Major shake-up of Northumberland housing list could cut number on waiting list in half

Northumberland County Council Headquarters at County Hall, Morpeth.
-Credit:Newcastle Chronicle


Northumberland County Council is planning a major revamp of its housing waiting list that could see up to 60% of people removed.

There are currently more than 14,000 people on the county's housing register. However, 8,461 of these are assessed as having no housing need and are adequately housed.

Among the proposals to tackle the issue is to remove these people from the register altogether. Officials say this would free up council staff to work on cases where people have a more urgent need.

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Other plans include offering homeless residents a house rather than giving them priority choice, in a bid to reduce the amount of time people spend in temporary accommodation. Changes are also in the offing around local connection, rural allocations, and financial eligibility.

Speaking at Wednesday's meeting of the council's Communities and Place Scrutiny Committee, cabinet member for housing Coun Colin Horncastle said: "The system is over 20 years old, it has got to be reviewed to see if what it was trying to do 20 years ago is still working.

"Unfortunately, this now needs updating. It might have worked well 20 years ago, but it is now distorting the housing figures. Sixty-per-cent of people on the housing register are not in any housing need at all.

"Some people on the register give reasons like 'just in case' or they 'want to move'. They're not the sort of reason that the council have to take on board when housing them.

"Fourteen thousand people being on the housing register gives rise to all sorts of things, like the absolute nonsense that there are 14,000 homeless people in the county. We have got to do something to make sure the figures are more accurate and fit for the modern day."

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Before any changes are made, the new policy will have to go through a consultation process with stakeholders. The four main areas for review are below:

Assessment and banding

Applications are currently assessed based on their housing need and sorted into a category between Band P and Band 3. Those in Band P are in urgent housing need, Band 1 is for those at higher need, Band 2 is for need that could be eased by re-housing, and Band 3 is for those who have no housing need.

There is also a Band 2R for those who already own property or have "significant financial resources".

The council is proposing to "delete" Band 3. The latest figures show there are 8,461 people in this band - the council claim deleting them would reduce the housing register to 5,786 "genuine applicants in some form of housing need".

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Susan Ogle, the council's head of housing, said: "We are proposing to delete Band 3 so, if a person doesn't have a housing need they will not be registered at all.

"It would allow staff more time to deal with vulnerable and complex applications. We would assess individuals so we don't take away the financial side, as some people in Band 3 are there because they can't afford their rent."

Homeless applicants

Currently, all Band P clients deemed as homeless are eligible to bid on any relevant properties. However, the council is concerned this is encouraging applicants to be "selective" and is raising "unrealistic expectations" - particularly in high demand areas.

This is leading to longer stays in temporary accommodation. Between April 1 and December 31 last year, the council spent £255,000 on temporary accommodation for homeless applicants.

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The new proposals would see councils directly offer a homeless applicant suitable accommodation, rather than allowing them to apply. The council say this would reduce waiting times, temporary accommodation bills and "void times" - the amount of time a property stands empty.

Ms Ogle said: "Homelessness is a big issue. Any homeless applicants are straight away put into Band P and they can bid on properties.

"We are finding this encourages applicants to be selective, resulting in longer stays in temporary accommodation. We are proposing not to put them in Band P, but directly let a property to them.

"If we do direct let, we think it would reduce the number of people in temporary accommodation."

Local connection

Currently, anyone applying to be on the register without a local connection to Northumberland is placed in either Band 2R or Band 3. Under the new proposals, applicants would have to meet certain criteria or face not being registered.

Applicants will have to have lived in Northumberland for six out of the last 12 months, or three out of the last five years. Applicants who work in the county - defined as having had permanent work with a minimum of 16 hours a week within the previous six months - will also be registered.

Those with family connections in the county - meaning the applicant or a member of their household has parents, adult children or siblings who have lived in the county for at least five years - will also be registered. Under "exceptional circumstances", other relatives than those already listed would also be considered.

The council will also make exceptions for those with medical needs, those made homeless and people fleeing domestic abuse.

Currently there are 1,178 applicants with no local connection. The majority are in Band 3, with 250 in Band 2R. The introduction of the new criteria would further reduce the numbers on the housing register to 5,526.

Ms Ogle said: "Without a local connection, applicants wouldn't get on the list at all - they wouldn't be allowed on the list. There have to be some exceptions."

Rural connection

The council has recognised that there is a lack of affordable homes in many rural parishes. The Homefinder system currently awards additional preference to families with a strong local connection to rural areas.

The criteria for this includes someone who has lived in the parish for at least three years; or is in continuous employment in the parish; or has relatives living in the parish for at least three years. However, currently there is no priority for these criteria, meaning the earliest applicant date will be successful.

The council has proposed introducing prioritisation for the criteria, with the suggestion that those currently living in the parish should have priority over someone moving to be near relatives.

Ms Ogle said: "There is currently no priority on this criteria. We're looking at changing that. It does cause problems."

Financial Eligibility

Currently, if an applicant has more than £100,000 in equity or savings, they are not eligible to join the register except in "exceptional circumstances" around health or disability needs.

The new proposals would see the capital, savings and equity assessed. If it is determined that the household can resolve their own housing need within the local housing market, they will not be eligible to register.

The assessment will be based on the household's financial situation, the size and composition of the household, and the local housing market. New financial thresholds would need to be agreed.