The Rent Officers (Housing Renewal Grants Functions) Order 1997

Statutory Instruments

1997 No. 778

HOUSING, ENGLAND AND WALES

The Rent Officers (Housing Renewal Grants Functions) Order 1997

Made

6th March 1997

Laid before Parliament

12th March 1997

Coming into force

7th April 1997

The Secretary of State for the Environment, as respects England, and the Secretary of State for Wales, as respects Wales, in exercise of the powers conferred upon them by section 121 of the Housing Act 1988(1) and of all other powers enabling them in that behalf, hereby make the following Order—

Citation, commencement and interpretation

1.—(1) This Order may be cited as the Rent Officers (Housing Renewal Grants Functions) Order 1997 and shall come into force on 7th April 1997.

(2) In this Order, “local housing authority” has the same meaning as in the Housing Act 1985(2).

Additional functions

2.—(1) Where, in connection with applications to which section 31 of the Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996(3) applies, a local housing authority seeks the advice of a rent officer on any matter pursuant to subsection (4) of that section, the rent officer shall provide the advice to the local housing authority in writing within the period of 45 working days beginning with the date on which he received the request for advice or, where he requests further information under paragraph (2), with the date on which he received the information, or as soon as practicable after that period.

(2) If a rent officer needs further information in order to give the advice, he shall serve notice in writing on the local housing authority requesting that information and until he receives it paragraph (1) shall not apply to the provision of that advice.

Signed by authority of the Secretary of State

David Curry

Minister of State,

Department of the Environment

5th March 1997

Signed by authority of the Secretary of State

Jonathan Evans

Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Wales

6th March 1997

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order specifies, as a function which rent officers are required to carry out in connection with applications to which section 31 of the Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996 applies (determination of amount of grant in case of landlord’s applications for housing renewal grant), the provision of advice sought by local housing authorities on any matter.

Article 2 requires rent officers to provide written advice within 45 working days of receipt of the request for advice or as soon as practicable thereafter. The article also makes provision for rent officers to seek further information from local housing authorities.

(1)

1988 c. 50. Subsection (1) of section 121 was amended by the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 (c. 42), section 110(3) and further amended by the Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996 (c. 53), paragraph 13 of Schedule 1. Subsections (4) to (6) were repealed, and subsection (7) was substituted, by the Social Security (Consequential Provisions) Act 1992 (c. 4), Schedule 1 and paragraph 104 of Schedule 2.

(2)

1985 c. 68.

(3)

1996 c. 53.