Social Welfare Appeal G0007

The Appellant was housed with her children in local authority accommodation. The Appellant surrendered this accommodation and applied for Rent Supplement to pay for alternative private rented accommodation. The stated reasons for the surrender of her local authority tenancy were: (i) alleged anti-social behaviour in the area; and (ii) the care requirements of her ill and elderly parents. The Appellant originally vacated her local authority accommodation in 2005 and applied for and was refused Rent Supplement in February 2006. The Appellant’s application for Rent Supplement was refused and her appeals to the Health Service Executive (HSE) in the first instance and finally to the Social Welfare Appeals Office were both disallowed. The Appeals Officer was not satisfied that the Appellant had sufficient “good cause” for surrendering her Local Authority tenancy.