Discrimination
Landlords have legal obligations to make sure that they take all reasonable steps so that people are not discriminated against directly or indirectly due to their race, colour, gender or disability. The specific legislations are:
Treating a person less favourably than another on the grounds of their race, gender or disability, is defined as Direct discrimination.
Indirect discrimination consists of having a pre-requisite or conditions that although they are applied equally to persons whether male or female, Black or White, means in real terms, that a much smaller proportion of a particular racial or gender group are able to "pass" the requirements than others. It cannot be argued that these conditions for Tenancy are shown to be ‘justifiable’.
Issues concerning disability also have a similar legal requirement that Landlords must not impose conditions that will be judged as ‘unreasonable’.
A revised code of practice on racial equality in housing has been published by The Commission for Racial Equality (CRE). The code is important as it is a statutory code which has been approved by Parliament and therefore Courts will take into account the code’s recommendations in legal cases.
The code is in two main parts. The first explains what Landlords need to know about
discrimination; the second advises on how to avoid it.
More information about the CRE code for landlords is available from the CRE website where you can download a shortened summary at: www.cre.gov.uk/gdpract/housing_code.html