Looking for a home.indd - Westminster City Council

COMMUNITY SUPPORTIVE HOUSINGCOMMUNITY SUPPORTIVE HOUSINGA safe and secure home with theopportunity to socialise and takepart in organised events with peopleyour own age, where you can getsupport if and when you need it. If thissounds good and you are 60 or older,Community Supportive Housing couldbe for just what you need . . .Community Supportive Housing is aboutenabling older people to live independently for aslong as possible. It is open to most Westminsterresidents over 60 who do not need24-hour residential care. It includeswhat used to be called sheltered,supported and extra care housingbut is also open to those who donot currently need support.In recent years, Westminster hasmade major improvements toits accommodation for the over60s, with more to come by 2012.Vibrant modern decoration, better security andimproved facilities make for a safer altogethermore cheerful environment. With all this on offer,the question is how do you apply?To register for Community Supportive Housing,contact the Housing Options Service for ahousing application form. (When completing it,tick the box indicating you would like to apply foraccommodation for older people.)1415

COMMUNITY SUPPORTIVE HOUSINGLOOKING FOR A HOMEOn receipt of your application we will assess yoursuitability for Community Supportive Housing.We give priority to those with in greatestneed of such housing, however, we do acceptapplications from older people who currentlyhave no need of support.When registered, you will be able to bid forproperties as and when they become available.Properties are advertised weekly on our HomeConnections website, but don’t worry about thatfor the moment, we’ll explain how to bid whenwe register you.If you are interested, why not apply?. And in themeantime, if you have any questions pleaseask—our contact details are on the back cover.OPTION 4:COUNCIL ANDHOUSING ASSOCIATIONHOMES16 1 17

COUNCIL AND HOUSING ASSOCIATION HOMESCOUNCIL AND HOUSING ASSOCIATION HOMESNEARLY ALL OUR PROPERTIES GO TO PEOPLEINCLUDED IN THIS LISTWe provide a limitednumber of affordablerented homes.We have our ownproperties (councilflats and houses) andwe can nominatepeople to housingassociations. We alsoprovide temporaryaccommodation forhomeless people.Like other local authorities inLondon, we have a very highdemand for housing and cannotprovide homes for most people whoregister. We must, therefore, givepriority to those in greatest need ofour help.You are welcome to apply butplease bear in mind that we offernearly all our vacant properties tothe people listed opposite.Homeless people who have a priority needfor housing including, households containingchildren, a pregnant woman, someone over 60,or someone who is particularly vulnerable. Theseare people we have a legal duty to help.Those who have a health or welfare problem thatis severe and adversely affected by their currentaccommodation where we cannot find suitableaccommodation for them with a private landlord.People aged 60 or older who are registered forCommunity Supportive Housing. See Option 3 onpage 13 for details.Westminster council tenants living in veryovercrowded conditions.The adult sons and daughters of Westminstercouncil tenants living in very overcrowdedconditions in the parental home.People living in accommodation which isstatutorily (very) overcrowded or which presentsa high risk to their health and safety where wecannot find suitable accommodation for themwith a private landlord.18 19

COUNCIL AND HOUSING ASSOCIATION HOMESCOUNCIL AND HOUSING ASSOCIATION HOMESARE YOU LIKELY TO GET A PROPERTY?If we accept a duty to house you because youare unintentionally homeless and have a priorityneed for housing (see the list on the previouspage) we can, as an option, give you priority for acouncil or housing association property. The waitfor properties can be several years, especially ifyou need a home with two or more bedrooms.So while you are waiting, we will place you intemporary accommodation; this may be outsideWestminster.Where we do not have a legal duty to house youbecause you are homeless, you will only have arealistic chance of getting a council or housingassociation property from us if you are includedin one of the other groups listed on page 19 andall the following apply.• You have lived in Westminster continuously forthe last two years;• Your total household income is below the figureat which an individual becomes liable to pay thehigher rate of income tax;• The total combined savings of all the membersof your household amounts to less than £64,507(This figure was correct at the time of printing butmay have since increased); and• No one in your application owns a property.IF YOU ARE SOMEONE WE CAN HOUSEWe let nearly all vacant properties through ourChoice Based Lettings scheme. When propertiesbecome available we advertise them and allowpriority housing applicants to bid for them. Ifmore than one person is interested in a property,it will go to the bidder with the highest priorityfor housing provided it is suitable for them. Whenyou apply we will tell you whether you have ahigh enough priority to bid for properties. If weallow you to bid, you will join a register of over4000 households who also have a high priorityfor housing. So, except where you are over 60and register for Community Supportive Housing(see page 13) it may be several years before youget a property of your own.APPLYING DIRECTLY TO A HOUSINGASSOCIATIONSome housing associations will accept directapplications from certain groups of people. Ifyou are not likely to be housed by us, it may beworthwhile approaching some of them yourself.You can get a list of such housing associationsfrom the Housing Options Service.20 21

COUNCIL AND HOUSING ASSOCIATION HOMESLOOKING FOR A HOMEBecause properties arein very short supplywe cannot house mostpeople who applyOPTION 5:STAYING PUT22 23

STAYING PUTSTAYING PUTPeople look foraccommodationfor all sorts ofreasons. If youare searchingbecause you areabout to lose yourhome, we may beable to help youkeep it.IF YOU CAN’T PAY YOUR RENT OR MORTGAGEWhere you are unable to pay your rent ormortgage because of other debts, we can referyou to a debt management adviser. Your adviserwill look at the possibility of rescheduling yourdebts or managing them more effectively.In limited circumstances, where you arethreatened with homelessness because ofmortgage or rent arrears, it may be possible toprevent repossession through the government’smortgage rescue scheme or an interest freeloan.Under the mortgage rescue scheme,homeowners can sell their leases to a housingassociation in return for the association grantingthem an assured tenancy with a rentbelow the market rate.Alternatively, you could get aninterest free loan from Westminster’sRepossession Prevention Fund toreduce your mortgage payments or, ifyou are renting, clear some or all of yourrent arrears.To be eligible for these two schemesyou must have a priority need forhousing, for example have a child, a pregnantwoman, someone over 60 or someone who isparticularly vulnerable in your household. Wecan tell you whether you are eligible for themortgage rescue scheme or repossession fundand if you are, refer you to the relevant agencies.2425

STAYING PUTLOOKING FOR A HOMEIF YOUR LANDLORD HAS ASKED YOU TO LEAVEIf your landlord has asked you to leave it’s worth checkingwhether you have the right to stay in your home. Whatever yourlandlord’s reason for wanting the property back, we have experthousing advisers who can determine your rights and, whereappropriate, negotiate or mediate with landlords.IF YOU ARE BEING HARASSEDWhere you are being unlawfully harassed or threatened witheviction and your home is in Westminster, we have the powerto intervene. In addition you may be able to take legal action tostop the problem.OPTION 6:EMERGENCY ANDSHORT TERM ACCOMMODATIONFAMILY MEDIATIONIf you are a young person who has been asked to leave homebecause of a family problem, you should go to your nearestYoung People’s Locality Service which can be found at.• 29 Cosway Street NW1 6TN.• 131 Lupus Street Pimlico London, SW1V 3EN• Stowe Centre, 285 Harrow Road, W2 5ESThey have officers who specialise in helping young people inthese situations. Often they can help resolve issues so thatyoung people can safely remain in the family home.If your parents are Westminster council tenants or have boughttheir home from the council, you may qualify for our FamilyQuota scheme. Under the Family Quota scheme we give theadult sons and daughters of Westminster council tenantspriority for homes of their own. You won’t get a place straightaway under this scheme so it is important that you remain inyour parents’ home while you wait for a property.2627

EMERGENCY AND SHORT TERM ACCOMMODATIONEMERGENCY AND SHORT TERM ACCOMMODATIONnone of the previous options are available orsuitable for you, it may still be possible to findsomewhere to stay if only temporarily.We can put you in touch with hostels, refugesand B&Bs providing accommodation for peoplewith an urgent need of housing and support.Some provide supported accommodation orcater for specific groups of people, such as thosewho are sleeping rough, women fleeing domesticviolence and young people.We have links to many organisations and willdo our best to ensure you have a roof over yourhead.Although not a long term solution, suchaccommodation could give you shelter until yousecure a home.28 29