ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book suggests that consultation became better during the 1980s as both local and central government became tuned into lower capital funding levels and rising rents. It analysis of relationships between voluntary and state sectors depended upon quality training in order to facilitate participation between these groups. The book argues that participation of many of the applicants in their study was actively discouraged and obstructed by both the procedures and some arbitrators. It provides an alternative focus, arguing that housing lawyers need to rethink this distinction by reference to the purpose of the person or organization which grants the right. The book also suggests the exclusion of those accommodated in houses in multiple occupations. It shows how inter-agency participation can be used as an exclusionary device, sometimes with the most tragic consequences.
