Housing

The local authority had refused a resident’s application for housing on the basis that she was not homeless as, while she had suffered obvious emotional and other upset, her neighbour’s misbehaviour and harassment fell short of actual violence or threats of violence that were likely to be carried out and it would not be unreasonable for her to continue to occupy the property in which she lived. The county court judge quashed the authority’s decision. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, held that the phrase "other violence" in s 177(1) of the Housing Act 1996 covered not only physical violence (actual or threatened) but other threatening or intimidating behaviour or abuse, if of such seriousness that it might give rise to psychological harm. The authority’s appeal was dismissed with the result that it had to reconsider its decision.