If you think your permanent housing offer is unsuitable

You get 1 chance to appeal a permanent housing offer if you do not think it's suitable for your needs.

Do not refuse an offer, even if you think it’s not suitable. If you refuse the offer, the council may not have to give you any more help.

It's better to accept the offer and then appeal it.

Call or chat with us as soon as possible for advice on your circumstances and what to do next. Do this before you respond to the council.

When an offer may not be suitable

An offer is unsuitable if the home:

is unreasonable to live in
does not meet your household's health or disability needs
is overcrowded
is a danger to your health

You can ask the council to do work to make the home suitable for your needs. For example, making disability adaptations or doing repairs.

The offer does not have to meet your preferences. Preferences are things you would like to have, such as a garden.

Examples of unsuitable offers

An offer would be unsuitable if it:

only has stair access, but you use a wheelchair
is in an area where you've experienced abuse
would mean you could not access a specialist health service

Examples of suitable offers

An offer may be considered suitable even if:

the rooms are smaller than you'd like
you'd have a long commute to work
it does not have any outdoor space

Appealing an offer

You get 1 chance to appeal an offer. Councils sometimes call this a review.

You must appeal within 21 days of receiving the written offer. You have to prove why the offer is unsuitable for you or your household.

It's best to get help to appeal if possible. You can appeal yourself if you cannot find anyone to help you.

Follow these steps if you want to appeal an offer.

If you’ve already refused an offer, call or chat with us as soon as possible.

Our advisers can check your appeal options and may be able to ask the council to give you more time in temporary accommodation.

Step 1: ask the council to hold the offer

Ask the council if they will hold your offer while you ask for an appeal. This means you can still decide to accept it later.

Use this template to request the council hold an offer. Copy and paste the text and personalise it with your details.

Letter template: request to hold permanent accommodation offer

You can copy and paste the letter template or download it (odt, 9kb).

Subject: Request to hold permanent accommodation offer

To <council>

I’m contacting you regarding my permanent accommodation offer.

My name is <your name> and my date of birth is <your date of birth>. I have been working with <name of your homeless caseworker>.

I have been offered permanent accommodation at <address of permanent accommodation offer>, but I do not believe the offer is suitable for <my/my household’s> needs.

I request that you hold the offer while I prepare an appeal. Please confirm if you agree to this.

Please do not consider this an appeal. I will be in touch with further information and evidence.

I look forward to hearing from you.

<your name>

Step 2: accept the offer, if the council will not hold it

Not all councils will agree to hold the offer. If they do not agree, it’s best to accept the offer but let the council know that you’re going to appeal.

This means if the appeal is not successful, you’ll have somewhere to live while you think about your options.

Use this template to tell the council you accept the offer but plan to appeal. Copy and paste the text and personalise it with your details.

Letter template: tell the council you accept permanent offer, but plan to appeal

You can copy and paste the letter template or download it (odt, 9kb).

Subject: Accept unsuitable permanent accommodation offer

Dear <council>

I’m contacting you regarding my permanent accommodation offer.

My name is <your name> and my date of birth is <your date of birth>. I have been working with <name of your homeless caseworker>.

I have been offered permanent accommodation at <address of permanent accommodation offer>.

I accept this offer, but will be appealing as I believe it is unsuitable for <my/my household’s> needs.

Please do not consider this as an appeal. I will be in touch with further information and evidence.

I look forward to hearing from you.

<your name>

Step 3: get advice and gather evidence

Call or chat with us as soon as possible if you want to appeal.

Our advisers will help you work out if you have a strong case and what evidence you might need to get. We may be able to refer you for help to appeal the decision.

You can also try contacting your local Citizens Advice Bureau.

Gather as much evidence as possible, for example:

a letter from a doctor explaining how the offer does not meet your health or disability needs
police incident numbers that show you’re at risk of abuse in a specific area
a letter from a support worker or social worker explaining how the offer does not meet your support needs
proof of income and savings to show why the home is unaffordable

You must appeal within 21 days of getting your decision in writing.

Getting an appeal outcome

The outcome of your appeal should be decided by a senior person in the homeless team. The person reviewing the appeal cannot be the same as the person who made the offer.

The council still have to provide temporary accommodation while you appeal.

If you have accepted an offer, you’ll have to start paying rent after you sign the tenancy agreement.

If your appeal is not successful

If you have not accepted an offer, you may have to leave temporary accommodation.

If you have accepted an offer and signed a tenancy agreement, you will be able to move in to that property while you look for somewhere more suitable to live.

In some cases, you could take the council to court. This is called judicial review, and it means a court will look at whether the decision was made correctly.

You can ask for a judicial review within 3 months of the appeal decision. You’ll need a solicitor’s help to do this.

Solicitors charge for their work, but you could get legal aid to help with costs.

Check our advice on:

Last updated: 7 January 2026