If you have nowhere to stay or are at risk of becoming homeless, the Advice Service can offer guidance and signpost you to specialist organisations to help you find your next steps. Please note, we cannot provide students with free accommodation.
The information below is based on guidance from the Shelter Housing Pages on Homelessness & Eviction.
If you are homeless, live in England and have British citizenship / right to remain in the UK take a look at Advice Now’s – What to do if you’re homeless guide.
Eviction
If you are being evicted or at risk of it, first make sure you have been informed about correctly and legally. This means receiving a correct notice from your landlord with enough time from your landlord.
This is because you do not have to leave as soon as you receive a notice, even if you have arrears. Your tenancy continues until you leave voluntarily or you're evicted by court bailiffs.
Legal Reasons & Notice Period
Landlords can evict using a Section 8 or 21 notice. These differ in that:
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Section 8 notice means you have an assured or AST and the landlord has a legal reason to evict you and they must only provide 2-weeks’ notice. Reasons include, if you:
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owe at least 2 months' rent (ground 8)
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owe some rent (ground 10)
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keep paying your rent late (ground 11)
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Section 21 notice the landlord does not need a reason for eviction, but they must provide a minimum 2 months’ notice
If you receive an eviction notice you should first, check that it is valid using the Shelter guides for Section 21 or Section 8. Use the Notice Checkers from Shelter to find out how much notice you should receive.
If your landlord’s notice is not valid, they cannot use it to evict you. They can only start the eviction process if their notice is valid.
If you are a lodger, or sub-tenant who lives with their landlord, the eviction process looks different and can carried out more easily by landlords – learn more on Eviction of lodgers - Shelter England.
Rent Arrears
Halls of Residence
If you're in University accommodation, find youself in financial hardship and unable to make your agreed rent payments, reach out to the Sales & Allocations team as soon as possible for guidance. Contact details:
If you are struggling to make payments:
It is important you seek help, please visit the Student Support and Welfare pages for guidance.
You may be offered to move to a more affordable room to reduce costs and help you repay the remaining balances on an agreed payment plan. Please note, this is considered on a case by case basis.
The University may terminate your contract, where the notice period will be stated in your Student Agreement Contract, usually this is 28 days.
Take a look at Student Living FAQs for more guidance if you are struggling to pay rent.
Private Accommodation
If you’re privately renting, struggling to pay rent and it is affecting your wellbeing, please visit the Student Support and Welfare team in the Student Centre. You can try different ways of managing arrears:
Try to negotiate a rent reduction - Shelter: Negotiating Reductions
See if there are ways to increase your income through a part-time job or hardship-funding. Take a look at our Money pages for ideas on how to increase your funding.
Try to work towards a repayment plan; send a repayment offer to your landlord e.g., paying an extra amount each month towards the arrears - Shelter: Rent Arrears Repayment
Speak to Citizens Advice to see if you can get
Extra money from a charity to help
“Breathing Space” which is 60 days where your landlord can’t contact you about arrears, make you pay or add interest. You will need to speak with an adviser to access this.
Please note, Shelter advises to avoid payday loans and doorstep lenders as these loans are expensive and often make your debt worse.
Illegal Eviction
For private tenants, property guardians and students in halls of residence - only court bailiffs can evict you. They must give you a legal notice, then apply for a court order.
If you have been issued an eviction notice, landlords cannot evict you, by:
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changing the locks while you're out
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threatening or harassing you to leave
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using force to make you leave
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stopping you from getting into parts of your home
If you are a lodger or share your space with your landlord the eviction process is different and landlords may be able to some of the above – Eviction of lodgers - Shelter England
If anyone other than a court bailiff makes you leave, it’s an illegal eviction.
Legal Advice & Representation
If you are risk of homelessness for any reason, you can access free legal advice as part of the Housing loss prevention advice service (HLPAS).
Use the Find a legal adviser on GOV.UK, tick 'Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service' and get advice by phone or face to face, or be referred for specialist advice.
They can also provide free legal representation should you go to court.
If you would like some guidance on how to get in touch with a Housing loss prevention advice service (HLPAS), contact us at the Advice Service and we can support you.
Getting Help
Take a look at the contacts provided below based on what you are experiencing. We have provided people to get in touch with if you or someone else are at risk of homelessness.
If you see people sleeping rough
If they need urgent medical care and attention, call 999 to get urgent help
If they are sleeping rough, you should alert StreetLink which is a national referral line to help local services to contact the individual to connect them to support and accommodation. Alerts are sent to outreach teams, who go out mostly at night to connect people sleeping rough to local support services.
If there is severe hot or cold weather, those who are homeless are able to access emergency weather accommodation through local councils. You do not need to meet any immigration, residence or priority need conditions to get this accommodation. How to access SWEP accommodation.
How do I help someone who is sleeping rough? | Homeless Link
If you have nowhere to stay
Homeless England allows you to search for accommodation nearby and it provides information about who can apply for this accommodation.
Contact your local council to find out if you're eligible for emergency housing if you meet priority needs. This is if you or someone you live with:
is at risk of abuse from a partner, ex or family member
is pregnant
lives with their dependent children
is homeless because of things like fire, flood or other disasters
If you can't stay in your home because of violence or abuse, you can also seek help from:
Look for alternative places to stay such as hostels, churches and night shelters. Scroll down halfway Shelter's Places to Stay for more information on how to do this.
Finding a long-term solution
Novus Homeshare is a scheme for affordable housing that matches people who have a spare room and require extra support around the house with individuals looking for affordable accommodation and willing to provide help at home. You can take a look at the opportunities available online.
Citizens Advice can offer you free impartial advice if you are facing homelessness, and can help you apply for help from your local council
Crisis offer advice and longer-term support for people who are facing homelessness to work towards achieving their goals
Young People
New Horizons Youth Centre - A charity organisation for people in London aged 16-24, they offer advice, food, laundry and shower facilities. They cannot provide emergency housing as it can take days, weeks or months.
P3 Charity - Funded by Hillingdon council, P3 provide accommodation and a package of support to people 16-24 who are homeless. Contact: 01895 436114
London Youth Gateway (LYG)
LGBTQ+ Community