Workshop Details
Housing Benefit For Housing Advisors
A Workshops Aimed At Income Management & Rent Recovery Staff From Housing Organisations
(And also a useful review / update for Housing Benefit Assessment Staff!)
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No Regional Workshop dates currently planned on this subject.
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This Workshop is ideal for Contact Centre and ALMO/RSL 'In-House' Training Programmese for Income Management Advisors and other staff involved with housing benefit advice.
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IN-HOUSE WORKSHOPS - Do you have a lot of staff needing this training and would you like us to arrange this Workshop at your own training venue just for the staff from your own organisation? We would be pleased to arrange this - please contact us for further details and availabilty of dates.
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A Workshop designed and presented by John Zebedee, co-author of “The Guide To Housing Benefit & Council Tax Benefit”, to provide people that primarily work for Housing Management, Housing Advice, Rent Recovery and Income Management Sections in Housing Departments, Housing Associations, ALMOs and Welfare Rights organisations with a good understanding of the key issues involved when advising clients on claiming or maximising their Housing Benefit entitlement.
Starting with an HB overview to bring delegates up to pace, it moves on to the crucial area of eligible rent. In particular, service charges has been a contentious area, with many debates about whether items such as stair lifts, mobility sheds, water charges for communal areas, and similar services are eligible for HB. Not just debates, but interesting case law in some cases. Other questions such as the reasonableness of service charges have also become quite contentious, and the course covers all these points and more besides.
Getting HB up and running at the start of a claim can sometimes be a hassle, as every housing manager knows. Yet there can be many reasons for this problem. The course provides a timely reminder of what the rules are, and the respective rights of claimants and their landlords. Similarly, backdating can make all the difference in the world to whether a claimant can remain in their home. Some administering authorities still appear to be reluctant to backdate in even what may appear to be quite clear cases, and the course looks at best practice.
Though fewer overpayments should be recovered from the landlord nowadays, particularly following the April 2009 changes in the law, some RSLs seems to be over-pressed with demands for repayment, and the rules are explained on this matter along with an understanding of the rights of the parties involved.
Finally, the course ends with a practical look at maximising HB entitlement by understanding how to check that during assessment the authorities get ‘applicable amounts’ right as this can reduce entitlement (and some have been known to miss some of these!), and the rules about non-dependant deductions – which are often claimed to be applied with unnecessary harshness when assessing Housing Benefit entitlement.
By means of presentations, discussions and exercises our presenter, John Zebedee, will provide a fact-filled day covering the most up-to-date information available. The Workshop is aimed at staff involved in front line benefits advice who should have a reasonable prior working knowledge of the Housing Benefit Scheme. It is not for the absolute beginner, nor for the expert, but should provide a convenient step up from limited knowledge to near-expertise!
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