LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Homeless persons - 'ordinary residence' and 'local connection' to be determined as at date of decision - period in interim accommodation to be taken into accountMohamed v Hammersmith and Fulham London Borough Council: HL (Lord Slynn of Hadley, Lord Steyn, Lord Hoffmann, Lord Hutton and Lord Hobhouse of Woodborough): 1 November 2001The applicant applied to the local housing authority for housing and was placed in interim accommodation within its district pending a decision.

The authority's decision was that although it had a duty to arrange accommodation for him, it would transfer his application to another authority under section 198 of the Housing Act 1996 on the ground that he had no local connection with its own area but did have with that other authority.

On a review of the decision the reviewing officer, considering under section 199(1) of the Act whether the applicant was 'normally resident' in the district so as to establish a local connection, disregarded the period spent by him in the interim accommodation and upheld the decision to transfer.

That decision was affirmed by the county court.

The Court of Appeal allowed the applicant's appeal and ordered a fresh review.

The authority appealed.Andrew Arden QC and Robert Levy (instructed by the Solicitor, Hammersmith and Fulham London Borough Council) for the authority.

Jan Luba QC and Stephen Knafler (instructed by the Solicitor, Hammersmith and Fulham Community Law Centre) for the applicant.Held, dismissing the appeal, that since the prima facie meaning of normal residence was a place where at the relevant time a person in fact resided, interim accommodation could be taken into account in deciding whether a local connection existed; that the correct date for deciding whether a person had a local connection was the date of the decision or, where there was a review, the date of the review; and that, accordingly, the applicant's local connection should have been determined on that basis.

(WLR)