Allocations Policy Review

The Association is currently reviewing its allocations policy and invitations are welcome to comment on the policy, its point structure, and the groups that have preference on allocations.

Click the image to the right to view our current Allocations Policy. A form for your comments is located at the bottom of this page.

Some parts of the policy are mandatory under law, and some changes are required by new legislation. For example, the Association must have a housing waiting list which is open and accessible by all. Anyone over the age of 16 can apply for housing.

The Housing (Scotland) Act 2014 states that we must give ‘reasonable preference’ to certain groups. These are:

People who are homeless, or threatened with homelessness
People in unsatisfactory housing conditions
People in under-occupied homes

The Association can also give preference to certain groups, for example to alleviate local pressures, so long as they are not given more preference than homeless people.

Additionally our review will look at the points we award to applicants, and a proposed table is included below for your consideration.

We are required to assist the Local Authority (Glasgow City Council) to discharge their duties in relation to homelessness. The Council do not have any of their own stock, therefore Registered Social Landlords (like Yorkhill Housing Association) allocate homes to homeless people through a referral process known as ‘Section 5’. The council reviews its position each year and requests a portion of each landlord’s allocations. Currently the Council requests that Yorkhill Housing Association (and others in the area) provide 60% of its lets to the Section 5 process.

As such the target for allocations is currently:

Section 5 Homeless Lets: 60% - and of the remaining lets:
Waiting List: 45%
Transfer: 45%
Aspirational: 10%

The aspirational list will allow those with no points an option to move. For example some residents wish to move to a certain street, or a home with a larger kitchen, but have no ‘need’ to move.

Background

The allocation of homes is an area of the Association’s work which generates scrutiny, is a very emotive subject, and has one of the biggest impacts on our customers lives.

While the entire social housing sector is under pressure due to a lack of homes, the size of Yorkhill Housing Association makes it even more difficult. We have 462 homes within our stock, and only 28 became available last year:

Apt Size	No in Stock	Let in 2022/23
1apt	19	1
2apt	273	19
3apt	113	3
4apt	13	0
5apt	5	0
2apt Retirement	36	5
3apt Retirement	3	0
Total	462	28

For these reasons it is very important that we get it right.

Proposed Points

We have drafted a possible point structure for the new policy to reflect some of the changes we think would be required. Please let us know if you have any questions, or suggestions.

Category

Points Category

Number of Points

Critical Need

Statutory Homeless

An applicant has applied to their local authority and has been accepted as homeless.

People in Imminent Danger

Applicants at real risk of danger through racial abuse, domestic abuse, or experiencing distressing circumstances where they cannot be reasonably expected to live in their current accommodation.

Below Tolerable Standard

The applicants property is defined as ‘below tolerable standard’ in line with the Scottish Government’s definition.

Medical Need

Where a medical adaptation is required to an applicant’s property but cannot be installed in the applicant’s current home.
Applicant is currently in hospital or care home and cannot return home due to an adaptation being required.

Urgent Need

Overcrowding

Where the applicant requires an additional bedroom for a member of their household.

20 for first bedroom

5 for each bedroom thereafter

Under Occupancy

Where the applicant has bedrooms which are not required for their household.

20 for first bedroom

5 for each bedroom thereafter

Insecurity of Tenure

Young people leaving local authority care
Applicants leaving long term medical care
Personnel leaving HM Forces
Homeless or threatened with homelessness (but not accepted with their LA)

Leaving parental home for first time
Leaving tied accommodation
Living with friends and relatives

Medical

High

Where the applicant moving house is the only way they can experience normal living
The applicant is house-bound
Parts of the property are inaccessible due to the applicant’s health

Medium

The property is aggravating the applicant’s health condition
The property is difficult to move around, or enter/exit due to the health condition

Low

The property is causing distress to the applicant’s medical condition
The property is exacerbating a mental health condition.

Condition of Property

Lack of Amenities

No fixed bath or shower, no inside W.C., no hot water
A means of cooking, but no means of washing dishes within a bed-sit or no alternative kitchen facilities

Sharing Facilities

Sharing kitchen facilities only or bathroom facilities only with
one household
Sharing both kitchen and bathroom facilities with one household
Sharing kitchen facilities only or bathroom facilities only in houses for multiple occupation
Sharing both kitchen and bathroom facilities in houses for multiple occupation

Poor Condition of Property

Minor
Severe

Small Properties

Where an applicant resides in a property which is a studio flat.

Social Factors

Support Factors

Applicants who need the support of, or have to support, someone living in one of the Associations areas of activity on provision of confirmation supporting the facts from an appropriate person e.g. doctor, social worker etc. can be awarded a further

All Applicants

Non-Property Owner

The applicant does not own heritable property

Property Owner

The applicant owns heritable property

Questions for review

The Association is considering its policy, and would like to hear comments from anyone who is interested in the way we allocate homes. Please feel free to leave any comments you may have on the policy, including some particular questions we would like to hear answers to:

What local pressures do you think Yorkhill HA should concentrate on when allocating its houses?
New legislation allows us to treat applicants who own a home differently to those who do not when allocating houses. Should Yorkhill HA prioritise non-owners over owners who otherwise have the same circumstances?
Yorkhill HA is proposing to give a high priority to applicants who are stuck in hospital (‘bed-blocking’) because their home is unsuitable, or because they need an adaptation that cannot be installed in their current home. Do you agree that this should be equally as high priority as homeless people, people in imminent danger, and those living in homes ‘below the tolerable standard’?
Do you agree with the proposed points and preferences suggested?

Some further detail on each question is provided below:

1. What local pressures do you think Yorkhill HA should concentrate on when allocating its houses?

Reasonable Preference

A number of changes are required in order to meet the Housing (Scotland) Act 2014. One area is ‘Reasonable Preference’ and the new act sets out areas where Registered Social Landlords (RSLs) must give reasonable preference when making allocations. These are:

homeless persons and persons threatened with homelessness and who have unmet housing needs;
people who are living under unsatisfactory housing conditions and who have unmet housing needs; and
tenants of houses which are held by a social landlord, which the social landlord selecting its tenants considers to be under-occupied.

The act allows each individual RSL to choose what level of preference to give to each of the groups, however homeless people must be the highest.

RSLs can also create their own reasonable preference groups to deal with localised pressures (the guidance example is ex-service personnel) but these new groups must not ‘dominate’ the allocations policy at the expense of the first three groups.

A key part of the three examples is the criteria ‘unmet housing needs’. This specifies that the RSL does not need to give reasonable preference to someone who can meet those housing needs in their current home – for example by installing a wet room shower, ramp, or stairlift. However, if an applicant's needs for an accessible or adapted home cannot be met by adapting their current home they would be given reasonable preference.

These three areas in the bullet points above must be taken into account under a new policy due to it being a legislative requirement. But are there any local pressures you think should be taken into account?

Local Connection

A landlord cannot take into account the length of time that an applicant has resided in their local area, however it can take into account if the person currently lives there, and can award points to those currently residing within the area of the housing association’s control. For example, if someone lives in the Yorkhill area we could award them an extra 5 points.

However, this cannot be taken into account in the following circumstances, if the applicant:

is employed, or has been offered employment, in the area; or
wishes to move into the area to seek employment and the landlord is satisfied that this is the applicant's intention; or
wishes to move into the area to be near a relative or carer; or
has special social or medical reasons for requiring to be housed within the area; or
wishes to move into the area because of harassment; or
wishes to move into the area because he or she runs the risk of domestic abuse.

These exceptions could potentially cover a bulk of applicants and would be very difficult to manage, therefore we think that local connection should not be taken into account under a new policy. Do you agree?

2. New legislation allows us to treat applicants who own a home differently to those who do not when allocating houses. Should Yorkhill HA prioritise non-owners over owners who otherwise have the same circumstances?

Previously if an applicant owned their home this could not be taken into account when dealing with their application. Owners and tenants of RSLs were to be treated the same and owning a home could not disqualify an applicant or be detrimental to their application. Under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2014 this restriction has been removed, and as such owners of property can be treated differently, with some exceptions;

where the property has not been let, but the owner cannot secure entry to the property,
where it is probable that occupying the property will lead to abuse from someone currently living in the property
where it is probable that occupying the property will lead to abuse from someone who previously resided with the applicant whether in that property or elsewhere; and
where occupation of the property may endanger the health of the occupants and there are no reasonable steps that can be taken by the applicant to prevent that danger.

If this is taken into account the suggested process would be that applications property owners would be awarded 5 points, whereas those who do not own property would be awarded 10.

This would only give a slight preference to non-owners and would mean their individual circumstances would be the main consideration of their priority under the policy.

Should Yorkhill Housing Association take into account ownership of property?

3. Yorkhill HA is proposing to give a high priority to applicants who are stuck in hospital (‘bed-blocking’) because their home is unsuitable, or because they need an adaptation that cannot be installed in their current home. Do you agree that this should be equally as high priority as homeless people, people in imminent danger, and those living in homes ‘below the tolerable standard’?

The Association would not normally fit major medical adaptations (for example walk-in showers) to properties above the ground floor except in exceptional circumstances. This was decided as tenants who cannot step into a bath are likely to be unable to climb several flights of stairs – or will become so in the near future – and would likely require a move.

It is then extremely difficult to find a suitable tenant for such a property once it becomes available to let and would likely result in a tenant who does not require an adaptation to be offered the property, or for the adaptation to be ripped out which is a wasteful use of resources.

As such it is proposed that people who require an adaptation, but it cannot be installed, and those who are bed-blocking in hospital, are awarded a high priority to allow them to more quickly move to a suitable property.

Should Yorkhill Housing Association award these applicants points equal to the highest priority?

Comments form

Please feel free to leave any comments you may wish. All responses will be treated with confidence.

Your Name

Your Email

Your telephone number

Are there any local pressures you think we should take into account?

Should we take a local connection into account?

Should we take home ownership into account?

Should we give bed-blockers and those requiring a medical adapation which cannot be fitted the same level of preference as homeless people, people in imminent danger, and those living in homes below the tolerable standard?

Please leave any other comments you wish to make on the Allocations Policy review...