Hodge Jones & Allen renews partnership with UCH homeless healthcare service

London law firm Hodge Jones & Allen has renewed its partnership with the Pathway homeless healthcare service based at University College Hospital (UCH).

The renewal of the partnership for 2017 means that Hodge Jones & Allen’s housing team will continue to provide legal advice on the housing rights of homeless patients once they leave hospital care.

Pathway is a charity which helps the NHS improve care for homeless patients, from the moment they arrive in hospital through to the securing of suitable safe accommodation upon their discharge. In addition to the relationship with Hodge Jones & Allen which was first formalised in January 2016, the Pathway team at UCH benefits from a close relationship with social workers, housing officers, mental health teams and local charities.

In its first year working with the charity, Hodge Jones and Allen has advised the Pathway team on homeless clients’ eligibility for social housing, including advice on Care Act and Human Rights Act assessments, immigration issues and what constitutes priority need for housing.

The firm has also worked with a number of the hospital’s homeless patients directly, advocating on their behalf and taking up their cases in order to challenge local authorities’ refusals to accommodate them.

Alex Bax, Chief Executive of Pathway, said:

“I am pleased to be able to renew our partnership with Hodge Jones & Allen. Over the past year, for the first time, homeless UCH patients have been offered legal advice during their care, helping them to recognise the options open to them as they recover. This is empowering for our patients, giving them a better understanding of their rights and in some cases, resulting in them securing either temporary or permanent accommodation provided by the local authority.”

Ed Veale, a housing solicitor at Hodge Jones & Allen, commented:

“Pathway demonstrates a commitment to the long-term welfare of their patients after they have been discharged from hospital and, as part of a holistic approach to support, want to ensure that homeless patients have a good grasp of their legal rights. Over the past year, our housing team has been providing in-depth legal advice to the Pathway Team as well as representing a number of individual patients to advocate on their behalf. We look forward to continuing this work over the coming year, ensuring that the housing rights of some of the most vulnerable people in London are upheld.”

Ends

For further information, please contact:
Kerry Jack or Louise Eckersley at Black Letter Communications
kerry.jack@blacklettercommunications.co.uk or louise.eckersley@blacklettercommunications.co.uk
020 3567 1208

Notes for Editors

Hodge Jones and Allen

• Hodge Jones and Allen is one of the UK’s most progressive law firms, renowned for doing things differently and fighting injustice. Its managing partner is Patrick Allen.
• For almost 40 years’ the firm has been at the centre of many of the UK’s landmark legal cases that have changed the lives and rights of many people.
• The firm’s team of specialists have been operating across: Personal Injury, Medical Negligence, Industrial Disease, Civil Liberties, Criminal Defence, Court of Protection, Dispute Resolution, Employment, Family Law, Military Claims, Serious Fraud, Social Housing, Wills & Probate and Property Disputes.
• In 2016 the firm launched Hearing their voices – a campaign to raise awareness and build conversations around the issues and the injustices we might all face.