The Domestic Abuse Act (2021) places a duty on local authorities to maintain victim or survivor's social housing status for existing tenants.
If a victim or survivor needs to move to an alternative property and is awarded a 'management transfer' to move to another home, we will always maintain the security of the original tenancy.
If a victim/ survivor in a joint tenancy wishes to remain in their home, we have the power to seek a court order to bring the joint tenancy to an end, evict the perpetrator, and issue a new sole tenancy for the victim/survivor, again maintaining the security of the original tenancy.
This means that in both these cases, the new tenancy will also be secure, with no introductory period, unless the original tenancy was in the introductory period. If the original tenancy was introductory, the new tenancy will be issued with the same amount of time remaining on the new introductory tenancy – for example, if the tenant was three months into the introductory tenancy, the new tenancy will have nine months remaining before it is transferred to a secure tenancy.
Further information is set out in the section on joint tenancies below and in the H&F Housing Services Domestic Abuse Policy.