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Housing terms explained

A plain-English glossary of housing and care

Find clear explanations of the words, abbreviations and organisations you may encounter when researching later-life housing.

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Az

Housing terms explained

A plain-English glossary of housing and care

Find clear explanations of the words, abbreviations and organisations you may encounter when researching later-life housing.

Search housing terms

Try “service charge”, “CQC” or “extra care”.

All
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
No terms beginning with K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
No terms beginning with X
Y
No terms beginning with Z

A

20 terms

Abatement Order(AO)
Acceptable Behaviour Agreement(ABA)
Acceptable Behaviour Contract(ABC)
Access to Justice(ATJ)
AdaptationsPhysical changes to a home, such as grab rails or ramps, that make it safer or easier to live in.
Advice Duty(AD)
Age-exclusive housingHousing restricted to buyers or renters over a set age, usually 55 or 60, without support services.
Agricultural Tenancies(AT)
Allocations Scheme(AS)
AlmshouseCharitable housing provided by a trust, often for older people with a local connection.
Anti-social Behaviour Injunction(ASBI)
Anti-social Behaviour Order(ASBO)
Assessment Of Needs(AON)
Assistive technologyEquipment such as sensors, alarms and reminders that supports independent living.
Association of Civil Enforcement Agencies(ACEA)
Association of London Government(ALG)
Assured Shorthold Tenant(AST)
Assured tenancy
Attachment of Earnings Orders(AEO)
Attendance Allowance(AA)A benefit for people over State Pension age who need help with personal care because of illness or disability.

B

10 terms

Bed and Breakfast (B&B)
Bedroom Standard(BS)
Benefits Agency(BA)
Best Value Performance Indicator(BVPI)
Better Care Fund
Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic(BAME)
Boundary Dispute(BD)
Break Clauses(BC)
Budgeting Loans(BL)
Bungalow schemeA sheltered scheme made up of single-storey homes rather than flats.

C

44 terms

CCG
Call Centre Staff(CCS)
Care Inspectorate
Care Quality Commission(CQC)
Care needs assessmentA council assessment of what care and support a person needs to live safely.
Care planA written record of the care someone has agreed to receive and who provides it.
Carers Allowance
Case Management System(CMS)
Cash-Incentive Schemes(CIS)
Cause-Related Marketing(CRM)
Certified Bailiffs Association(CBA)
Chartered Institute for Environmental Health(CIEH)
Chartered Institute of Housing(CIH)
Child Poverty Action Group(CPAG)
Childcare Services(CS)
Children’s Services Plan(CSP)
Choice-Based Lettings(CBL)
Civil Procedure Rules(CPR)
Clearance Orders(CO)
Closing Orders(CLO)
Co-operative(COOP)
Code of Guidance(COG)
Cohabitation Agreement(CA)
Commission for Racial Equality(CRE)
Commonhold
Commonhold Ownership(CO)
Community Care Assessment(CCA)
Community Care Grant(CCG)Historical termA former Social Fund grant that helped people on qualifying benefits with the costs of moving to or staying in independent living.
Community Care Grants(CCG)
Community Care Legislation(CCL)
Community Legal Service(CLS)
Community Service Order(CSO)
Composition Orders(CO)
Comprehensive Spending Review(CSR)
Compulsory Purchase Order(CPO)
Conflict Resolution Procedure(CRP)
Control Area(CA)
Corporate Citizenship(CC)
Corporate Social Responsibility(CSR)
Council Tax Benefit(CTB)
Council for Registered Gas Installers(CRGI)
Council of Mortgage Lenders(CML)
Counterclaim(CC)
Counternotice(CN)

D

20 terms

DecantThe temporary rehousing of residents while major works are carried out on their homes.
Decent Homes Standard(DHS)
Deduction-from-Earnings Orders(DEO)
Default Notice(DN)
Department for Work and Pensions(DWP)
Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs(DEFRA)
Deposit Guarantee Schemes(DGS)
DeputyshipA court-appointed role that allows someone to make decisions for a person who has lost mental capacity.
Devolved Government(DG)
Direct Access Centre(DAC)
Disability Living Allowance(DLA)
Disability Living Allowance(DLA)
Discretionary Grounds(DG)
Discretionary Housing Payment(DHP)
Displaced Residential Occupier(DRO)
Do-It-Yourself Shared Ownership(DISO)
Domiciliary CareCare and support provided in a person's own home.
Drop-in Centres(DIC)
Drug Treatment and Testing Order(DTTO)
Duty to Protect Belongings(DPB)

E

8 terms

Eligibility for Assistance(EA)
Eligible Rent(ER)
Emergency alarm systemA pull-cord or pendant service that connects residents to help 24 hours a day.
Environmental Health Department(EHD)
Environmental Health Officer(EHO)
Equity ReleaseWays of unlocking money from the value of a home while continuing to live in it.
Excluded Occupiers(EO)
Extra Care Housing

F

11 terms

Fair Rent(FR)
Fairer Charging Policy
Family Access Centre(FAC)
Financial Services Authority(FSA)
Fixed-Term Occupier(FTO)
Fixed-Term Tenancy(FTT)
Floating Support(FS)Housing-related support delivered to people in their own homes rather than tied to a scheme.
Freehold
Freeholder
Front-line Staff(FLS)
Full-Duty Applicant(FDA)

G

4 terms

General Possession Procedure(GPP)
Gound Rent
Ground rentA payment some leaseholders make to the freeholder of their building or land.
Grounds for Possession(GFP)

Back to A–Z

H

25 terms

HOA
Habitual Residence Test(HRT)
Hard-to-Let Schemes(HTLS)
Health Care Provision(HCP)
Her Majesty’s Stationery Office(HMSO)
Holding Deposit(HD)
Holistic Needs Assessment
Home Ownership(HO)
Homeowner(HO)
Homesteading Schemes(HS)
Hostels Online Project(HOP)
House in Multiple Occupation(HMO)
Housebuilding(HB)
Housing Advice Centre(HAC)
Housing Aid Centre(HAC)
Housing Association Properties(HAP)
Housing Benefit(HB)A benefit that helps people on low incomes pay rent, including some supported housing service costs.
Housing Benefit Pathfinder Areas(HBPA)
Housing Benefit Review Board(HBRB)
Housing Corporation(HC)
Housing Investment Trusts(HIT)
Housing Mobility and Exchange Scheme(HMES)
Housing Ombudsman
Housing Support Worker(HSW)
Housing associationA not-for-profit landlord that provides and manages affordable homes, including many sheltered schemes.

I

12 terms

IMCA
Implied Term(IT)
Improvement Notice(IN)
Incapacity Benefit(IB)
Income Support(IS)
Income Support for Mortgage Interest(ISMI)
Independent Housing Ombudsman(IHO)
Independent Living
Intentional Homelessness(IH)
Interim Payment(IP)
Interim Possession Order(IPO)
Intermediate CareShort-term care that helps people recover independence after a hospital stay or illness.

J

5 terms

Jobseeker’s Allowance(JSA)
Joint Assured Shorthold Tenancy(JAST)
Joint Assured Tenancy(JAT)
Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants(JCWI)
Joint Secure Tenancy(JST)

L

22 terms

Large-Scale Voluntary Transfer(LSVT)
Lasting Power Of Attorney(LPA)A legal document that lets a trusted person make decisions on someone's behalf if they lose capacity.
LeaseholdOwnership of a property for a fixed period under a lease, common in retirement flats.
Leasehold Advisory Service(LAS)
Leasehold Enfranchisement(LE)
Leasehold Scheme for the Elderly(LSE)
Leasehold Valuation Tribunal(LVT)
Leaving-Care Policy(LCP)
Legal Action Group(LAG)
Lifetime Homes standard
Litigants in Person(LiP)
Local Authority(LA)
Local Authority Housing/Departments(LAH)
Local Connection Disputes(LCD)
Local Connection Referrals(LCR)
Local Government Association(LGA)
Local Government Ombudsman(LGO)
Local Housing Allowance(LHA)
Local Housing Group/Solutions(LHG)
Local Rent Reference(LRR)
Lodgings Schemes(LS)
Low-Cost Housing(LCH)

M

14 terms

Marriage Value(MV)
Matrimonial Property(MP)
Meaningful-Occupation Schemes(MOS)
Mental Health Service(MHS)
Mental capacityA person's ability to make a specific decision at the time it needs to be made.
Mesne Landlords(ML)
Minute for Recall(MFR)
Mixed Tenure
Mobility Aids(MA)
Mortgage Indemnity Guarantee(MIG)
Mortgage Indemnity Insurance(MII)
Moveable Structure(MS)
Multi-Agency Working(MAW)
Mutual Exchange(ME)

N

12 terms

NHS Continuing Care
National Asylum Support Service(NASS)
National Housing Federation(NHF)
Needs Assessment
No Right to Occupy(NRTO)
Nominee Purchaser(NP)
Non-Dependent Deduction(NDD)
Non-Molestation Orders(NMO)
Non-Mutual Housing Association(NMHA)
Notice of Seeking Possession(NOSP)
Notice to Quit(NTQ)
Nursing Care

O

10 terms

Occupation Orders(OO)
Occupational therapist(OT)A professional who assesses how people manage daily tasks and recommends equipment or adaptations.
Occupiers with Basic Protection(OWBP)
Office of Fair Trading(OFT)
Office of Public Sector Information(OPSI)
Office of the Deputy Prime Minister(ODPM)
One-Stop Drop-In(OSDI)
Outreach Teams(OT)
Outright Possession Order(OPO)
Owner-Occupier(OOO)

P

26 terms

PIP(PIP)
Palliative Care
Parliamentary Ombudsman(PO)
Part 7 Tenancies (P7T)
Part 8 Procedure (P8P)
Pathfinder Plans(PP)
Pathway Plans(PP)
Payment-Protection Insurance(PPI)
Peer Review Audit(PRA)
Periodic Occupiers(PO)
Personal budgetMoney allocated by a council to meet someone's assessed care needs, which they can direct.
Personal-Safety Initiatives(PSI)
Planning Policy Guidance(PPG)
Practice Development Programme(PDP)
Pre-Budget Report(PBR)
Pre-Tenancy Determination(PTD)
Primary Health Care(PHC)
Priority Need(PN)
Prison Advice Project(PAP)
Private Rented Accommodation(PRA)
Private Rented Sector Schemes(PRSS)
Private Sector Housing(PSH)
Private Tenants’ Group(PTG)
Property Adjustment Order(PAO)
Protected Intending Occupier(PIO)
Public Order Offences(POO)

Q

1 term

Quality Mark Awards(QMA)

R

18 terms

Redemption Penalties(RP)
Regional Housing Strategies(RHS)
Registered Social Landlord(RSL)
Registered Social Landlords(RSLs)
Regulated Tenancy(RT)
Rent Assessment Committee(RAC)
Rent Assessment Committees(RAC)
Rent Deposit Schemes(RDS)
Rent Officer(RO)
Rental Purchase(RP)
Residents’ Association Meeting(RAM)
Respite Care(RC)
Restricted Contract(RC)
Retirement villageA larger development for older people combining independent homes with leisure facilities and optional care.
Right to Assign(RTA)
Right to Buy(RTB)
Right to Manage(RTM)
Rural Housing Crisis/Need(RHCN)

S

34 terms

Scheme managerThe staff member who supports residents and oversees day-to-day life in a sheltered scheme.
Secure Tenancy Grounds(STG)
Security of Tenure(SOT)
Service Delivery Methods(SDM)
Service Evaluation Procedure(SEP)
Service User Groups(SUG)
Service chargeA regular payment made by residents towards the cost of shared services, staffing and communal areas.
Settled Accommodation(SA)
Sex-Work Projects(SWP)
Sexual-Health Services(SHS)
Shared Ownership Housing(SOH)
Sheltered Housing(SH)
Short Assured Tenancy(SAT)
Single Room Rent(SRR)
Single Room Rent Restrictions (SR3)
Sinking Funds(SF)
Social Fund Payments(SFP)
Social Housing Provider(SHP)
Social Rented Housing(SRH)
Social Services Department/Provision(SSD)
Specialist Hostel(SH)
Spending Review(SR)
Starter Home Initiative(SHI)
Statutory Homelessness(SH)
Statutory Instrument(SI)
Statutory Nuisance(SN)
Statutory Sector Agencies(SSA)
Strategic Development Costs(SDC)
Street Homeless Project(SHP)
Support Service Provider(SSP)
Supported Accommodation(SA)
Supported housingAny housing where accommodation comes with support services attached.
Supporting People(SP)
Suspended Possession Orders(SPO)

T

12 terms

TelecareRemote monitoring technology, such as fall detectors and sensors, that raises an alert when help is needed.
Tenancy Relations Officer(TRO)
Tenancy Sustainment Services(TSS)
Tenancy Transfer(TT)
Tenancy agreement
Tenant Participation and Advisory Service(TPAS)
Tenant-Direct Payment(TDP)
Tenants’ Association(TA)
Time Orders(TO)
Trailblazer Status(TS)
Travellers’ Rights(TR)
Trust Deeds(TD)

U

5 terms

Uncontrolled Tenancies(UT)
Unitary Authorities(UA)
Universal Credit(UC)A single monthly benefit for working-age people that replaced six older benefits, including some housing help.
User Consultation(UC)
User Participation(UP)

V

4 terms

Variation of Lease(VOL)
Void period
Voluntary Sector Agencies(VSA)
Vulnerability Assessment Process(VAP)

W

2 terms

WardenHistorical term
Works in Default(WID)

Y

1 term

Young Persons Team(YPT)