Family Early Help
Are Afghan Refugees Entitled to Housing?
The simple answer is yes, because they have been granted indefinite leave to remain and therefore have housing-related rights. But, the circumstances for Afghan refugees make it a bit more complicated.
The Home Office Resettlement Offer
The Home Office is responsible for making housing resettlement offers to all Afghan evacuated refugees under two schemes, the ARAP scheme and the ACRS scheme. This includes accommodation. You can read more about the two schemes here
Local authorities nationwide tell the Home Office what accommodation they can make available for the resettlement scheme. The Home Office match an Afghan refugee family to the most appropriate accommodation.
This matching process will take account of the size of the family and the accommodation offered to ensure appropriate space. It will also take account of any special needs of the family, such as adapted accommodation or access to specialist health provision.
The Home Office contact the family to offer the resettlement accommodation and arrange transport.
Camden has committed to giving 5 units of accommodation to the Home Office resettlement scheme to start with. Remember that the Home Office could offer Camden's resettlement accommodation to any Afghan refugee family, in any bridging hotel, anywhere in the UK. Just because you are in a bridging hotel in Camden does not mean the Home Office will offer you resettlement accommodation in Camden.
What Benefits Are There to the Home Office Resettlement Offer?
The resettlement offer is usually a very good one, because it comes with lots of wraparound support to help the refugee and their family to settle into life in their new local area and into life in the UK. This includes:
- accommodation, furnished appropriately including white goods. Households will cover rental costs themselves using universal credit or other income, but additional funding has been made available for sponsoring LAs to help meet additional housing costs where there are shortfalls.
- Access to a caseworker to help them navigate, access and register with mainstream services (including schools' registration, GP registration, Job Centre Plus appointments and utility registration). The caseworker will also provide advice around and referral to appropriate mental health services.
- School places will be provided and nursery places for 2-4 year olds facilitated. Further education will be available for 16-19 year olds.
- Arrivals will receive weekly cash and rent support up to the day before the first UC payment is due. The amount of support received will be dependent on circumstances - £59.20 per week (for single adults under 25); £74.70 per week (for single adults over 25); £117.40 per week (for couples); £37.75 per week (for children) – together with £15 per person per day for rent until they receive the UC Housing element.
What if an Afghan refugee family decide to turn down the Home Office resettlement offer?
The family are of course entitled to turn down the Home Office resettlement offer if they choose to, but there are considerable downsides to think about:
- The resettlement package includes a placement into a tenancy (private or social) with a package of support, whereas the main homelessness duty will very likely result in providing temporary accommodation until settled housing can be offered. This may take some time.
- This is a particular challenge in places like London where there is a shortage of social housing and often long waiting lists for housing.
- the package offered through the Home Office resettlement programme is not available to homeless applicants - that means the family would not be likely to get the benefits listed above.
If an Afghan refugee family present to the local authority as homeless, they will consider the individual circumstances of each case and whether they owe statutory duties towards the household.
They will assess if the household are homeless and confirm eligibility. Assessment of homelessness would include whether it is reasonable for the applicant to remain in their current accommodation, which may be bridging accommodation until such time as settled housing is offered to them (which could be some time).
If an Afghan refugee family you are working with are considering turning down the Home Office resettlement package:
- contact Camden's Housing Needs team for advice so you can give factual information to the family. Contact Jane Mulholland (on Outlook)
- connect the family to housing legal advice services so they can feel clear on their housing-related rights. You can find a list of legal services here https://ascpractice.camden.gov.uk/early-help-guide/family-early-help-covid-guidebook/legal-debt-welfare-and-other-advice/
You can read more about refugee housing rights here
https://www.housing-rights.info/03_2_Refugees.php#housing-and-benefits
What About British Nationals who were Evacuated?
Some of the families evacuated from Afghanistan are UK passport holders who are not eligible for the ARAP or ACRS schemes.
In those circumstances, the local authority will consider the individual circumstances of each case and consider if they owe statutory duties towards the household.
Where such families are in bridging accommodation provided by the Home Office we would encourage them to stay there.
Government is gathering more information on the circumstances of British nationals and their support needs. We will provide more information as soon as we are able.
What is the Habitual Residence Test?
In your work with Afghan refugees, you might hear this term. Habitual residence test is complicated, but generally means being able to show the UK is your main home, that you plan to stay here and that you have a 'right to reside'.
You can read more about habitual residence test here
https://www.housing-rights.info/habitual-residence-test.php
On 15 September 2021, the Government amended legislation on the habitual residence test. The changes ensure that people arriving under ARAP or ACRS schemes are exempt from the residency tests for:
- DWP means-tested benefits, including Universal Credit and Housing Benefit
- disability and carer benefits
- child Benefit
- homelessness assistance
- social housing
This means that they are deemed to meet residency requirements, and are able to access these benefits and services when they arrive in the UK