Social work law & policy

27th April 2010

 Marriage
• A missing requirement on the handout is
that both parties must be human.

Erika La Tour Eiffel

Forbidden degrees of relationship 1
• A man cannot marry/a woman cannot enter into civil partnership with
his/her
– Mother
– Daughter
– Grandmother
– Granddaughter
– Sister
– Aunt
– Niece
– Great-grandmother
– Great-granddaughter
– Adoptive mother or former adoptive mother
– Adopted daughter or former adopted daughter
 Forbidden degrees of relationship 2
• A woman cannot marry/man cannot enter into a civil partnership with
her/his:
– Father
– Son
– Grandfather
– Grandson
– Brother
– Uncle
– Nephew
– Great-grandfather
– Great-grandson
– Adoptive father or former adoptive father
– Adoptive son or former adoptive son
 Forbidden degrees of relationship 3
A man may not enter civil
partnership with/woman marry
his/her
Former wife’s son/grandson
Former civil partner’s son/grandson
Mother’s/grandmother’s former
husband
Father’s/grandfather’s former civil
partner
A woman may not enter civil
partnership with/man marry her/his
Former husband’s
daughter/granddaughter
Former civil partner’s
daughter/granddaughter
Father/grandfather’s former wife
Mother’s/grandmother’s former civil
partner

These exclusions do not apply if both parties have attained the age of 21 at the time of
the marriage/civil partnership and the younger party has not at any time before
attaining the age of 18 lived in the same household as the other party and been treated
by the other party as a child of his /her family.
 Homelessness 1
• Those who are homeless or threatened with
homelessness (i.e. likely to become homeless within 2
months) can seek help from local authority
• Homelessness involves:
– Having no permanent accommodation which it is reasonable
to occupy
– Having such accommodation but (e.g)
• Entry to it cannot be secured
• Occupation of property would lead to risk of violence
• Accommodation overcrowded and may endanger health of
applicants
 Homelessness 2
• Local authority has duty to carry out an investigation
where it appears that applicant is homeless/threatened
with homelessness
• Designed to answer a number of questions:
– Is applicant homeless/threatened with homelessness?
– Does applicant have priority need? (to be abolished in 2012)
– Is applicant intentionally homeless? (now discretionary)
– Does applicant have a local connection?
• Answers to these will determine duties owed by
authority
Does applicant have priority need?
• Main categories (expanded from handout):
– Dependent children
– Homelessness caused by emergency/disaster
– Applicant/co-resident pregnant/
– Applicant vulnerable because of old age; mental illness; personality disorder;
learning disability; physical disability; chronic ill health; having suffered a
miscarriage or undergone an abortion; having been discharged from a hospital, a
prison or any part of the regular armed forces of the Crown; or other special reason
– Aged 16 or 17
– Aged 18 to 20 who runs the risk of sexual or financial exploitation or involvement
in the serious misuse of alcohol, any drug or any volatile substance
– Aged 18 to 20 who was looked after aged 16 or over and is no longer looked after
– A person who runs the risk of domestic abuse
– A person who, by reason of that person's religion, sexual orientation, race, colour
or ethnic or national origin runs the risk of violence, or is, or is likely to be, the
victim of a course of conduct amounting to harassment.
Is applicant intentionally homeless?
• Criteria:
– the applicant must deliberately have done, or failed to do,
something in consequence of which he or she has ceased to
occupy accommodation which was at the time available to them.
– it must have been reasonable for the applicant to have continued
to occupy the accommodation - local authority may have regard to
the general circumstances prevailing in relation to its area in
applying this test.
– the applicant must have been aware of all the relevant facts before
taking or failing to take the deliberate actions referred to above
• Local authorities have discretion to leave intentionality out
of account
 Local connection
• Can involve variety of factors, including
residence, employment, family.
• If no local connection and connection with
other area in GB can be referred to other
area unless risk of domestic violence
 LA duties
• Secure provision of permanent accommodation if
in priority need and not intentionally homeless
– Permanent accommodation defined as accommodation
secured by a Scottish Secure Tenancy or by an assured
tenancy which is not a short assured tenancy
• Provide advice and assistance and temporary
accommodation where priority need but
intentionally homeless
• Provide advice and assistance if not in priority
need