Routes to social housing

By social housing I mean social rent homes provided by a council or housing association. These homes have rents linked to local incomes and provide a truly affordable, secure housing option. I do not mean shared ownership.

The original purpose of social housing was to provide people with the stability of a decent, safe, secure and genuinely affordable home.

Facts and figures

There were 1.21 million households on council waiting lists in England in March 2022.

17% of new social lettings in 2021/22 were to statutorily homeless households.

43% of households with a new letting in 2021/22 included at least one person who had a physical or mental health conditions or illness lasting or expected to last for 12 months or more. The most common illness was mental health.

On average, private renters spend 33% of their income on rent. This is higher than for social renters, who spend about 27%.

Routes

1. Council housing waiting list

2. Homeless application

3. Direct approach to housing associations

The council housing waiting list (housing register)

Each council has their own rules about who can join the waiting list. The rules are explained in a document called an allocations policy. You can generally find this on the council’s website.

You need to meet immigration and residence conditions to join the housing register.

You are likely to meet the immigration conditions if, for example, you are a British Citizen, you have refugee status, EU settled status or indefinite leave to remain (ILR).

Many councils say that you must live or work in the area for a set time before you can go on the waiting list. The council cannot say this if you have moved to the area because of domestic abuse or (in some circumstances) where you have been in the armed forces.

You can usually join the housing register if you:

• count as being legally homeless

• live in overcrowded or very bad conditions

• need to move because of a disability or medical reason

• need to move to care for a relative

• are leaving care or the armed forces

The council might not let you go on the housing register if you have a history of rent arrears or have been involved in antisocial behaviour.

A council’s allocations policy says who should get priority on the waiting list. Some groups of people must get ‘reasonable preference’. This means they must get priority for council and housing association homes. You must get reasonable preference if you:

• are homeless or at risk of violence

• are overcrowded or live in very bad housing conditions

• need to move for health, disability or welfare reasons

Some councils give priority or points to other groups. You might get even more priority if you need to move urgently. For example, if you need to move because of:

• a sudden disability or life threatening illness

• overcrowding or repair problems that put your health at serious risk

• violence or threats, including domestic abuse, witness intimidation or serious antisocial behaviour

If you’re not in a priority group it will probably take a lot longer to get a council or housing association home. Many councils give extra priority based on how long you’ve been on the register.Some give extra priority to people who:

• are working

• do voluntary work

• have a good tenancy record

There are not enough council and housing association homes in most areas. You could be on the register for months or sometimes years even if you are in a priority group. You might not get a home. How long you have to wait depends on:

• your priority band or points

• how many homes are available

• how many people on the waiting list have higher priority than you

• how flexible you are about the type of property and areas you can live in

The council must tell you about your chances of getting a home and how long it’s likely to take if you ask them.

Councils offer homes to people on the housing register through choice based letting schemes or direct offers. Choice based letting means you have to tell the council about properties you are interested in i.e. by bidding. A direct offer means the council finds a property for you. Ask your council which scheme they use. Some councils use both.

It’s risky to turn down an offer of a council or housing association home, even if it is not suitable.

The council could:

• take you off the list

• stop you from bidding for a time

• give you less priority if their policy allows this

Accept the offer first then ask the council to find you somewhere else.

Your priority on the waiting list could go down if you found somewhere suitable to rent privately. For example, if you’re overcrowded while staying with family but then find your own private place.

Homeless application

This route can lead to accommodation provided by the council while you wait for a social home.

Homeless applications are made to a council. You can make an application where you are homeless or threatened with homelessness, or by someone on your behalf.

A request for a transfer or an application to go on the housing register may be treated as a homeless application, for example where your current housing conditions make it unreasonable for you to continue to occupy your home.

The council has a duty to provide interim (also known as emergency) accommodation if, at any point during enquiries, there is a reason to believe that you may be:

• homeless

• eligible for assistance (this depends on your immigration status), and

• in priority need

The relief duty applies when the council is satisfied that you are homeless and eligible for assistance. This duty requires the council to take reasonable steps to help you secure that suitable accommodation becomes available for your occupation for at least six months.’ This requires the council to work with you to help you find and keep accommodation.

If homelessness is not relieved within 56 days then the main housing duty applies automatically if the council is satisfied that you are in priority need and not intentionally homeless.

Sections 148 and 149 of the Localism Act 2011 introduced provisions which enable the council to end the main housing duty with a suitable private rented sector offer (PRSO) of accommodation. Where a council is ending the relief duty it can also make a final offer of a six month tenancy with a private landlord.

In practice, councils especially in London often work to relieve homelessness by securing accommodation in the private sector. For instance, Southwark Council’s PRSO policy for homeless households states:

“The council’s policy is that a PRSO may be made to any homeless household where the law allows it.

…

The council will use the powers set out in the Homelessness Reduction Act to make PRSO offers to Prevention Stage and Relief Stage homeless households and households threatened with homelessness.

The council will use the powers set out in the Localism Act to make PRSO offers to accepted cases i.e. statutory homeless households to which the council owes the full housing duty (Section 193 HA96).

The number of households that will be made a PRSO each year will depend on the supply of suitable private rented sector properties.

The following groups will ordinarily be excluded from PRSOs:

a. Households eligible for sheltered housing – as it is unlikely that this type of housing can be provided in the private rented sector.

b. Households that need wheelchair adapted properties – as these can be hard to procure in the private rented sector.

c. Any household which the council determines would be unable to manage a private rented sector tenancy.”

Direct approach to housing associations

Most housing associations make properties available through council waiting lists. However, you can make applications directly. You can apply directly to the housing associations and providers listed below.

• A2 Dominion

• Ability

• Anchor Trust

• Family Mosaic (merging with Peabody)

• Clarion

• Glebe Court TMO

• Genesis

• Hanover

• Housing 21

• Kingston Churches

• L&Q

• Millat