Allocations and lettings policy

This Allocations and Lettings Policy has been developed in line with Wandle’s values, which are:

Think customer
Build relationships
Work together
Aim high
Own it.
It will ensure that actions we undertake will be underpinned by our vision of: “Homes to be proud of and services you can trust”

Purpose
This policy sets out Wandle’s approach to the allocation and letting of our rented properties.
Wandle is committed to providing well managed homes, which are allocated through the lettings service in a way that is transparent, fair and efficient whilst also ensuring void times are kept to a minimum.
We will work in partnership and build relationships with our local authority partners, to assist them to meet their statutory obligations to people in housing need, and providing choice and mobility for existing residents by making use of our stock and creating mixed and sustainable communities.

Scope
This policy covers general needs properties, designated housing for older people and supported housing properties managed and owned by Wandle. We also manage and  own a small number of properties outside the scope of this policy designated for London Living Rent, allocated to and let under the guidance issued by the GLA.

Performance monitoring
We will monitor and report to our Senior Management Team on the length of time taken to turn around void properties (AKA complete the void process), as well as the time  taken to relet those properties once the void process has been completed.

Wandle is committed to working with and supporting our local authority partners to help them meet their identified local housing needs.

We will:

• Ensure we allocate our homes in a fair and transparent way, which does not discriminate against any person or group.
• Let our homes in an efficient and timely manner, while being sympathetic to the needs of applicants.
• Relet properties in accordance with Wandle’s Lettable Standard
• Provide social housing for those who need it most, for as long as they need it.
• Offer extra support to residents who require
• Provide residents with clear information on their rehousing options
• Work with residents, applicants and local authority partners, to minimise potential financial hardship
• Make the best use of our stock to house those in need of affordable housing

3.1 Nominations and exchanges

Wandle operates in several local authority areas, each with different nomination arrangements and allocations policies. We will therefore allocate our homes in accordance with each local authority’s nomination agreement and Choice Based Letting (CBL) scheme.

Wandle does not operate its own transfer list or lettings scheme and Wandle residents whose homes no longer meet their needs, or wish to move to an alternative property or area, must register on the appropriate local authority common housing list scheme.

Agreements are in place between Wandle and its partner local authorities that govern and dictate the proportion of homes that Wandle is required to make available for local authority applicants. These vary from 50% to 100%.

As we do not manage an internal transfer list or lettings system, we will usually offer  100% of our properties which become available to let to the relevant local authority. Depending on the local authority, we do however retain the right in urgent circumstances to use these properties, such as for management transfers and decants.

Partnership working

We will work proactively with our local authority partners to ensure we are helping them deliver against their own allocations and lettings policies. We will monitor time taken by local authorities to provide nominations following a nomination request and work with them to keep any delays in allocating housing to a minimum.

Applying the rent and service charge

When offering a property to a local authority we will send the rent and service charge information we have at the time the property is advertised. There will be times that the rent or service charges change between advertising and letting, usually if the property is advertised close to the end of the financial year and the relet date is in the new financial year. In such cases we will apply the new rent and/or service charge at sign up, which

may be more or less than originally advertised. We will advise the applicants of any changes to rent levels or service charges at the time of viewing.

3.2 Adapted Homes

Households requiring specially adapted homes will be prioritised for homes which meet their needs. Local authorities will be notified of any existing adaptations in void properties and we expect them to tailor choice-based lettings or target the property to ensure it is nominated to a suitable applicant.

If a tenant is assessed by a qualified Occupational Therapist to require major aids or adaptations which cannot be installed in their existing home, then we will work with the tenant to explore suitable alternative housing options via mutual exchanges and local authority referrals.

3.3 Under occupation

Where any Wandle household is under-occupying their present accommodation and   wish to move to a smaller home, we will provide signposting support to help them in   doing so. This could involve assisting with applying for downsizing via the local authority, applying for mutual exchanges or finding a lodger.

We will make best use of our property’s by not under occupying them. However where local lettings policies are in place and there is a nomination from the local authority in this respect, we may decide to under occupy properties. In such cases we will not approve the under occupation of a property by any more than one bedroom.

3.4 Affordability

Wandle will never reject a nomination from a local authority based on affordability assessments.

We will ask all prospective tenants to complete an affordability assessment, however this information will be used to provide advice, such as for new benefit claims, budgeting,    and signposting etc. to help ensure early arrears prevention.

We will review the details of all applicants supplied by local authorities or any other agency prior to making an offer of accommodation. We will satisfy ourselves that each nominated household is eligible and suitable for the home they have been nominated to before finalising the offer. We will also require proof of identity as part of the tenancy sign-up.

4.1 Criteria for becoming a tenant

We will assume the local authority has only nominated persons eligible for housing under their own criteria for housing. Whilst these are different for each of the local authorities   the non-negotiable criteria for Wandle are:

• Be over 18 years of age

o However, in exceptional circumstances we may offer a tenancy to someone aged 16 or 17, and an adult guarantor will be required to hold the tenancy in trust

• Have capacity to hold a tenancy and be assessed as in housing need by the nominating Local Authority
• Be a British Citizen or have indefinite leave to remain
• Not hold an interest in another property
• Not be exempt from holding a tenancy because of immigration status – see below

Additional criteria

Nominations must also meet one of the following criteria:

• Have been nominated to Wandle by a local authority or other recognised nominating body under the terms of a nomination agreements and/or their Housing Allocations Policy
• Be an applicant of another housing association or local authority who is exchanging homes with a Wandle tenant e.g. mutual exchange.
• Referred by one of Wandle’s agreed referral agencies and the provisions of the Right to Rent are met

Immigration Status

We will only house non-British Citizens who have indefinite leave to remain in the UK.

All the following documents must be seen prior to offering a property to someone with permanent leave to remain:

1. A copy of their passport;
2. A copy of the documents they sent off with an application to renew their leave to remain with the receipt from the UKBA; and
3. The Immigration Status document they were given with the asylum decision or otherwise, a letter from the UKBA or Home Office confirming eligibility

4.2 Keyworker Criteria

When a Keyworker property becomes available to relet we will consider how they are let on a case by case basis. Where funding commitments, or agreements with local authorities or other partners, require us to relet such properties to a keyworker we will do so, via the relevant local authority or agreed nominations process.

However, where we are permitted to do so, we may consider reletting such properties as general needs (social rent or affordable). This will be done via the usual nominations approach, as outlined in section 3, and following financial consideration, in agreement  with the Asset Management and Finance Teams.

4.3 Information required for allocations

Wandle will require the following information about local authority applicants and nominees in order to assess eligibility and suitability.

• Name, date of birth and national insurance numbers of the lead applicants
• Current address, tenancy type and the type of current accommodation and current household composition
• Details of any long term illness, health problem or disability that may require specific specialist support, or any other care and support packages
• Relevant information about previous tenancies including maintaining conditions of their tenancies such as payments of rent and any history of anti–social behaviour, harassment, or domestic abuse perpetrated by any household members, visitors or guests to their property

4.4 Risk and needs assessments

Wandle will undertake a risk assessment for all nominations or prospective tenants before offering a tenancy. The risk assessment may include discussing the applicant’s history with previous landlords, or agencies such as the police, mental health teams, primary care trusts, social services and alcohol or drug agencies.

We may carry out a home visit or ask that the applicant attends an appointment at Wandle’s office. This approach is to ensure support needs for applicants are identified early and can be arranged as well as the duty to not to place Wandle staff at risk in the course of their duties.

If the local authority fails to provide the information required to enable us to fully risk assess an applicant, we may reject the application.

If the prospective tenant fails the risk assessment we may reject their nomination. However we may also consider the applicant for an alternative property that is more suitable.

Higher risk applicants will be considered on their merits, provided an appropriate support package is in place to meet their needs.

4.5 Property Size and Household Composition

Demand for social housing is high and therefore we will always seek to make the best possible use of our stock and allocate homes accordingly.

We will generally allocate properties to nominated households based on the size needs of the household, as determined by the local authority.

We will not normally take into account unborn children or people joining the household at a later date when determining the application. However, we will take into account an unborn child if it will make the household statutorily overcrowded.

Any exemptions or cases where we disagree with the allocation by the local authority should be considered by the Lettings Panel.

For decants and management transfers we will refer to the suitable accommodation criteria set out in either of those two procedures and the usual allocation criteria will not apply.

4.6 Overcrowding

Wandle will not knowingly let a property via the nomination process so that it would lead to overcrowding from the start of the tenancy. This includes where an applicant has advised the nominating agency they are willing to accept a property smaller than their assessed housing need.

If it is felt a property is too small for the applicant, we will contact the nominating authority or landlord to seek clarification before rejecting the nomination or mutual exchange request.

4.7 Authority to Reject a Nomination

Any proposed rejection of a nomination is to be verified by the Rent Provision and Tenancy Manager or Head of Customer Service Delivery.

In the case of a Mutual Exchange the decision will be made by the Neighbourhood Officer, in accordance with the guidelines in 4.5 and verified by the Neighbourhood Team leader.

4.8 Appeals by Rejected Applicants

If an applicant disagrees with our decision to refuse their nomination they can make an appeal.

Rejected nomination appeals

In the case of a nomination the appeal will be to the nominating local authority. However, this will not hold-up the allocations process for the property under dispute.

If the applicant is not satisfied with the outcome of the appeal and make contact with Wandle in respect of any decision, they will be signposted directly to the relevant local authority.

Mutual Exchange appeals

Any appeals in regard to rejected mutual exchanges should be directed to the landlord which rejected the exchange.

Where Wandle has rejected a mutual exchange, appeals can be made to us in writing within 10 working days of the decision and will be considered by the Wandle Lettings Panel.

If the rejection is upheld and the applicant is still not satisfied, they will be entitled to make a complaint through Wandle’s formal Complaints Policy.

4.9 Refusal by an Applicant

The consequences of an applicant refusing an offer of accommodation made by Wandle will vary depending on the local authority’s allocation policy.

Should a household refuse an offer, we will give advice to the applicant regarding the consequences of their refusal. We will take steps to try to understand the reason for refusal and consider whether our offer was indeed a reasonable one.

If reasons for refusal are considered to be genuine and deem our offer unreasonable, we will advise the local authority of the decision and request they make another reasonable offer to the applicant, be it to a Wandle property or via another provider.

Wandle does not undertake internal transfers, apart from for urgent moves such as decants and management transfers. Tenants who wish to move will be required to register on the appropriate local authority waiting list.

The majority of Wandle’s local authority partners operate a choice based lettings (CBL) scheme for the allocation of applicants. Wandle recognises that these schemes may be difficult to engage with for many people. Therefore we will endeavour to actively support all residents wishing to move through this process and provide assistance with applications via our Resident Support team, where requested.

General information on all our local authority partner housing allocation schemes as well as links to the various schemes can be found on Wandle’s website and we will have information on the details of local authority local schemes. This information can be provided in a variety of languages and formats to ensure no one is excluded from applying to move home.

5.1 Mutual Exchanges

We will encourage tenants who do wish to move to sign up to online mutual exchange schemes.

Wandle has signed up to mutual exchange schemes to enable tenants to access this mobility option free of charge. Wandle will actively signpost such routes and will provide support to residents wishing to take up these opportunities.

While Wandle allocates 100% of its lettable empty properties to local authority nominations, there are some specific exceptions where we can allocate properties that become available to let to existing Wandle tenants who are in urgent need. This may be for a decant due to major works, a disrepair case or a management transfer where an individual’s personal safety is at risk.

Rents and tenure for urgent moves

For urgent transfers, where we are permanently transferring a resident to another  Wandle property, we will transfer them with the same security of tenure and rent type as they originally had. However, this will not apply when resident is moving from a property with an affordable rent to a social rent, as we are not permitted to convert social rent properties to affordable rent, under the Rent Standard. We would therefore charge the resident the relevant social rent for that property. We will also not be able to transfer someone on a social rent to a new build affordable rent property as the rent provision of these properties will be fixed to contracts and funding agreements for that development.

Where someone on a social rent is being moved to an affordable rent property, to ensure affordability, we may continue to charge the resident the same level of rent as which they were paying at their old social rent property. However, the property will stay classified as an Affordable Rent property and relet to any future tenants at the normal affordable rent rate.

6.1 Management Transfers

While we provide 100% of our properties for local authority nominations, we will sometimes use empty properties to house Wandle residents in urgent need of a move. This is known within Wandle as a Management Transfer. This will vary depending on the agreement with the local authority and in some cases, we may transfer residents at risk   to a local authority property rather than our own.

Management Transfers are only for situations where a tenant or members of the tenant’s household are at serious risk by remaining in their current home and need an immediate move. Each case is assessed on an individual basis and in line with our Management Transfer process.

This process is not to be used in place of a transfer application to the local authority where a tenant also requires a transfer to a larger home due to a change in household composition since moving into their current home. It is therefore likely that accommodation offered will be the same size as the current home despite their housing need as this move will be classed as a continuation of the current tenancy but in another property.

All requests for a management transfer must be approved by the Lettings Panel and clear records must be kept of all requests and decisions.

Any such lets will be reported through our lettings return to the relevant local authority where these are in place.

Criteria for consideration of a management transfer

• Survivors or victims of domestic abuse. Please reference Domestic Abuse Procedure.
• Victim of racial, gender or sexual orientation-based crime, or other harassment, where police are investigating/ taking action and support a move.
• Witness to a crime, who needs to move for their own protection, as requested by police, on a temporary basis (pending legal action), or as a permanent move;
• Households who need to move urgently at the request of social services, for child protection reasons;
• Other urgent move based on safety as approved by the Lettings Panel.

6.2 Suitable Accommodation

Suitable accommodation will be arranged for all management transfers and decants and will be allocated according to the tenant’s circumstances.

The safety of the household is the priority and suitability of offers of alternative accommodation will reflect this. Whilst the applicant’s areas of choice will be taken into consideration, due to limited availability of properties a reasonable offer may not reflect the households areas of choice.

Where an applicant’s sole choice of areas is within their current borough, it is unlikely that an offer will be made to that location unless there are exceptional circumstances.

Refusal of a suitable offer will result in removal from the management transfer waiting list and advice on alternative options being suggested such as applying direct to a local authority or finding a suitable mutual exchange.

6.3 Lettings Panel

The Lettings Panel will be formed of:

1. Head of Customer Service Delivery
2. Housing Services & Quality Manager

Should any of the panel not be available then any other manager in the Housing Customer Service Team.

The panel can convene and make a decision in any way it sees fit, whether by meeting in person, phone call, video call or by email. The final decision will fall with the Head of Customer Services Delivery, or otherwise most senior member of staff if not available.

The Lettings Panel will convene at least once a quarter to review the Decant and Management Transfer list to ensure tenants requiring urgent moves are not left on the list in perpetuity.

In order to achieve balanced and sustainable communities we will work in partnership with local authorities and contribute to local lettings plans, where requested. New developments will always be built in accordance with local authority planning conditions, which take local letting plans into consideration.

We will relet properties in accordance with Wandle’s lettable standard. We reserve the right to complete non-urgent repairs with the new tenant in situ and will agree a plan for the completion of repairs with the new tenant when they take on their tenancy.

The Wandle Lettable Standard does not apply to Mutual exchanges, as these are let as seen, except for any required health and safety related works.

An options appraisal is carried out by Wandle’s Asset Management team, for every property that becomes empty. This determines whether it is suitable for reletting. If a property is assessed for relet it should not be ‘hard to let’ by nature, however there still may be cases where we are unable to let the property.

If there are no nominations from the local authority or if 3 nominees have refused a property, we will look at other options for letting it.

For such properties we will try to provide a home to a survivor of domestic abuse, by approaching our specialist partner agencies, such as Hestia, to see if they have a suitable nominee.

Should we still not be able to let the property this will trigger another options appraisal by the Asset Management Team. In such cases we may:

• Advertise it on a certified national housing mobility scheme, such as Homefinder
• Enhance the specification of works e.g. full decoration or carpeting before letting
• Increase the value of the decoration allowance
• Classify the property as long term void for disposal

Head of Customer Service Delivery

Owns this Policy and is responsible for ensuring that staff involved in allocations and lettings follow policy and procedure effectively.

Has final decision over any allocations and lettings matters, including as part of the Lettings Panel.

Allocations and Lettings Officer

Responsible for day-to-day delivery of this policy and liaising with local authority partners to ensure effective allocation and letting of Wandle properties.

In some cases, they may also carry-out sign-ups and provide advice to prospective tenants.

Neighbourhood Officers

Support the effective allocation and letting of Wandle properties, by carrying-out tenancy sign-ups and giving advice as and when required to residents who wish to move.

Resident Support Team

Will provide guidance and some assistance to residents who wish to move via local authority choice-based lettings schemes.

Asset Management Team

Carry out options appraisal to agree appropriate action for hard to let properties.

Policies: Complaints, Disposal, Tenancy Management, Anti-Money Laundering, Rent

Procedures: Management Transfer, Decant, Void, New Build Development Procedure

Other: Lettable standard

Legislation	Main powers and relevance to the policy subject	How we use or comply with legislation
Housing Act 1996 (as amended)	Part 6 of the Act governs the allocation of housing by local authorities in England. Local authorities must have an allocation scheme and policy for determining how they allocate their social housing properties. They must ensure that they only allocate to “eligible persons” and “qualifying persons” as defined in the Act. This also applies to nominations by local authorities to properties owned by housing associations, where the local authority has nomination rights.	This policy outlines how we will comply with local authority nominations agreements While local authorities are required to ensure housing they allocate is to eligible persons, we will satisfy ourselves that each nominated household is eligible and suitable for the home they have been nominated to before finalising the offer.
Immigration Acts 2014 and 2016	This Act requires landlords to establish that the applicant and all adults in the household have the right to rent property in the UK.	We will only house applicants who have permanent leave to remain in the UK. We will require adequate documentation to be shown by nominations with permanent leave to remain before offering them a property.

By following this policy we will ensure compliance with the Regulator of Social Housing’s (RSH) Tenancy Standard.

Tenancy Standard

The Tenancy Standards makes clear that Wandle must let our homes in a fair, transparent and efficient way.

We must take into account the housing needs and aspirations of our tenants and potential tenants.

We must demonstrate how our lettings:

• make the best use of available housing
• are compatible with the purpose of the housing
• contribute to local authorities’ strategic housing function and sustainable communities

We must have a clear application, decision-making and appeals processes and this is achieved through the Appeals by Rejected Applicants section of this Policy.