It isn’t always possible to appeal against the council’s decision about your homelessness application to the county court. In these cases, you may be able to get the decision changed by judicial review. You may be able to get accommodation from the council while the judicial review is carried out.

Judicial review is a type of legal action that can be used to challenge decisions made by public organisations such as the council. It is used to challenge the way that decisions have been made, rather than the decisions themselves.

It can be difficult to use judicial review. It has to be started in the High Court and you will need specialist legal help.

Examples include when the council:

• refuses to accept a homelessness application from you
• refuses to house you while it decides what other help to give you
• ignores relevant factors (such as your health) in deciding whether emergency accommodation provided while it looks into your situation is suitable or not
• refuses to review its original decision
• unreasonably refuses to provide accommodation while a review is being carried out.

Yes. Judicial review can be very complicated, so you should get specialist advice before taking any action.

You may be able to get help from a legal aid lawyer if you are on certain benefits or have a low income. Shelter Cymru has a legal team who can tell you whether you have a good case and, if so, might be able to help and represent you. Contact a Shelter Cymru adviser who can refer you to the legal team as necessary.

You may also contact the Civil Legal Advice helpline on 0345 345 4 345.

Have any papers you received from the council and the court with you when you speak to an adviser.