Workshop Details

Understanding Housing Benefit & Applying Best Practice

Understanding Housing

Benefit Subsidy

Always a very popular and well received Workshop, John Zebedee will provide delegates with a good understanding of all the key procedures and rules that relate to Housing Benefit Subsidy issues. 

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When it comes to Housing Benefit Subsidy matters the comment is often made that “I know why we have to do something a particular way, but not why.” This updated Workshop for 2010/11 will provide delegates with a sound background for this understanding to be achieved. Delegates regularly comment on John’s ability to make the complex rules easier to understand and the topic interesting, especially by enabling people to learn where the money comes from and where it goes.

The Workshop begins with a general introduction to the topic which explains what subsidy is, and the difference between qualifying expenditure and penalised expenditure.

A substantial section follows which covers subsidy matters relating to overpayments:

• how to categorise overpayments;
• how to ensure that something is not categorised as an overpayment when no overpayment has occurred;
• the different rates of subsidy;
• how subsidy is affected by the recovery of an overpayment;
• how the DWP’s new concept of ‘administrative delay’ fits into the law;
• subsidy losses in local authority cases;
• official error by the authority, the DWP and by the Revenue;
• claimant error and fraud;
• retrospective changes to Council Tax liability;
• duplicate payments and how they arise; and
• deciding liability to refund debts caused by overpayments.

The third part of the courses covers eligible rent and rent restrictions:

• how subsidy (and other rules) are used to control expenditure;
• an overview of different types of HB case – across all kinds of social and private tenants;
• new tables explaining supported and exempt accommodation rules;
• the over-riding power to restrict eligible rent;
• the dangers of non-referral in rent referral cases;
• the restrictions for council tenants; and
• the rules about temporary accommodation for homeless people – the April 2010 changes
• related developments with ‘exempt accommodation’.

Finally, the course looks at local schemes, discretionary housing payments, and basic benefit administration subsidy, thus providing a comprehensive training day on this topic. However, please note that this is not a course on how to fill in a subsidy form! There will be time for discussion, and by means of presentations and several interesting exercises our presenter, John Zebedee, will provide a fact-filled day covering the most up-to-date information available.

Delegates for this course should have at least a reasonable prior working knowledge of HB / CTB, but otherwise the Workshop is suitable for most people wishing to expand or review their knowledge in this area, from front line staff to senior management.

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Booking Fee: £190 + V.A.T. Includes lunch, course notes and refreshments.

BOOK THREE PLACES AT THE SAME VENUE AND RECEIVE A FOURTH PLACE FREE! ___________________________________________________________________________________________

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