Emergency applications

What to expect if you need to make an emergency homeless application.

If we are unable to prevent your homelessness or to provide you with an alternative housing option you may need to make a homeless application to us.

This application asks the council to consider what duties we owe to you and what powers the law makes available to us to assist in housing you. In making a decision on your homeless application we have to consider Part VII of the Housing Act 1996 and the Homelessness Act 2002.

In making our decision, we will need to consider your eligibility for public funds, whether we consider you to be homeless, whether you have a priority need, whether you maybe considered intentionally homeless and finally whether you have a local connection to Exeter.

If we consider that you are eligible, that you are genuinely homeless and you have a priority need we will offer you temporary accommodation.

Priority need can apply to the following groups of people,

• 16/17 year olds
• Pregnant women
• People with dependant children
• People made vulnerable as a result of old age
• People made vulnerable as a result of a physical or mental health problem
• People who are homeless as a a result of a fire/flood or other emergency

This list is not exhaustive but is intended to act as a guide. 

After being provided with accommodation your case will then be passed to a dedicated Homelessness Officer to consider your application in more detail. The officer may investigate in more detail your homelessness or priority need and will ask you to attend an appointment to discuss your application. The officer will also consider the cause of your homelessness to assess whether you have caused your own homelessness or as the law describes it, become 'intentionally' homeless. This could apply to households who have previously been evicted for non payment off rent or anti social behaviour, however we will need to consider whether any previous actions were made out of choice.

We will then finally consider your local connection to Exeter, which would usually be met by residence of 6 in the last 12 months or 3 in the last 5 years, although family or employment connections can also be relevant.

If we find that you do not meet one of the criteria as outlined above we will write to you explaining this, you would then have a right to review that decision and your case will be passed to a senior officer to reassess. If you do chose to challenge a decision you would be advised to seek legal advice or assistance from the Citizens' Advice Bureau. It is important you make any challenge to a decision in writing and within 21 days of receiving your letter.

If we do consider you meet the criteria set out in the law  we write to you informing this and give you additional priority on the Housing Register where you will be advised to bid on available properties please see  Devon Home Choice

It is important to note that if we do accept a duty to house you permanently and you are successful for a property through Home Choice and we consider the property to be suitable and reasonable for you, if you refuse it we may not be able to assist you further.

If you need any further information on making a homeless application please contact the Housing Advice Team on 01392 265726.

If you are placed into Temporary Accommodation as an emergency it is likely that you will be placed into a Supported Temporary Accommodation (STA) or into Bed and Breakfast Accommodation.

The council has 5 accommodations sites in the city where we accommodate people who are homeless as an emergency the decision on where to place you depends on which vacancies we have that day. Details of the specific accommodation you will be offered will be provided to you by your Housing Advice Officer.

If you wish to comment on your temporary accommodation you can speak to the accommodation provider, your Housing Advice Officer or raise a general point to housing.advice@exeter.gov.uk

If following further investigations we accept a duty to house you permanently you will be moved to independent, self contained accommodation in a flat or house which the council lease from a private landlord whilst you wait to be permanently rehoused.