When refusing to allow a local authority's claim for
possession, on the basis that the tenant had lost her security of
tenure as she had not lived in the property for four years, the
judge failed to resolve the issue as to whether the property was
the tenant's principal home.
Case Name
Islington LBC v Boyle, Court of Appeal, 6/12/2011
Facts
Islington had granted B a secure tenancy of a property and she
lived there with her partner (X) and children. The relationship
deteriorated and X moved out and bought a house. Their eldest child
was severely autistic and, in 2004, in view of his aggressive
conduct and inappropriate behaviour, B and X decided that she and
her daughters would move out of the local authority property to
X's house and X would live in the local authority property with
their son. In 2008 Islington issued possession proceedings alleging
that B had lost her security of tenure because she failed to occupy
the property as her only or principal home.
