High Court refuses charity permission to bring JR over Supporting People cuts

A High Court judge has refused a charity permission to bring judicial review proceedings against Nottingham City Council over cuts the authority is proposing to its Supporting People budget.

The charity, Framework, said it would now seek permission for a judicial review against the Department for Communities and Local Government, which devised the formula for the cuts.

At the High Court Framework said it wanted to challenge Nottingham’s decision to use £12.4m as the starting point for its Supporting People budget in 2011/12. The charity cited correspondence from DCLG that indicated that the city’s formula grant allocation for the coming year included at least £19.8m in respect of Supporting People.

However, the judge decided that in conditions that differ from those in previous years, it was not unreasonable for the city council to start from a figure of £12.4m when setting its own budget for housing-related support.

Andrew Redfern, Framework’s chief executive, said: “We embarked on this process because we couldn’t stand by and watch while thousands of people lose the support they desperately need. We are disappointed, on their behalf, that permission for a legal challenge has been refused. However it is better to hit the brick wall at this point than take the case to court only to discover that it makes no difference to the reality on the ground.”

Redfern said Framework would now seek other ways to try and prevent “the worst excesses of the cuts”.

He added: “The judge accepted the argument that the baseline distribution of the Supporting People budget is a reasonable starting point for local budget setting. In view of this we will now seek permission for a legal challenge to central government’s handling of SP, in particular the re-distribution that has meant a massive reduction in the underlying allocation to Nottingham city. The figure of £12.4m for 2011/12 is 45% less than the £22.3m that Nottingham received for the same purpose in the current year.

“In the meantime we will continue to highlight the impact of withdrawing support from thousands of vulnerable people whose needs have not disappeared regardless of the disputes between central and local government. It will not be possible to prevent the harm to individuals and communities, but we may be able to mitigate it.”

News of the High Court ruling comes just days after Broxtowe Borough Council fired a warning shot at Nottinghamshire County Council over its proposals to cut its Supporting People, promising legal action if the plans are not changed.

Broxtowe’s Cabinet approved a letter to the county arguing that the cuts would have a major impact on its vulnerable tenants and put an increasing burden on the borough council.

Philip Hoult