Buckinghamshire Council Housing Allocations Scheme

An applicant for Bucks Home Choice must apply to go on to one of the four legacy district area Housing Registers. The applicant must have a local connection to the district area concerned in order to qualify for the legacy district area Housing Register (e.g. an applicant for the Aylesbury Vale legacy district area Housing Register must have a local connection with the legacy Aylesbury Vale area). The full definition of what constitutes a Local Connection is in Paragraph 2.3.3.

Where an applicant has a local connection to more than one legacy district area, the application will be managed and maintained by the legacy district area Housing Register where the applicant has a residential local connection (i.e. where the applicant has lived for at least 2 years).

An applicant who does not have a local connection with any of the four legacy district areas (Aylesbury Vale, Chiltern, South Bucks or Wycombe) but is still a qualifying person can apply to go on to any of the four legacy district Housing Registers.

A person who is a member of staff of the Council, their close family and elected members of the Council may apply for housing in the same way as other applicants. A close family member is a parent, sibling or adult child. Their status should be disclosed on the application form at the time of applying. Any applicant making a successful bid for a property and subsequent letting must be approved by a Senior Housing Officer.

Stage 1 – This is a pre-assessment process which takes details from the applicant and determines what housing options are available to them. This will include the option of making a Bucks Home Choice application if the information provided indicates that the applicant is eligible and will qualify for scheme.

Stage 2 – If the Stage 1 pre-assessment indicates that the applicant is eligible and qualifies for Bucks Home Choice, the applicant will then have the option of making a formal application to the Bucks Home Choice scheme.

After assessment, if the applicant is accepted onto the register they will receive written confirmation of the following information:

• Their unique reference number, which allows them to express interest via Bucks Home Choice.
• The Priority Band in which the application has been placed.
• The date that the application was registered.
• The size of the property for which the applicant is likely to be able to bid for.

Applicants must also provide the information and evidence that is required to enable the Council to check and assess their eligibility and housing need. If an applicant fails to provide the requested information within 28 calendar days their application will be cancelled.

The Council will make any enquiries necessary in order to determine an applicant’s eligibility to join the Housing Register and their level of priority for housing. When completing an on-line application and declaration, applicants are authorising the Council to:

(i) make reasonable and relevant enquiries as are required to complete the assessment and
(ii) disclose information to other parts of the Council and other agencies in order to verify the application.

If the applicant does not give authority to make reasonable and relevant enquiries and to disclose information to other parts of the Council or other agencies, then this may affect the assessment and final outcome of the application.

Applications will normally be assessed, once all the required information has been provided, within 10 working days.

If an applicant is ineligible or does not qualify to join the Housing Register they will be informed of the reasons for this decision and advised of the review process (see Section 7).

An application for the Bucks Home Choice scheme will comprise of the lead applicant and any members of the applicant’s household who require rehousing with the applicant. For the purposes of Bucks Home Choice, the applicant’s household will normally comprise the applicant together with his/her partner (if applicable) and any dependent children (if applicable) who might reasonably be expected to reside with the applicant.

In assessing an application, the Council will assess who reasonably requires re-housing with the applicant. This will include consideration of the circumstances below.

Any non-dependent adult over the age of 18 and not in full time education may not be considered as part of the household and are able to make an application in their own name.

Household members who have always been living as one household will only be considered as part of the household if they are unable to live independently which will require an assessment from Adult Social Care and or medical professionals to support the request at the time of application.

For the purpose of assessing an application, dependent children are expected to share rooms with other children in the same extended family regardless of whether they are siblings.

If an applicant wishes to include a carer in the application, then in all cases the carer must have been identified by the applicant as the person who is primarily responsible for providing the applicant with care and the carer must need to live with the applicant to provide this care.

Even if a carer is in receipt of carer’s Allowance this does not mean that it is necessary for them to reside with the person who is being cared for. Many carers provide over 35 hours a week support whilst living in their own home. An application to include a carer in a housing application will be considered if the applicant has been assessed by Social Care as needing to receive overnight support and the persons Care Package that they would supply supports overnight care. In these circumstances a copy of the Care Package will be required.

If an applicant is a separated parent and wishes to include his/her child in the application, the Council will assess whether or not the child resides with the applicant. This assessment will consider all circumstances including:

• Residence Order for the child
• Which parent is the recipient of Child Benefit Tax Credits and/or Universal Credit.
• The existing residence arrangements for the child (i.e. where does the child currently stay with each parent?)
• Any other relevant information

In the case of children, the test of normal residence as a member of the family will require residence as opposed to ‘staying’ or ‘staying access’ even in cases of joint custody or joint residence or similar orders. The Council in applying the residence test will consider whether there is a sufficient degree of permanence or regularity to constitute normal residence as a member of the family. Account may be taken of whether the child is dependent upon the applicant. The Council may also take account of the supply and demand for accommodation, the general housing circumstances within the district and any under-occupation that may result where a child spends part of a week with one parent and part of a week with another.

Where the family unit is not currently residing together and they have previously lived together as a family unit and there is a reasonable expectation that they should reside together the family will be considered as a split family. Assessment of priority band will consider the accommodation currently available by the different parts of the family and will be based on the accommodation that better suits the family’s needs at the time of the application.

Where an applicant has been assessed as having support needs they will not be offered accommodation until they can demonstrate that they have engaged with the appropriate services and have a continuing support plan for tenancy sustainment. This is to ensure that an applicant with support needs will be able to manage a tenancy and reduce the risk of repeat homelessness. The Council will consult partner agencies as required and in accordance with the Data Protection Act and GPDR 2016.

In order to meet the criteria to qualify to join Bucks Home Choice under Right to Move the applicant must:

• be a social housing tenant
• have Reasonable Preference because of a need to move to the Buckinghamshire Council area to avoid hardship and is not deemed to be a non-qualifying person under clause 2.3A(b)
• need to move because the tenant works or has been offered work in the Buckinghamshire Council area
• and has a genuine intention to take up the offer of work.

The Council must be satisfied that the tenant needs, rather than wishes, to move for work reasons. As well as other factors the Council will take into consideration the nature of work and whether similar opportunities are available closer to home.

Under section 171 of the Housing Act 1996 it is an offence for an applicant to knowingly or recklessly give false or misleading information or knowingly withhold information relevant to their application. Under the Act, the Council has the power to take action against an applicant which could result in a fine of up to £5000.

An offence is also committed if the applicant allows a third party to provide false information on his or her behalf, or at his or her instigation.

If an applicant, or a person acting on his or her behalf, has given false information or withheld information it could:

• Affect an applicant’s eligibility to join the Housing Register;
• If appropriate, result in the applicant not being given preference at all.
• If appropriate, be taken into account in prioritising applicants who have Reasonable Preference

Where there is an allegation or suspicion that a person has given false information, or has withheld information, the application will be suspended pending the outcome of an investigation. If it has been established that an applicant has provided false information the person will be deemed not to be a qualifying person.

The Council will provide advice and information to help applicants to make the most of Bucks Home Choice to meet their housing needs. This will include:

• How to apply to join the Housing Register and what supporting information applicants will be required to provide.
• Help to fill in the housing registration form (by prior appointment).
• The meaning of the priority bands and how this affects the time individual applicants are likely to have to wait.
• Advice on how to bid on a property, and how to obtain help to bid.
• Advice on other options for housing such as private renting or shared ownership.

Where an applicant is assessed as being a non-qualifying person, the applicant will be given advice and information on the other housing options open to them.

Applicants must renew their applications once a year and they will receive a reminder and information on how to do this on the anniversary of the date of their application.

Applicants must also notify the Council of any changes in their circumstances, such as a relationship breakdown, an older child leaving home or a baby being born.

An application will be suspended if:

• An applicant has been asked for information to support an application and a reply is awaited.
• An applicant has changed address and not provided a change of circumstances form.
• An applicant has been asked to provide information from their support agency or worker to support their application and a reply is awaited.

If suspended, an applicant will not be able to bid for properties.

An application will be cancelled if:

• The applicant has asked for it to be cancelled.
• The applicant has been rehoused via Bucks Home Choice.
• The applicant has exchanged a property with another tenant and is now deemed to be adequately housed.
• The applicant has moved and not told us of their new address.
• A Partner has written or emailed the applicant about the application and there has been no response within 28 days.
• An applicant has not provided within 28 days all the information that has been requested and is reasonably required to support the application.
• A Partner has evidence that the applicant no longer qualifies for housing (see Section 2.3)
• The applicant has not responded to an offer of housing within the timescales required.
• The applicant has given false or misleading information.
• The applicant’s circumstances have changed and the applicant no longer has a housing need or local connection under this policy.

In the event of an application being cancelled the partnership reserves the right to re-instate an application at its discretion.