Help if you are homeless

We have a duty to help people who are homeless, in line with legal definitions. If you are homeless, or at risk of becoming homeless, we’d encourage you to get in touch straight away to see what help we might be able to offer.

Please fill in our online homelessness form and contact our team.

Email: housingsolutions@tamworth.gov.uk, call 01827 709709.

Out of hours: If you have nowhere to stay immediately and our offices are closed, you can seek advice by calling 01827 709709 and selecting option 1. Depending on your circumstances, we might be able to offer you short-term emergency accommodation while your situation is assessed.

What is classed as homeless

Even if you have somewhere to sleep in the immediate term, you could still be considered homeless, for example if:

• You have no home in the UK or abroad that you have a legal right to occupy (perhaps you’re sleeping on the sofa of friends or family, or staying at a hostel)
• You have a movable home, such as a boat or caravan, with nowhere it can be placed lawfully
• You are at risk of harm if you stay in your current home

We’ll need to establish whether you have a local connection to Tamworth, for example, if you live or work in the area and how long for, if you have close family in the area, or any other special circumstances.

If you have no connection to the town, we can refer you to the local council where you do have a safe local connection.

What happens next

After you have made contact via the methods above, we’ll work with you to try and prevent or relieve your homelessness. We’ll create a personal housing plan together which will contain reasonable steps for us both to make in order to find you somewhere to live.

This could include the offer of temporary accommodation.

If we have not been able to relieve your homelessness within 56 days, we’ll look at whether the council has a legal requirement to provide you with a home (housing duty). This could be in council housing, housing associations or supported accommodation.

We’ll need to be satisfied that:

• You are eligible for help
• You are homeless
• You have a priority need, for example you have children or are pregnant, you have health conditions or disabilities, are at risk of domestic abuse, or are vulnerable for other reasons
• You are not intentionally homeless

More useful help and information can be found on the Shelter website.

Documents

When you meet with us, you’ll be asked to bring relevant supporting information, including:

• Proof of identity or immigration status
• Eviction notice
• Proof of any medical conditions
• Proof of pregnancy if applicable

Duty to refer

If you work for another public sector service and are concerned that someone you are working with is homeless, or at risk of becoming homeless, you may have a duty to refer their case to us. Please visit our duty to refer page for more information.