For doctors, social prescribers and charities

Free resources for professionals who help tenants in unsafe housing. How to refer, what we need, ready-to-send messages, and free leaflets for your service.

Guides in this topic

40 plain-English guides. 3 to 5 minute reads, no jargon, free to use.

• How to refer a patient or client to Support for TenantsIf you work with tenants in unsafe housing, here is how to refer them to us. Three ways, no follow-up needed from your side.1 min read→
• Signs of housing disrepair: a quick checklist for professionalsA short checklist for spotting housing disrepair in your patients or service users, with what to do next. Free to use with anyone you support.1 min read→
• A short message you can send your patient or clientReady-to-paste text and email messages you can send a tenant about Support for Tenants, in plain English.2 min read→
• Consent and confidentiality when referring to usWhat we need from you and your patient when you make a referral, and how we treat their information. Regulated and ICO registered.1 min read→
• Order free leaflets and posters for your serviceFree leaflets and posters for your waiting room or community space. Tell tenants where to go for help with damp, mould or unsafe repairs.1 min read→
• Social prescribing link workers: how to refer a patient with housing disrepairThis guide is for social prescribers, link workers, and health and wellbeing coaches who are supporting patients or clients in poor housing. It explains what3 min read→
• Social worker guide to housing disrepair referralsSocial workers often visit clients living in some of the worst housing conditions in the country. Recognising disrepair, understanding when a referral can4 min read→
• Writing a medical evidence letter to support a housing disrepair claimAre you a doctor, nurse, occupational therapist, or other healthcare professional? If your patient lives in a home with disrepair, a letter from you can be4 min read→
• Occupational therapist guide to housing disrepair referralsOccupational therapists regularly visit people in their homes and are well placed to identify housing conditions that are affecting their clients' health,4 min read→
• For health visitors: referring families in housing disrepairHealth visitors regularly see families living in damp, cold, overcrowded and dangerous housing. You are often the first professional to witness conditions4 min read→
• For school nurses: referring children and families in housing disrepairSchool nurses have a unique vantage point. You see children across many years of their development, you have access to health records that document patterns4 min read→
• For doctors in general practice: referring patients in housing disrepairDoctors working in general practice see the health consequences of poor housing every day, chest infections that clear up and return, asthma that does not4 min read→
• For paramedics and ambulance crews: referring patients in housing disrepairParamedics and ambulance crews enter people's homes in situations that no other health professional sees: sudden illness, falls, mental health crises,3 min read→
• Respiratory nurse guide: referring patients to Support for TenantsIf you are a respiratory, COPD or asthma nurse and you have patients whose conditions are made worse by damp, mould, cold or poor ventilation at home, this3 min read→
• Hospital discharge teams: referring patients with housing disrepairWhen a patient is being discharged from hospital, the condition of their home is one of the most critical factors in whether they will remain well. For3 min read→
• Mental health nurses: spotting and referring housing disrepairMental health nurses and community psychiatric nurses (CPNs) visit patients at home and are often among the first professionals to observe the conditions in3 min read→
• Housing referrals for domestic abuse advocates: a guideIndependent Domestic Violence Advisers (IDVAs), Independent Sexual Violence Advisers (ISVAs), and other domestic abuse advocates often work with clients who3 min read→
• Pharmacist housing referral: a guide for community pharmacy professionalsPharmacists and pharmacy technicians working in community settings have regular contact with patients from a wide range of backgrounds, including many who3 min read→
• District nurse housing referral: a guide for community nursing professionalsDistrict nurses and community nurses visit patients in their homes and are uniquely placed to observe housing conditions that may be affecting patient3 min read→
• Physiotherapist housing referrals: a guide for practitionersPhysiotherapists regularly see patients whose recovery and wellbeing is affected by their housing conditions. Damp and cold homes impair respiratory3 min read→
• Children's services housing referral guideIf you work in children's services, social care, or family support, you will regularly work with families whose housing conditions affect the safety and3 min read→
• Community midwives: referring patients with housing problemsThis guide is for community midwives, student midwives, and maternity support workers who encounter pregnant women and new mothers living in poor housing3 min read→
• Adult social care workers: referring clients with housing disrepair problemsAdult social care workers, including social workers, care managers, and support workers employed by or contracted to local authorities, regularly visit3 min read→
• Food bank workers: referring clients with housing problemsFood bank staff and volunteers regularly meet people in severe financial hardship, and housing problems are often a part of that picture. Cold, damp, or2 min read→
• Debt advisers: recognising and referring housing disrepair casesIf you work as a debt adviser, you will often encounter clients whose financial difficulties are connected to poor housing. Below, we walk through how to2 min read→
• Housing lawyer: when to instruct one and what to expectMany housing problems can be resolved without legal representation. But in some situations, instructing a housing solicitor is important. This guide helps2 min read→
• Multi-agency working and housing referrals: a guide for professionalsProfessionals working with tenants in poor housing often need to involve more than one agency to resolve the problem. You will find out how multi-agency2 min read→
• Housing Health and Safety Rating System: a guide for professionalsThe Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) is the framework councils use to assess housing hazards in residential properties. Understanding how it3 min read→
• Safeguarding considerations in housing disrepair cases: a guide for professionalsWhen working with tenants in disrepair cases, practitioners may encounter clients whose circumstances raise safeguarding concerns. This guide is for housing4 min read→
• Part 36 offers in housing disrepair claims: a guide for housing professionalsPart 36 of the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) provides a formal mechanism for making settlement offers in civil proceedings that carry specific costs4 min read→
• Witness statements in housing disrepair claims: a professional guideWitness evidence is central to most housing disrepair claims. The quality and content of witness statements, from tenants and any supporting witnesses, can3 min read→
• The Pre-Action Protocol for Housing Disrepair Cases: a professional guideThe Pre-Action Protocol for Housing Disrepair Cases (the Protocol) governs the steps that tenants and landlords must take before court proceedings are4 min read→
• Expert witnesses in housing disrepair cases: a guide for professionalsIn housing disrepair litigation, expert witness evidence is central to how courts assess the nature, extent, and cause of defects, and to the quantum of4 min read→
• Limitation periods in housing disrepair claims: a guide for professionalsHousing disrepair claims are subject to limitation periods under the Limitation Act 1980. Misidentifying the applicable period, or failing to advise clients4 min read→
• Quantum assessment in housing disrepair claims: a professional guideEstablishing liability in a housing disrepair claim is only half the task. Quantifying the claimant's loss, quantum, requires a systematic approach to5 min read→
• Disrepair as a defence and counterclaim in possession proceedings: a professional guideWhen a landlord brings possession proceedings against a tenant who is also a claimant in a disrepair action, or who has an arguable disrepair claim, the two5 min read→
• Schedule of works in housing disrepair claims: a guide for housing professionalsA schedule of works, sometimes called a Scott Schedule or a schedule of dilapidations in a disrepair context, is a structured document listing all defects in4 min read→
• County court procedure in housing disrepair claims: a guide for housing professionalsHousing disrepair claims in the county court follow a structured procedural framework. This guide sets out the key procedural stages, from issue of4 min read→
• Instructing a building surveyor in a housing disrepair caseA building surveyor's report is one of the most important pieces of technical evidence in a housing disrepair claim. This guide is for legal professionals4 min read→
• Single Joint Experts in housing disrepair: a guide for professionalsIn housing disrepair litigation, the court will usually require expert evidence on the technical issues, the existence, cause, extent, and cost of4 min read→