Slough Borough Council: Reviews and appeals

Reviews and appeals

Local Housing Allowance is fair

Tenants with similar circumstances will usually get the same amount of Reviews and Local Housing Allowance (LHA). Local Housing Allowance is based on the rent levels for the area a person lives in and how many people live in the household – not the amount of rent that is charged.

The Rate of Local Housing Allowance

The Rent Service, an organisation separate from the council, set the levels of Local Housing Allowance for the different sizes of property in each area. Tenants cannot dispute, or ask for a review of the Local Housing Allowance rates or the Broad Rental Market Area (BMRA) on which they are based, for the area they live in.

Payments

Payments of Local Housing Allowance are usually made to the person claiming benefit. As currently happens, any decision made relating to direct payment of housing benefit can be appealed against by any person affected i.e. the claimant or landlord.

Overpayments

Overpayments happen when a tenant is paid more benefit than they are entitled to. Repayment of an overpayment is normally sought from the person that caused the overpayment.

Decisions

Decisions about benefit entitlement and overpayments are sent to tenants, their representatives, and where appropriate their landlords, in a letter.

If you disagree with a decision

If you think our decision is wrong you can:

Ask for an explanation
Ask for a written statement of reasons
Ask for the decision to be looked at again (review)
If you still disagree you can appeal to an independent tribunal

If you disagree with our decision you must do so in writing within one month of the date on the decision letter. In your letter you must say what you think is wrong about the decision.

Who can disagree with a decision?

Someone who is affected by the decision can dispute it, including:

The person making the claim
Someone who is appointed by the courts to act on behalf of the person making the claim
Someone who the council agrees is appointed to act on behalf of the person making the claim
A landlord/agent – but only about who benefit may be paid to
Any person to whom an overpayment notification letter has been sent

If you appeal and Slough Borough Council do not change their decision, we will refer the matter to the Tribunal Service. If you ask us to review our decision and you are unhappy with our reply you can still appeal to the Tribunal Service.

To find out more and to get in touch with the Appeals Service, you can visit the Appeals Service website. There is also a leaflet below that you can download to view details of reviews and appeals on local housing allowance.