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Preventing homelessness

If you are homeless or threatened with homelessness, help is available.

We may have a legal duty to offer you temporary accommodation if you are in priority need. For example, if you are:

  • a care leaver
  • pregnant
  • a parent of dependent children
  • vulnerable through age or ill health
  • vulnerable due to being in or having in the armed forces
  • vulnerable due to serving or have served a custodial sentence
  • fleeing violence or abuse
  • in an emergency such as a fire or flood

If you have no priority need for housing then we have no legal duty to provide you with accommodation.  We go further than the law tells us to but our resources are limited. We only offer accommodation to those who need it most. However, we can still provide you with housing advice and help you to find a settled home.

If we have a legal duty to offer accommodation, we will usually offer private rented accommodation or temporary accommodation. If you’ve no rights to public funds such as benefits, we may not be able to provide you with housing but we can still offer housing advice.

Helpline

However, please note if you have a homeless emergency between 8am and 10am that cannot wait, you call 0116 454 1008 to be triaged.

At risk of homelessness? How we can help

If you’re at risk of being homeless we can:

  • give advice on your situation and explain your rights
  • try to prevent or delay you becoming homeless
  • give advice on finding a home

What's your situation?

Please select your situation from the list below to receive further advice and information about how we can help:

  1. I have been issued with a notice by my landlord
  2. I am having problems affording my rent
  3. I have been asked to leave by the friends/family I am staying with
  4. I am suffering harassment at my current address
  5. My home is in disrepair
  6. If you are experiencing homelessness or domestic abuse

1. I have been issued with a notice by my landlord

If your landlord serves you with notice, you will need to get in touch with the Housing Options team urgently.  The earlier you let us know about the notice, the better.

The Housing Options team can help by contacting your landlord and trying to resolve the problems so you can remain in the home. If this is not possible, we still may be able to negotiate a longer notice period to give you more time to find a new home, and we can make sure the landlord is following the correct eviction processes.

Get more information about legal advice and notices.

Contact Housing Options for advice on 0116 454 1008.

2. I am having problems affording my rent

If you are already in rent arrears and your landlord is threatening to evict you, it's very important that you know how much is outstanding.  Contact your landlord and ask them to send you a written, up to date rent statement.  Tell them you are asking because you are interested in setting up a payment plan if they would consider letting you stay in the home.

If there is no threat of eviction right now, but you are concerned that you have arrears and they may build further, this needs addressing before it escalates.  You should contact your landlord about your arrears to discuss this, and agree a payment plan.  If you can’t afford to pay the whole amount right away you might agree to pay some extra each month to reduce your debt. Make sure you keep to the agreement you made and keep in contact with your landlord if you are having trouble.

If you have concerns about affording your rent moving forward then you should seek advice about benefit entitlement, debt advice and money advice. Go to our cost of living support section.

If your landlord has issued you with a notice, or you still have concerns about being able to afford your rent and possibly going into arrears which may lead to threat of homelessness in the future, you should contact the Housing Options team for advice on 0116 454 1008.

3. I have been asked to leave by the friends/family I am staying with

If you're being asked to leave, it's important that you take any action you can to improve the situation.  If you think there are things you can change to make things better, make those changes.

It is very important that you remain in the home for as long as possible because it will give you more time to find a new home. Finding housing is difficult due to the lack of affordable housing and high demand. If you don't give yourself enough time you may risk becoming homeless.

Try sitting down to talk through the problems with the person asking you to leave. Ask if there is anything you could change or help with to make it easier for them to accommodate you. If the issues relate to money and you are asked to contribute towards household bills, sit down and talk about how much you need to contribute in order to make it affordable for them. If you are able to afford the contributions then this could be a solution to your housing problems. 

If you are still being asked to leave after trying to resolve the problem, you should contact the Housing Options team for advice and help. They can provide mediation between you and the person asking you to leave.  You will be assigned a caseworker who will help you make all reasonable efforts for you to stay in the home, and may come to visit you to talk to you and them. If this fails, we can give you advice about ways to find a new home.

Contact Housing Options for advice on 0116 454 1008.

4. I am suffering harassment at my current address

If you are suffering with harassment in your home or area, and are at risk of harm, then you should contact the Housing Options team immediately. Please call us now, on 0116 454 1008.

If you are trying to contact outside of these hours please contact us on 0116 221 2770 for assistance.

Remember: If you are at immediate risk, call 999.

5. My home is in disrepair

If the situation is urgent (such as a hole in the roof letting rainwater in, or something causing a dangerous hazard) the landlord should act immediately. You should contact your landlord right away and tell them about the problem. If your landlord does not respond or refuses your request to carry out necessary repairs, you should contact the council to explain the situation and get advice. They can sometimes get in touch with your landlord to instruct him to complete repairs.

In order to take the next step and report the issue to the council, you should contact the Private Sector Housing Team in the Environmental Health department on 0116 454 1001.

Call for advice

In addition to this and/or if your situation is less urgent, you can contact Housing Options for advice on 0116 454 1008.

6. If you are experiencing homelessness or domestic abuse

If you are currently rough sleeping, have nowhere to sleep, or it is not safe to live in your home contact us:

Other support and information services

There are lots of support services available for people who are under threat of homelessness. Here are some helpful links:

  • Leicester Homelessness Charter – information about where to get help and support for different issues and access services, including homelessness, job advice, debt/money advice, and health matters.
  • Cost of living support – benefits advice, debt advice, help with fuel costs, where to access food banks
  • Turning Point - a national health and social care provider who can offer individual support for mental health concerns, learning disabilities, drug or alcohol issues, or if you are looking for an employment solution.
  • Early Help – Children and young people can experience a range of difficulties at any time in their life. Leicester's Children, Young People and Families Centres provide a range of services that support parents and carers to give their child the best start in life.
  • Shelter
  • Citizens Advice