Vesting land in housing action trust: HA 1988 s. 76
HA 1988 s. 76 permits vesting of land from statutory undertakers or public bodies into a housing action trust by order, with exceptions and compensation.
Subject to subsections (2) and (3) below, the Secretary of State may by order provide that land specified in the order which is vested in statutory undertakers or any other public body or in a wholly-owned subsidiary of a public body shall vest in a housing action trust established or to be established for the designated area in which the land is situated. An order under this section may not specify land vested in statutory undertakers which is used for the purpose of carrying on their statutory undertakings or which is held for that purpose. In the case of land vested in statutory undertakers, the power to make an order under this section shall be exercisable by the Secretary of State and the appropriate Minister. Part I of Schedule 9 to this Act shall have effect for supplementing the preceding provisions of this section. An order under this section shall have the same effect as a declaration under the Compulsory Purchase (Vesting Declarations) Act 1981 except that, in relation to such an order, the enactments mentioned in Part II of Schedule 9 to this Act shall have effect subject to the modifications specified in that Part. Compensation under the Land Compensation Act 1961, as applied by subsection (5) above and Part II of Schedule 9 to this Act, shall be assessed by reference to values current on the date the order under this section comes into force. No order shall be made under this section in relation to a universal service provider (within the meaning of Part 3 of the Postal Services Act 2011 ). An order under this section shall be made by statutory instrument but no such order shall be made unless a draft of it has been laid before, and approved by a resolution of, each House of Parliament.
Text in force at .
Source: legislation.gov.uk — The National Archives (legislation.gov.uk), reproduced under licence Open Government Licence v3.0.
What it actually says
This section gives the Secretary of State power to make a statutory instrument (an order) that transfers ownership of land from certain public bodies to a housing action trust. The land must be in the designated area of that trust. The order has the same legal effect as a vesting declaration under compulsory purchase law.
The public bodies include 'statutory undertakers' (such as utility companies) and any other public body or wholly-owned subsidiary of a public body. However, land that is being used for the statutory undertaking (e.g., an active gas pipeline) cannot be taken. For statutory undertakers, the order must be made jointly by the Secretary of State and the 'appropriate Minister' (e.g., the relevant departmental minister).
Compensation is assessed under the Land Compensation Act 1961, based on land values on the date the order comes into force. The order itself cannot be made unless a draft is approved by both Houses of Parliament. Additionally, universal service providers under the Postal Services Act 2011 are exempt from such orders.
When it applies
- A housing action trust wants to acquire a disused railway yard owned by Network Rail (a statutory undertaker) for redevelopment. The Secretary of State and the Transport Minister issue a vesting order.
- A local authority owns a former school site that it no longer needs; the housing action trust for the area requests an order to transfer the land to build social housing.
- A water company holds a large area of land around a reservoir that is surplus; the trust seeks a vesting order, but the water company argues the land is held for future reservoir expansion (used for statutory undertaking), so it may be excluded.
- A wholly-owned subsidiary of a public body, such as a development corporation, owns land that the trust wants; the Secretary of State issues an order transferring that land.
What this section does not say
- This provision does not apply to privately owned land; it only covers land already vested in a public body or statutory undertaker.
- It does not govern the process by which a housing action trust acquires land by compulsory purchase; that is covered by section 77.
- It does not deal with compensation disputes or amounts; those are determined under the Land Compensation Act 1961 separately.
- It does not allow the trust to sell or dispose of land after vesting; disposal is governed by section 79.
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This page reproduces the text of HA 1988 s. 76 in force at the date shown and explains it in general terms. It is not legal advice and takes no account of the circumstances of your case, which can change the answer completely. For a live dispute, for limitation periods, and before taking any step in court, consult a qualified lawyer in England and Wales.