A leading housing specialist has outlined how he helped a Felixstowe family of four prevent eviction during lockdown.

But James Hanlon, a Legal Aid Housing Supervisor at the Suffolk Law Centre (SLC) fears that case is just the tip of an eviction iceberg and there is likely to be an 'avalanche of homelessness' when a government moratorium comes to an end in September.

Mr Hanlon's colleagues at the law centre, experts at Felixstowe and District Citizens Advice and East Suffolk councillors are all bracing themselves and have taken steps to deal with the impending problems, after the government extended its halt on eviction enforcement, which was due to end last Monday, for a month

Mr Hanlon told Nub News about the family he helped in Felixstowe and said: "Whilst in the midst of the COVID 19 related lockdown Suffolk Law Centre acting under Legal Aid funding, advised a vulnerable young family of four who were being pressured to leave their rented property by an overzealous landlord.

"The landlord wished to take possession of the property so that it could be offered at a higher rental rate. The landlord had informed the client that the rent was to be increased and that if it weren't paid at the higher rate, he would issue court proceedings to seek possession without further notice. The landlord then served a Notice Seeking Possession but had not given the correct notice period that had been put in place to protect tenants during the COVID 19 lockdown.

"Once I had explained that any possession claim would be dismissed due to the failure by the landlord to follow amended Civil Procedure Rules or to have regard of the relevant legislation, as well as pointing out that pressuring his tenants to leave without due process could result in the tenant seeking a civil injunction and damages through a claim to the County Court, the landlord relented and agreed that the client hand her family could stay in the property."

This example has led to Audrey Ludwig, director of legal services and senior solicitor at the Suffolk Law Centre (SLC), has outlined a three-point expansion in the depth and reach of its Housing Legal Aid service, which supports some of the most vulnerable citizens across Suffolk and north Essex.

Firstly, James who has been working for the service since September last year, has now qualified a Legal Aid Housing Supervisor for Legal Aid work, under the supervision of Hackney Law Centre.

The SLC has secured funding to recruit a Legal Aid housing caseworker to assist James manage the likely growth in casework which is anticipated once the ban on private sector evictions is lifted from 20 September this year.

And thirdly, the SLC has won a contract to run the duty housing legal aid scheme at Bury St Edmunds County Court. This will allow the service to be based in the court building itself and directly help people facing housing issues who have no legal representation, just as as they have been doing at Ipswich County Court.

Meanwhile, Citizen Advice research nationally reveals that one in nine people say they've fallen behind on a household bill due to coronavirus — the equivalent of six million people across the UK.

And the impact of the crisis hasn't been felt equally: people with caring responsibilities, those in the shielded group and key workers are more than twice as likely to have fallen behind on their bills.

With protections against eviction for renters and the ban on face-to-face bailiff collection both set to end the CAB is warning many may face harsh enforcement.

Jane London, deputy manager at Felixstowe Citizens Advice said: "We are working as hard as ever to assist our clients.

"We are already receiving calls from tenants who find themselves in arrears and at risk of eviction. We would urge anyone who finds themselves in this situation to talk to their landlord and try to agree a payment plan to address/reduce the arrears. It would also be useful if tenants could draw up a income and expenditure sheet to see where their income is going and to assist them to prioritise their payments to secure their home. We find that people who have rent arrears often owe money to other creditors too, so considering setting up a payment plan to all creditors is a good idea.

"A benefit check is also useful, benefit calculators are available online at Turn to Us or Entitled To. Both easily found via an internet search engine, or we can offer to do this for a client."

Jane added: "We are happy to talk to clients about any issues including the ones mentioned above and I would urge tenants who find themselves in this position not to leave it too long as the problem will not go away."

Felixstowe Citizens Advice can be contacted on 0300 330 9016. The best time to call is between 10am and 1pm weekday mornings.

Housing charity Shelter estimates that nationally, in spite of the ban, 58,000 private sector tenants were in fact evicted during the lockdown and another 174,00 had been warned by their landlords that they were facing evictions.

The District Councils Network believes that up to half a million people may be in danger of losing their homes once the ban is lifted.

Mr Hanlon added: "We could be facing an avalanche of homelessness in the autumn due to the backlog of eviction cases. Usually, it's a David and Goliath fight between tenants and their landlords, which is why the service we provide is so important in levelling the playing field.

"Landlords in the UK have more power than their equivalents in most other European Union countries, including what are called section 21 evictions which allow landlords to take proceedings against tenants without having to provide a reason for so doing."

East Suffolk Council confirmed nine council tenants and 15 of its registered provider tenants were in danger of eviction, although that could change next month.

No court order has been issued for those tenants at this stage, although the council have confirmed two cases are under bailiff's process and are at immediate risk once the government's moratorium comes to an end.

Trimley ward councillor Richard Kerry, who is also East Suffolk's cabinet member for Housing, told Nub News: "We have been working with landlords throughout lockdown to address any issues which could lead to an eviction for all cases currently under a Prevention or Relief Duty.

"Whilst this has been successful in preventing some evictions, there are still cases which we have not been able to prevent for a number of reasons, such as anti-social behaviour or private landlords wishing to sell or move into their property.

"Regardless of the circumstances, our teams continue to work hard to prevent evictions where possible, such as mediating and negotiating with landlords on a case by case basis. Of course, there may be some cases we are unaware of, but we are doing everything we can to avoid homelessness by reaching out to those we are aware of and offering a 24/7 service, so an officer is available in emergencies."

Dame Gillian Guy, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice, said: "We're really pleased the government has stepped in to keep its promise that no renter will lose their home because of the coronavirus pandemic - for now at least.

"During this extended pause on new eviction proceedings, we hope the government will work with Citizens Advice and others to put in place a series of protections which will help those who've built up rent arrears get back on their feet.

"We'd like to see funding for a dedicated set of protections, including measures such as grants for those in arrears due to coronavirus.

"This would not only directly help those affected, but also contribute towards consumer confidence and the economic recovery."

Link here for further information about theSuffolk Law Centre.

Link here for East Suffolk homeless and eviction advice.