The Demoted Tenancies (Review of Decisions) (Wales) Regulations 2005

Welsh Statutory Instruments

2005 No. 1228 (W.86)

HOUSING, WALES

The Demoted Tenancies (Review of Decisions) (Wales) Regulations 2005

Made

26 April 2005

Coming into force

30 April 2005

The National Assembly for Wales, in exercise of the powers conferred upon it by section 143F(3) and (4) of the Housing Act 1996(1), makes the following Regulations:

Name, commencement and application E+W

1.—(1) These Regulations are called the Demoted Tenants (Review of Decisions) (Wales) Regulations 2005 and come into force on 30 April 2005.

(2) These Regulations apply in relation to dwelling-houses in Wales.

Commencement Information

I1 Reg. 1 in force at 30.4.2005, see reg. 1(1)

Persons who may carry out reviews E+W

2.—(1) A review under section 143F of the Housing Act 1996 of a decision to seek an order for possession of a dwelling-house let under a demoted tenancy (“the review”) must be carried out by a person who was not involved in that decision.

(2) Where the review is of a decision made by an officer of the landlord and is to be carried out by an another officer, the officer reviewing the decision must occupy a more senior position within the organisation of the landlord.

Commencement Information

I2 Reg. 2 in force at 30.4.2005, see reg. 1(1)

Notice of review E+W

3.  The landlord under the demoted tenancy must give the tenant not less than five clear days' notice of the date of the review.

Commencement Information

I3 Reg. 3 in force at 30.4.2005, see reg. 1(1)

Right to an oral hearing E+W

4.—(1) Where the tenant so requests, the review must be by way of an oral hearing.

(2) Any such request must be made to the landlord before the end of the period mentioned in subsection (1) of section 143F of the Housing Act 1996 (time permitted for requesting a review).

(3) If the tenant makes such a request the landlord must, when giving the tenant notice of the date of the review in accordance with regulation 3, also inform the tenant of the time and place at which the review will be heard.

Commencement Information

I4 Reg. 4 in force at 30.4.2005, see reg. 1(1)

Written representations E+W

5.  Whether or not the review is to be by way of an oral hearing —

(a) the tenant may make written representations to the landlord in connection with the review;

(b) such representations must be received by the landlord not less than two clear days before the date of the review; and

(c) the landlord must consider any such representations which are received by that date.

Commencement Information

I5 Reg. 5 in force at 30.4.2005, see reg. 1(1)

Review by way of an oral hearing E+W

6.—(1) Where the review is to be by way of an oral hearing, the tenant has the right to be heard and to be accompanied or to be represented by another person (whether or not that person is professionally qualified).

(2) The tenant or the tenant’s representative may —

(a) call persons to give evidence at the hearing;

(b) put questions to any person who gives evidence at the hearing.

(3) Subject to these Regulations, the procedure in connection with a review by way of an oral hearing is to be determined by the person carrying out the review.

Commencement Information

I6 Reg. 6 in force at 30.4.2005, see reg. 1(1)

Absence of tenant and representative from hearing E+W

7.—(1) This paragraph applies where notice has been given to the tenant in accordance with regulations 3 and 4(3) and neither the tenant nor the tenant’s representative appears at the hearing.

(2) Where paragraph (1) applies, the person carrying out the review may, having regard to all the circumstances —

(a) proceed with the hearing; or

(b) give such directions with a view to the conduct of the review as that person considers appropriate.

Commencement Information

I7 Reg. 7 in force at 30.4.2005, see reg. 1(1)

Postponement of hearing E+W

8.—(1) The tenant may request the landlord to postpone a hearing of which notice has been given in accordance with regulations 3 and 4(3) and the landlord may grant or refuse the request.

(2) If the hearing is postponed the landlord must give the tenant reasonable notice of the date, time and place of the postponed hearing.

Commencement Information

I8 Reg. 8 in force at 30.4.2005, see reg. 1(1)

Adjournment of hearing E+W

9.—(1) A hearing may be adjourned by the person carrying out the review at any time, either on that person’s own initiative or at the request of the tenant, the tenant’s representative or the landlord.

(2) Where more than one person is carrying out the review by way of an oral hearing, the hearing must be adjourned on each occasion on which any of those persons is absent, unless the tenant or the tenant’s representative agrees otherwise.

(3) The landlord must give the tenant reasonable notice of the date, time and place of the adjourned hearing.

(4) If the person carrying out the review at the adjourned hearing is not the same person as the person who was carrying out the review at the earlier hearing, the review must proceed by way of a complete rehearing of the case unless the tenant or the tenant’s representative agrees otherwise.

Commencement Information

I9 Reg. 9 in force at 30.4.2005, see reg. 1(1)

Signed on behalf of the National Assembly for Wales under section 66(1) of the Government of Wales Act 1998(2)

D. Elis-Thomas

The Presiding Officer of the National Assembly

26 April 2005

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

Section 14 of the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003 amended Part 4 of the Housing Act 1985 (c. 68) to allow a secure tenancy of a local housing authority, a housing action trust or a registered social landlord to be brought to an end and replaced with a less secure demoted tenancy by a demotion order made by a county court. Schedule 1 to the 2003 Act inserted further provisions regarding demoted tenancies as a new Chapter 1A of Part 5 of the Housing Act 1996.

If a landlord wishes to end a demoted tenancy it must serve the tenant with a notice stating that the landlord has decided to apply to the court for an order for possession, setting out the reasons for that decision and informing the tenant of the tenant’s right to request a review of the decision. These Regulations make provision about the procedure to be followed in such a review.

Regulation 2 provides that a review must be undertaken by a person who was not involved in the original decision. If the original decision was made by an officer then any review of that decision by another officer may only be carried out by an officer occupying a more senior position within the landlord’s organisation than the officer who made the original decision.

Regulation 3 requires the landlord to give the tenant notice of the date of the review.

Regulation 4 enables the tenant to obtain an oral hearing in certain circumstances and explains how that right may be exercised.

Regulations 5 to 9 set out the details of the review procedure.

(1)

1996 c. 52; section 143F was inserted by section 14 of and Schedule 1 to the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003. The functions of the Secretary of State under Part 5 of the Housing Act 1996 are, so far as exercisable in relation to Wales, transferred to the National Assembly for Wales by article 2 of the National Assembly for Wales (Transfer of Functions) Order 1999 (SI 1999/672, to which there are amendments not relevant to these Regulations) and section 17 of the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003.

(2)

1988 c. 38