Problems with your home rarely stay small. A letter about rent arrears becomes a court date. Damp that was reported a year ago becomes a health problem. A council decision you did not understand becomes the reason you have nowhere to go.
Our social housing solicitors act for council tenants, housing association tenants and private tenants across London. Whatever stage you are at, we can tell you where you stand and what can be done about it.
Problem With Your Home? Contact Us Today
Housing law runs to short deadlines. Court dates are fixed, council decisions carry strict time limits for review, and the options available to you narrow considerably once a possession order has been made.
Our housing lawyers can help you to:
- Work out what your legal problem actually is, and how urgent it is
- Understand what the council, housing association or landlord is required to do
- Meet any deadline that is already running against you
- Deal with your landlord or the local authority on your behalf
- Find out quickly whether you qualify for Legal Aid
Speak to our team today to discuss your circumstances.
What Do Social Housing Solicitors Do?
A social housing solicitor advises people about the home they live in — their right to stay there, the condition it is kept in, and how they are treated by whoever is responsible for it.
Most of our clients are tenants of a council or a housing association, though we also act for private tenants and for people who have no accommodation at all. The other side is usually a local authority, a housing association or a private landlord, and the imbalance between the two can be considerable. Councils and housing associations have legal departments, established procedures and experience of the courts. Most tenants have none of that.
Our role is to close that gap: to explain what the law actually requires, to hold landlords and local authorities to their obligations, and to represent you if the matter reaches court.
You do not need to know the legal name for your problem before you contact us. Describing what has happened is enough.
Housing Problems We Can Help With
The nine areas below cover most of what our housing team deals with. Each has a dedicated page with fuller guidance.
Defending Possession Proceedings and Eviction
If your landlord or the council has started court action to take back your home, you have received a possession claim. This applies to council tenants, housing association tenants and private tenants alike, and there are usually more defences available than people expect — including where the correct procedure has not been followed.
Attending the hearing matters enormously. Our page on defending possession proceedings explains what happens and how we can help.
Unlawful Eviction and Harassment
A landlord cannot simply remove you from your home. Changing the locks, cutting off utilities, removing your belongings or making your life difficult in order to force you out are unlawful, and compensation may be available.
If this is happening to you, our illegal eviction solicitors can act quickly, including to get you back into your home.
Poor Housing Conditions and Disrepair
Under most tenancy agreements, landlords have to keep your home free from risks such as damp, mould, leaks, faulty heating, broken windows and pest infestations.
Many tenants report problems for years without action being taken.
Where repairs have not been carried out, our housing disrepair solicitors can help you get the work done and claim compensation for the conditions you have lived in.
Homelessness
If you have nowhere to stay, are about to lose your home, or are living somewhere unsuitable or unsafe, the council may owe you a legal duty. Councils frequently decide these applications wrongly, and their decisions can be challenged.
Our page on legal help for homeless people explains how those duties work and what to do if you have been turned away.
Allocation of Social Housing
Councils must allocate social housing according to their own published scheme.
Rent and Mortgage Arrears
Falling behind on rent or mortgage payments is one of the most common routes into losing a home, and it is far more manageable when addressed early. Arrangements can often be agreed, and disputed arrears are not always owed in the first place.
Our rent arrears solicitors act for both tenants and owner-occupiers facing eviction because of housing debt.
Anti-Social Behaviour Injunctions
Being accused of anti-social behaviour can put your home at risk, and injunctions can be applied for at short notice with serious consequences for breaching them. Allegations are not always accurate, and are sometimes made in the middle of a neighbour dispute.
Our anti social behaviour solicitors defend people facing injunctions and related possession action.
Judicial Review
Where a council or other public body has made a decision unlawfully, that decision can sometimes be challenged in the High Court. This route matters in housing because so many housing decisions — on homelessness, allocations and support — are made by public bodies.
Time limits are short. Our judicial review solicitors page explains when this route is available.
Migrant Support
Access to housing and financial support is more complicated where immigration status is unresolved or where public funds are restricted, and people in this position are often wrongly refused help altogether.
Our migrant legal services team assists asylum seekers and migrants to obtain the housing and support they are entitled to.
Our Experience as Housing Lawyers
Our housing solicitors have acted in cases in the High Court, the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court, and have helped shape housing law in the process. That appellate experience feeds directly into everyday work, because it means the team recognises the arguments that others miss.
The team is also active in the local county courts, issuing urgent applications and appeals where needed. Three of our housing solicitors — Shazina Hussain, Emily Black and Kyra Hassan — act as duty solicitors at Clerkenwell and Shoreditch County Court.
Our work has been recognised by the Legal 500 and by Chambers and Partners. We are now ranked Tier 2 in Legal 500 UK 2027 and Band 2 in Chambers 2027.
When Housing Problems Overlap With Other Legal Issues
Housing problems are often part of something larger. A tenant facing eviction may also be waiting on a care assessment. A disabled person in unsuitable accommodation may need adaptations the council has refused. A person who lacks capacity may have decisions being made about where they live without anyone consulting their family.
Many firms have to refer this work elsewhere. We do not. Our community care solicitors and Court of Protection solicitors sit in the same department as our housing team, and a number of our housing solicitors work across these areas themselves. The Legal 500 has specifically recognised the firm’s ability to deal with difficult cases for clients with complex needs on that basis.
Related Social Welfare Services
How Our Housing Solicitors Can Help
- Tell you where you stand, in plain English, and how urgent your situation is
- Check whether you qualify for Legal Aid before you incur any cost
- Correspond with your landlord, housing association or the council on your behalf
- Represent you at court, including at short notice
- Challenge unlawful decisions made by local authorities
- Bring claims for compensation where you have been wronged
- Bring in our community care, mental capacity and Court of Protection colleagues where your case needs it
Why Choose TV Edwards?
- Appellate experience. Our housing lawyers have acted in the High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court, and have contributed to the development of housing law.
- Independently ranked. Recognised by both the Legal 500 UK as Tier 2 and Chambers and Partners 2027 as Band 2 for the strength of the housing practice.
- Present in the local courts. Members of the team act as duty solicitors at Clerkenwell and Shoreditch County Court.
- Legal Aid work. The firm maintains a dedicated Legal Aid housing practice for tenants and homeless people, at a time when many firms have withdrawn from this work.
- Complex cases welcomed. Where housing overlaps with care needs, mental capacity or mental health, the relevant expertise is in the same department rather than at another firm.
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Housing Law FAQs
What does a social housing solicitor do?
A social housing solicitor advises people about their rights in the home they live in and represents them when those rights are not respected. That covers defending court action to remove someone from their home, challenging council decisions about homelessness and housing allocations, taking action over disrepair and poor conditions, and dealing with landlords who harass tenants or evict them unlawfully. Most of this work is done against councils, housing associations and private landlords on behalf of tenants.
Do you act for council and housing association tenants?
Yes. Council tenants and housing association tenants make up a large part of our housing work, and we also act for private tenants and for people who currently have no accommodation. The type of tenancy you have affects which arguments are available to you, so it is one of the first things we look at. If you are not sure what kind of tenancy you have, bring whatever paperwork you can find and we will work it out.
How quickly can you help if my housing situation is urgent?
Urgent housing situations are a routine part of our work. We issue urgent applications in the county courts and can act at short notice where someone has been locked out of their home, faces imminent eviction, or has been left without anywhere to stay. If you have a court hearing coming up, contact us straight away and tell us the date — even a short period of notice is better than none.
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