Housing Act 1949
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | 1949 c. 60 |
| Year | 1949 |
Housing Act , 1949
(12, 13 & 14 Geo. 6) CHAPTER 60
An Act to amend the Housing Act, 1936; to promote the improvement of housing accommodation by authorising the making of contributions out of the Exchequer and of grants by local authorities; to amend the Housing (Financial and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1946, with respect to the amounts of contributions payable thereunder out of the Exchequer, and certain other enactments relating to the making of contributions out of the Exchequer in respect of the provision of housing accommodation; to authorise the making out of the Exchequer of contributions in respect of the provision of hostels and of grants in respect of building experiments; to extend and amend other enactments relating to housing and domestic water supply; and for purposes connected with the matters aforesaid.
[30th July 1949]
Be it enacted by the King's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
Part I
Amendments of the Housing Act, 1936
1 Removal of references to the working classes from certain provisions of the Housing Act, 1936.
1. For the purpose of extending the provisions of the Housing Act, 1936 (hereafter in this Act referred to as ‘the principal Act’), so as to enable account to be taken of the housing conditions and housing needs of all members of the community, the provisions of the principal Act specified in the first column of the First Schedule to this Act shall have effect subject to the amendments specified in relation to those provisions respectively in the second column of that Schedule, being amendments whereof the effect is to—
(i) the duties of a local authority under section seventy-one of the principal Act with respect to the consideration of the needs of their district with respect to the provision of further housing accommodation and the preparation and submission to the Minister of Health (hereafter in this Act referred to as ‘the Minister’) of proposals for the provision of new houses; and
(ii) the power of a local authority under section seventy-two of the principal Act to provide housing accommodation,
to the provision of housing accommodation, and houses, for the working classes;
and section one hundred and thirty-six of the principal Act (which limits the standard of re-housing accommodation) shall cease to have effect.
2 Quashing of certain demolition orders.
2. Where—
the local authority may apply to the county court within the jurisdiction of which the house is situate for an order quashing the demolition order, and on the application the judge may, if he is satisfied that the house is so fit, make an order quashing the demolition order.
3 Preservation of certain houses unfit for human habitation.
(1) Where, apart from this section, a local authority would be under a duty to make a demolition order under Part II of the principal Act with respect to—
(a ) a house with respect to which a building preservation order under section twenty-nine of the Town and Country Planning Act, 1947, is in force;
(b ) a house included in a list compiled or approved under section thirty of that Act by the Minister of Town and Country Planning; or
(c ) a house, other than as aforesaid, in respect of which there is for the time being in force a notice given by that Minister to the local authority stating that the architectural or historic interest of the house is sufficient to render it inexpedient that the house should be demolished pending determination of the question whether or not it should be made the subject of such a building preservation order as aforesaid or included in such a list as aforesaid;
they shall, instead, make a closing order prohibiting the use of the house for any purpose other than a purpose approved by them, and shall serve a copy of the order upon every person upon whom they would be required by subsection (1) of section eleven of the principal Act to serve a notice issued by them under that subsection.
(2) Where, in the case of a house with respect to which a demolition order made under Part II of the principal Act by a local authority applies (whether or not that order has become operative), either—
(a ) a building preservation order under the said section twenty-nine takes effect with respect to the house; or
(b ) the house is included in such a list as aforesaid; or
(c ) the Minister of Town and Country Planning gives to the local authority such a notice as aforesaid;
the local authority shall determine the demolition order and make a closing order prohibiting the use of the house for any purpose other than a purpose approved by them, and shall serve notice that the demolition order has been determined and a copy of the closing order upon every such person as aforesaid.
(3) The approval of a local authority under this section shall not be unreasonably withheld, and a local authority by whom a closing order is made under this section shall determine the order on being satisfied that the house to which it relates has been rendered fit for human habitation.
(4) The following provisions of the principal Act, namely,—
(a ) section fourteen (which imposes a penalty for using premises in contravention of a closing order made under Part II of that Act);
(b ) section fifteen (which relates to appeals to the county court against notices, demands and orders under that Part of that Act);
(c ) section eighteen (which empowers local authorities to pay allowances to persons displaced from promises to which closing orders so made apply); and
(d ) section nineteen (which contains provisions for the protection of owners of houses),
shall have effect in relation to a closing order made under this section, to a refusal to determine such an order, to a withholding of approval in relation to the use for any purpose of a house to which such an order applies, and to a house to which such an order applies as they have effect in relation to a closing order under Part II of that Act, to a refusal to determine such an order, to a withholding of approval in relation to the use for any purpose of a house to which such an order applies and to a house to which such an order applies, as if references therein to a closing order included references to a closing order made under this section and references to Part II of that Act included references to this section; and section one hundred and sixty of that Act (which empowers the county court to determine or vary a lease of premises in respect of which a demolition order has become operative) shall have effect in relation to a closing order made under this section which has become operative and to a house to which such an order applies as it has effect in relation to a demolition order which has become operative and to a house to which such an order applies, as if the reference to a demolition order included a reference to a closing order made under this section.
4 Power of local authorities to make advances for purpose of increasing housing accommodation.
(1) A local authority for the purposes of Part V of the principal Act or a county council may, subject to such conditions as may be approved by the Minister, advance money, subject to the provisions hereinafter contained, to any persons for the purpose of—
(a ) acquiring houses;
(b ) constructing houses;
(c ) converting into houses buildings...
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