Domestic Abuse – Social Housing Tenancy Provisions: Statutory Guidance for Social Landlords

15. Serving a Notice

15.1 Where a social landlord intends to raise court proceedings on ground 15A they must serve a notice on the tenant and any qualifying occupier which explains that the social landlord may raise proceedings for possession of the property or termination of a tenant’s interest. The notice also sets out the grounds for doing so and the time limit within which the social landlord is permitted to raise proceedings.^[17]

15.2 The notice must be in the form prescribed by Scottish Ministers and the new form of notice for actions based on the new abusive behaviour ground is set out in The Scottish Secure Tenancies (Proceedings for Possession) (Form of Notice) Amendment Regulations 2025.

15.3 Social landlords should contact the victim/survivor from the outset when they are considering raising court proceedings on ground 15A. Discussion with the victim/survivor should include:

• confirmation of the decision to seek court action and details of the evidence being used;
• the process for raising court action;
• serving a notice of proceedings on the abusive tenant;
• consideration of children’s views and interests; and
• agreeing any further arrangements required for the victim/survivor and any children’s safety prior to the abusive tenant being notified of the social landlord’s intention to raise court action.

15.4 There may be an increased risk of harm to the victim/survivor and their family, if, for example, they are still living in the same house as the abusive tenant when the notice of proceedings is being served on the abusive tenant by the social landlord.

15.5 Social landlords should always consider such a risk and ensure that the victim/survivor is provided with sufficient advance warning, in a way that is least likely to put the victim/survivor and their family at risk of harm. This is to ensure that any additional safety arrangements required by the victim/survivor are in place and could involve time for the victim/survivor to contact specialist support agencies to discuss and agree safety planning measures.

Change to the definition of qualifying occupier

15.6 The definition of “qualifying occupier” for the purposes of sections 14 and 15 of the 2001 Act is contained in section 14(6) of that Act. The definition has been amended by The Domestic Abuse (Protection) (Scotland) Act 2021 (Consequential and Supplementary Amendments) Regulations 2026 which come into force on 1 August 2026.

15.7 Regulation 5 amends section 14(6) of the 2001 Act to ensure that the victim/survivor of the abusive behaviour is also included in the definition of a “qualifying occupier”. The current definition of “qualifying occupier” does not, for example, include any such victim/survivor who is an ex-partner of the perpetrator.

15.8 This amendment will mean that there will be a requirement in every case for a social landlord who intends to raise proceedings on the new ground 15A to serve a notice on the victim/survivor to inform them of their intention to raise proceedings. It will also mean that the victim/survivor will have an automatic right to be sisted as a party to proceedings under section 15 of the 2001 Act.