Glossary
Eligible service charges
In one sentence
Charges for services connected with providing adequate accommodation that Housing Benefit can cover.
Examples include cleaning and lighting communal areas, furniture provided with the room and intensive housing management. Schedule 1 to the Housing Benefit Regulations 2006 lists charges that are ineligible.
Related terms
Where it comes up
- What is exempt accommodation?Exempt accommodation is supported housing where the landlord is a housing association, registered charity, voluntary organisation or non-metropolitan county council, and that landlord, or someone acting for it, gives the resident more than minimal care, support or supervision. Housing Benefit pays the rent, and the usual local rent caps do not apply.
- Grey areas in exempt and supported accommodationMost disputes in exempt accommodation come from questions the regulations never fully answer. How much support is more than minimal, when a support provider acts for the landlord, whether a CIC is a voluntary organisation, and how HMO, planning and tenancy law apply. Decisions turn on facts, so the safest position is a structure that matches what happens day to day.
- Supported living explainedSupported living is long-term housing for adults, often with learning disabilities, autism or mental health needs, where the person holds their own tenancy and gets care from a separate provider. The Care Quality Commission regulates the personal care, not the home. The arrangement only works legally if housing and care are genuinely separate, so the person could change care provider without losing their home.