
1 

(1) This Order may be cited as the Local Authorities (Contracting Out of Allocation of Housing and Homelessness Functions) Order 1996.
(2) This article and article 3 of this Order shall come into force on 20th January 1997 and article 2 of this Order shall come into force on 1st April 1997.
(3) In this Order—
 “the Act” means the Housing Act 1996;
 “an authority” means a local housing authority as defined in the Housing Act 1985.
(4) Any expressions used in this Order which are also used in the Act have the same meaning as they have in the Act.
2 
Any function of an authority which is conferred by or under Part VI of the Act (allocation of housing accommodation), except one which is listed in Schedule 1 to this Order, may be exercised by, or by employees of, such person (if any) as may be authorised in that behalf by the authority whose function it is.
3 
Any function of an authority which is conferred by or under Part VII of the Act (homelessness), except one which is listed in Schedule 2 to this Order, may be exercised by, or by employees of, such person (if any) as may be authorised in that behalf by the authority whose function it is.
Signed by authority of the Secretary of State for the Environment
James Clappison
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State,
Department of the Environment
18th December 1996Signed by authority of the Secretary of State for Wales
Jonathon Evans
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State,
Welsh Office
20th December 1996
SCHEDULE 1
Article 2

Functions conferred by or under any of the following provisions of the Act:
(a) section 161(4) (classes of persons qualifying for allocations);
(b) section 162 (the housing register) so far as they relate to any decision about the form of the register;
(c) section 167 (allocation in accordance with allocation scheme) so far as they relate to adopting or altering an allocation scheme (including decisions on what principles the scheme is to be framed) and to the functions in subsection (7) of that section;
(d) section 168(2) (information about allocation scheme) so far as they relate to making the allocation scheme available for inspection at the authority’s principal office.

SCHEDULE 2
Article 3

Functions conferred by or under any of the following provisions of the Act:
(a) section 179(2) and (3) (duty of local housing authority to provide advisory services);
(b) section 180 (assistance for voluntary organisations);
(c) section 213 (co-operation between relevant housing authorities and bodies).
