Residents with greatest housing need continue to be prioritised

Residents with the greatest need for social housing in West Northamptonshire continue to be prioritised following a rise of almost double in the number of applications for council houses.

Like many councils, West Northamptonshire Council (WNC) is facing significant demand for social housing due to national factors including a rise in homelessness and no-fault evictions and as a result of more family break-ups because of an increased pressure from things like the cost of living and rising rents.

The Council introduced its new Housing Allocations Scheme in April last year, replacing three separate ones in Daventry, South Northants and Northampton areas in order to harmonise the differences and make it fairer, clearer and more consistent for all residents. It was a legal requirement for the Council to also have a new single Housing Allocations policy across West Northamptonshire within three years of becoming a new unitary authority in April 2021. As part of that process and in line with good practice all those previously on the housing register and hoping to bid for a Council property were asked to reapply under the new policy and because of the new criteria.

The new scheme recognises people in greatest need for help including those experiencing homelessness, with complex health and welfare needs, victims of domestic abuse, Care Leavers, Armed Forces veterans, and those subject to exploitation.

While the Council expected some of the previous applicants to drop off the register due to a change in circumstances, it did expect an initial surge in applications as some people reapplied. However the Council has also seen a rise in applications generally and is now receiving an average of 700 applications a month, compared with an average of around 335 the previous year, highlighting the significant scale of demand. On average, approximately 5,000 people are on the social housing system at any given time, with numbers constantly fluctuating as individuals secure alternative housing or leave the system for other reasons. The register covers West Northants' population of around 430,000, and with only around 1,500 homes on average becoming available over a 12-month period, only those in the greatest need and highest priority bands are likely to be housed by West Northamptonshire Council.

The application process also requires many supporting documents to evidence each resident's needs and checking and validating these is a significant task with both a rise in applications and the re-registering of previous applicants. In many cases the Council may not receive what is required and will then need to chase residents for these before an assessment can be completed.

The increase in applications and the workload to screen, assess and verify each application including all those for residents reapplying to the register has resulted in a backlog and a significantly longer wait for people to see if they are eligible for the housing allocations scheme. WNC has therefore put in place a number of measures to help people pre-assess their eligibility to get an early indication of whether they are likely to be successful and identify people in immediate priority need of housing and ensure they are prioritised whilst staff work through completing all the outstanding assessments. The Council is also working to improve its systems and processes to speed up some steps in the process.

Councillor Rosie Herring, WNC's Cabinet Member for Housing, said: "This huge rise in applications for social housing in our area is a local reflection of the issues we are seeing nationally around homelessness, no fault evictions and shortage of suitable private sector homes.

"Everyone in West Northants deserves a decent place to live and we are sorry some people are currently having to wait significantly longer to find out if they qualify for our housing allocations scheme.

"We're working really hard to clear the backlog as quickly as possible and have put in place new measures to speed up the process as staff assess all applications fairly and in line with our legal duties. We would also encourage people to use the pre application questionnaire to better understand their chance of getting on the register or seeking help for finding alternative accommodation. We would also ask all applicants to make sure they provide the right documents when they apply."

Cllr Herring added that a full review of the Housing Allocations Scheme would also be taking place this spring as it completed its first year of operation.

She said: "The scheme we introduced last April not only ensured our approach to social housing was harmonised across our area and made fairer for all residents but its criteria was more inclusive of those in the greatest need within our communities.

"Although we are working to increase affordable homes in our area, our social housing offer is still very limited compared to the high demand for it, so we must look at other ways to reduce this demand and improve people's wellbeing. In the months ahead we will focus on how we can work closer with private landlords to increase rental opportunities and make tenants more aware of their rights.

"We're also developing a support programme to help people stay in their homes and prevent the risk of homelessness, including debt and money advice initiatives, family mediation or helping them find new employment."

In November 2024, the Council launched its Affordable Housing Delivery Plan underscoring its commitment to addressing the urgent need for more and better-quality homes. The plan outlines ideas for accelerating the delivery of affordable housing with a goal to deliver a minimum of 650 affordable homes per year by 2029/30, and a potential increase to 750 homes annually if market conditions and funding improve.

More information about the Housing Allocations Scheme and applications process is available on the Council's website.

Further information, help and advice for residents is available on the West Northamptonshire Council's Cost of Living Support Hub.