PLC Public Sector reports:
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Adult social care: adult social care providers will be interested to read the Law Commission’s report and its recommendations for a single statute and code of practice dealing with the adult social care system.
Housing: those dealing with homelessness applications in local authority housing departments should note the Court of Appeal’s decision in decision in AS v Camden. Here the Court of Appeal held that the wording of section 176 of the Housing Act 1996 dealing with when accommodation will be considered to be “available for occupation” by a homeless applicant, the wording “together with” should mean exactly that. Housing authorities will not be acting in compliance with section 176 if they attempt to provide “split accommodation” for an applicant and those who normally reside with them as family members, in this case the applicant, her dependent sister and infirm father.
Children Act 1989: following the Court of Appeal’s decision in TG v Lambeth, local authorities must ensure they have adequate procedures in place to ensure that children in need are brought to the attention of the appropriate children’s services department, and not simply dealt with under the provisions of the Housing Act 1996.
Freedom of Information: information practitioners will be interested in the First-tier Tribunal (Information Rights) decision finding that details of the sums that the BBC had paid to a taxi company were exempt from disclosure under section 43 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
Data protection: public authorities should be aware that the Information Commissioner’s Office has published guidance on consensual data protection audits.
Local bus services: anyone advising local authorities on the tender of local bus services will be interested in the Competition Commission’s provisional findings on the local bus services market.