however, a recent Upper Tribunal decision from the North East has revisited this subject in the context of a tenancy being created to take advantage of the HB scheme. The day will begin with analysis of the key decisions over the years, considering what is and is not a possible warning sign that a tenancy has been created to take advantage of the HB scheme.
Local authorities are anticipating greater scrutiny of supported accommodation cases by external auditors, which in turn is leading to some rigorous evidence requests. We will analyse the law governing evidence in support of HB: from whom may the Council request evidence, what kind of evidence may the Council request, and what are the consequences if the person to whom the request is directed fails to comply with it. Many claimants in supported housing do not have mental capacity to handle their own HB claims: To whom should evidence requests be directed when this is the case? Delegates will also be reminded of the different but frequently confused roles of deputy, attorney and appointee – these terms are often used interchangeably but they are not the same thing. While on the subject of mental capacity we will also cover rent liability for those unable to act, looking at the roles of Health and Social Care professionals and the Court of Protection, “DoLs” and “best interests” decisions.
One of the most discussed and litigated questions about supported accommodation is whether the claimant receives more than minimalcare, support or supervision – especially support. The day will include a refresher session on this topic: is there any fixed number of hours per week of one-to-one support that is/isn’t sufficient? Must support necessarily always be carried out in the claimant’s home in his/her presence?.
With the roll-out of UC now almost complete, more cases are coming to light where there are difficulties around the interaction between HB and UC. Recently we have seen cases in which HB has been paid on the basis that the claimant occupied specified accommodation, but it is later discovered that s/he never did. Depending on whether, and if so when, the person has also claimed UC, this can be a tricky situation to unravel with a potential overpayment of HB and underpayment of UC. Delegates will learn how overpayments are calculated in such cases, Delegates will learn how overpayments are calculated in such cases, by whom and from whom they are recovered.
The final topic will be regulation of social housing in England: what are the limits on the amount that registered providers may charge, when do these limits not apply, what is the difference between social and non-social stock and what exactly is “Specialised Supported Housing” … and should local authorities be policing this regime anyway?
Delegates might well have their own cases that they would like to put forward for discussion during the day: With sufficient notice we can incorporate your questions as case studies, so please feel free to forward anything you would like us to consider to have raised! The Programme is flexible and may be revised/widened for any new FAQs that may arise up until the date the Workshop takes place.
Presented by the “HB Anorak”, Peter Barker, who has many years’ experience dealing with complex supported accommodation case work and representing both local authorities and providers in appeal cases.
Topics Covered:
Non-Profit Bodies
· Connections with property owners and care providers
· Created to take advantage?
· Upper Tribunal decisions
Evidence Of Care, Support And Supervision
· Who is required to provide evidence?
· What kind of evidence?
· Consequences of non-compliance
Mental Capacity
· Deputies, appointees and attorneys
· DoLs and best interests decisions
More Than Minimal Support
· How many hours?
· On site / off-site?
Interaction Between HB And Universal Credit
· Retrospective decisions about specified accommodation
· Identifying claimants with LCW
· Earnings and “floating off” UC
Social Housing Regulation In England
· Definitions
· Social v non-social stock
· Voids
Programme under constant review – other topics may be added and covered on the day as new FAQs emerge
In-House Workshop Required?
We are always pleased to arrange most of our Workshops, such as this one, for staff from an individual organisation to be held at their own training venue or by Zoom/TEAMS. Please email us with your requirements for details.