TLT advises EHRC on inquiry into housing for disabled people

The inquiry, which began in 2016, looked at whether accessible and adaptable housing is fulfilling disabled people’s rights to live independently.

Debbie Reynolds, associate in the planning and environment team and Kane Kirkbride, partner in the housing team, advised the Commission on four main areas, including:

• Its response to the government consultation on a standardised housing needs assessment, including advice on the technical aspects of planning by local authorities;
• The compilation of questions for local authorities to address as part of the Commission’s data gathering exercise, looking at how the planning system is or could be used to deliver accessible and adaptable housing;
• The Commission’s draft recommendations and final report, ‘Housing and disabled people: Britain’s hidden crisis’; and
• The Commission’s response to the green paper on supported housing and the green paper on social housing.

The report aims to ensure that disabled people’s housing needs are fully incorporated into whatever system is put in place through proposed revisions to legislation.

Debbie Reynolds, associate at TLT, says: “Inquiries like this are vital to making sure that the law continues to meet the needs of society. Having the requisite legal and technical knowledge is a vital part of conducting a robust inquiry and coming up with a list of practicable and effective recommendations. We are very pleased to have had the opportunity to support the EHRC and to apply our specialist expertise to this important piece of work.”

Details of the inquiry and report can be seen on the EHRC website.