Housing allocations policy consultation

Closed 22 Aug 2024

Opened 11 Jul 2024

Contact

Choice Based Lettings Team

housingconsulteecomments@buckinghamshire.gov.uk

Feedback updated 31 Oct 2024

We asked

We asked for your views on proposed changes to Buckinghamshire Council’s Housing Allocations Policy. This policy sets out the priorities and processes for the allocation of social housing throughout the Buckinghamshire Council area. 

The consultation ran from 11 July to 22 August 2024. 

You said

We received 261 responses to the consultation: 

  • 245 responses were by individuals and 16 on behalf of organisations 
  • 21% of the individual responses were from people on the housing register 

Your views on the proposed changes were as follows: 

Policy proposal 1: to remove legacy district boundaries 

  • 60% agreed or strongly agreed with this proposal 
  • 11% neither agreed nor disagreed 
  • 12% disagreed 
  • 15% strongly disagreed 
  • 2% didn’t know 

Policy proposal 2: to increase the number of years an applicant will need to qualify for residency from two years to five years 

  • 64% agreed or strongly agreed with this proposal 
  • 10% neither agreed nor disagreed 
  • 13% disagreed 
  • 13% strongly disagreed 

Policy proposal 3: to introduce residency requirements for those over 55 

  • 68% agreed or strongly agreed with this proposal 
  • 14% neither agreed nor disagreed 
  • 7% disagreed 
  • 10% strongly disagreed 
  • 1% didn’t know 

Policy proposal 4: to strengthen the priority for households in temporary accommodation 

  • 67% agreed or strongly agreed with this proposal 
  • 18% neither agreed nor disagreed 
  • 6% disagreed 
  • 5% strongly disagreed 
  • 4% didn’t know 

Policy proposal 5: to strengthen the priority for households that have been assessed as homeless and are not in temporary accommodation 

  • 64% agreed or strongly agreed with this proposal 
  • 21% neither agreed nor disagreed 
  • 7% disagreed 
  • 5% strongly disagreed 
  • 3% didn’t know 

Policy proposal 6: to redefine the requirements for households under occupying affordable housing that are willing to downsize 

  • 81% agreed or strongly agreed with this proposal 
  • 11% neither agreed nor disagreed 
  • 4% disagreed 
  • 4% strongly disagreed 
  • 1% didn’t know 

Policy proposal 7: to use automatic bidding to proactively match priority households with available housing 

  • 48% agreed or strongly agreed with this proposal 
  • 22% neither agreed nor disagreed 
  • 9% disagreed 
  • 17% strongly disagreed 
  • 4% didn’t know 

Policy proposal 8: to add homeless households placed in temporary accommodation under a relief duty to the list of applicants the Council reserves the right to directly allocate housing to 

  • 52% agreed or strongly agreed with this proposal 
  • 23% neither agreed nor disagreed 
  • 11% disagreed 
  • 11% strongly disagreed 
  • 3% didn’t know 

Policy proposal 9: to revise bedroom standards for households with children over the age of 18 

  • 71% agreed or strongly agreed with this proposal 
  • 13% neither agreed nor disagreed 
  • 6% disagreed 
  • 9% strongly disagreed 
  • 1% didn’t know 

View the analysis of the responses to the consultation (PDF 649KB)  

We did

On 8 October 2024, Cabinet approved the new Housing Allocations Policy. As consultation respondents were generally supportive of the proposed policy changes, these went forward unchanged. 

The least well supported policy change in the consultation was the proposal to use automatic bidding to proactively match priority households with available housing. The report to Cabinet noted that the comments people provided on this change showed that the way the proposal was set out in the consultation had led to some misunderstanding as to how it would be implemented. 

For clarity, automatic bidding will not be used for most households on the housing register. 

We will use automatic bidding on behalf of households who are in priority but are not using their weekly bids. Automatic bidding will be switched on in conversation with the household as part of their personal housing plan, or if someone is unable to log on to the website to submit bids themselves and they request that we do this on their behalf.  

Where automatic bidding is switched on, the bidding parameters (location, type of property etc.) will be agreed with the household.

Overview

We are currently reviewing our housing allocations policy and want your feedback on the proposed changes.

We are required to have a housing allocations policy to determine the procedures that are followed when assessing the eligibility of applicants and to allocate housing stock. The policy details how applicants, via the Bucks Home Choice scheme, can apply to the housing register, what the eligibility requirements are, how the assessment process works, and how housing is allocated.

View the current housing allocations policy on the Buckinghamshire Council website.

We are proposing the following changes to our allocations policy: 

  • create a Buckinghamshire-wide housing area and remove legacy district boundaries
  • increase the number of years to qualify for residency from two to five years
  • introduce residency requirements for the over 55 exception group 
  • strengthen the priority for households in temporary accommodation 
  • strengthen the priority for households that have been assessed as homeless but are not in temporary accommodation 
  • redefine the requirements for households under-occupying affordable housing that are willing to downsize 
  • clarify when the Council may use automatic bidding to proactively match priority households with available housing 
  • clarify when the Council may allocate a property directly to an applicant 
  • revise bedroom standards for households with children over the age of 18

If the proposed policy changes are adopted, reregistration will be required, in which case applicants will be prompted to reregister when logging into their Bucks Home Choice application. The Choice Based Lettings team will then reassess their application against the provisions of the new policy and issue a reassessment decision which would include the right to a statutory review.

We want to hear feedback on the proposed changes from current and prospective housing tenants, Buckinghamshire residents, and our partners.

We are also making the following changes to comply with legislation and government guidance, and are therefore not consulting on them:

  • update the local connection exceptions list to include households fleeing domestic violence (to comply with the Domestic Abuse Act 2021)
  • updates to the local connection exceptions list to include households on government defined settlement schemes (e.g. Ukrainians, Afghans)​
  • updates to the priority banding list to strengthen the priority given to armed forces veterans and their spouses

Related documents

Before you respond to this activity, please have a look at the following documents:

How to have your say

You can tell us your views in one of the following ways:

  • complete the online survey using the link at the end of the page
  • complete, and return, a printed version of the survey (PDF 0.36MB)
  • if you require additional support to complete the survey, please call our customer service team on 01296 585168

If you have any questions about this activity, please email us at housingconsulteecomments@buckinghamshire.gov.uk

Please tell us your views by 11:59pm on Thursday 22 August 2024.

What happens next

Once the consultation has closed, we will consider the comments received and make amendments to the draft policy where relevant. The policy will then be finalised and go forward for adoption at Council by the end of 2024.

Privacy

We will use the information you provide here only for this activity. We will store the information securely in line with data protection laws and will not share or publish any personal details. For more information about data and privacy, please see our Privacy Policy.

If you have questions about data and privacy, please email us on dataprotection@buckinghamshire.gov.uk. Or write to our Data Protection Officer at Buckinghamshire Council, The Gateway, Gatehouse Road, Aylesbury, HP19 8FF.

What happens next

This consultation has now closed. We are now considering the comments received and will make amendments to the draft policy where relevant. The policy will then be finalised and go forward for adoption by the end of 2024.

Areas

  • All Areas

Interests

  • Housing