Issue - meetings

This report sets out recommended changes to the Housing Allocations Policy and seeks approval for a public consultation on the proposed changes.

Recommendation

That the Committee agrees that the recommended changes to the Council’s Housing Allocations Policy are progressed to a four week (minimum) public consultation.

The Strategic Housing Manager presented a report which set out recommended changes to the Housing Allocations Policy (set out in the report and at Appendix 2) and which sought approval for a public consultation on the proposed changes.  The Committee heard that since publication of the agenda the government had announced two additional changes required by legislation, both of which related to exemptions from Local Connection criteria for joining the local authority’s housing register. One of these (an exemption for victims of domestic abuse) was already covered within the policy; the other (an exemption for care leavers) would be brought forward following the consultation, along with any other changes announced in the interim.

In response to a Member request, the Strategic Housing Manager undertook to extend the consultation period to six weeks (from four).

A Committee Member drew attention to an inconsistency within the Council’s policies regarding the Local Connection Test, which was retained at 5 out of 6 years for the Housing Allocations Policy but was less stringent in relation to First Homes.

In response to a Committee Member’s question, the Strategic Housing Manager undertook to provide a written response as to the reason for the Housing Team service standards having been removed from the Council’s website.

In response to questions about Armed Forces exemptions, the Strategic Housing Manager advised that Section 2.2.2 now included an exemption for any armed forces veteran, and had also been amended to state that the list of exemption criteria was not exhaustive: the Council’s Housing Panel had the ability to grant an exemption to the local connection criteria, on the grounds of exceptional circumstances, to an Armed Forces veteran or family member who may not wholly fulfill one of the listed criteria.  The Strategic Housing Manager confirmed that the penultimate bullet point in the Band C section of Appendix A, which referred to members or former members of the Armed Forces who had lived in the district for at least 12 months immediately prior to enlisting, had been included in error and would be removed.

Councillor Lloyd moved, and Councillor King seconded, that the Committee agrees that the recommended changes to the Housing Allocations Policy are progressed to a six week (minimum) public consultation.  On being put to the vote this was agreed unanimously.

RESOLVED:

That the recommended changes to the Housing Allocations Policy are progressed to a six week (minimum) public consultation.