Housing Register

Hart District Council maintains a Common Housing Register. It is an ‘open’ register, which means that anyone who is eligible can apply regardless of whether or not they live within the Hart District. All Housing Association properties in the Hart district are let through the Hart Housing Register.

If you would like more information regarding Housing Associations in the District please read our ‘Social Housing Providers in Hart' factsheet.

What is a Common (or Joint) Housing Register?

Applicants complete a single, shared application form so that they can be considered for housing by all the Housing Associations operating within a local authority’s district. Not all local authorities operate Common or Joint Housing Registers. In areas where the local authority has retained some or all of its housing stock, Council properties can also be allocated through a Common Housing Register in addition to properties owned and managed by Registered Social Landlords such as Housing Associations.

Common or Joint Housing Registers can make the process of applying for housing easier, simpler and fairer.

How do I apply for a housing association home?

You can apply to join the Hart Housing Register by completing our online form at the Hart Homes website

If you would like to receive an application form to join the Hart Housing Register in the post, please contact the Housing Options Team at Hart District Council on 01252 774420.
Alternatively, application forms are available for you to pick up at the Civic Offices in Fleet, or by emailing housing@hart.gov.uk

In the Hart District there are no Council properties. In 1994 the Council sold its housing stock to Hart Housing Association (now called Sentinel Housing Association). The Council retains 100% nomination rights to these properties. In addition to Sentinel Housing Association, the largest provider of social housing in Hart, there are a number of other housing associations that operate within the District.

Although the Council has no properties we are still subject to certain legal duties to re-house people and assess the housing requirements of people in our district.

We fulfil our duty to house people by nominating them from the Common Housing Register to Housing Association vacancies. Regrettably, however, due to the severe shortage of social housing in the District and the numerous competing demands for available properties, there are always more people waiting to be nominated to a Housing Association tenancy than there are properties available. To decide who has the greatest priority for a new home we have an Allocation Policy which governs the way the Common Housing Register is administered by the Council.

The Allocation Policy is a mixture of government requirement and local policy. It describes the way we look at each person's housing situation and how we award a measure of priority to applications for housing. Everyone who applies to the Council is assessed in the same way with reference to this policy.

The Hart Housing Register holds details of everyone who has been assessed and accepted under the Hart Allocation Policy in order of priority, who are waiting for housing in the District.

Related Questions

Who qualifies to join the Housing Register in order to be considered for a Housing Association property?

You can join the Housing Register if you:

• are 16 years old or over, and
• are not subject to immigration control (you would need to be eligible to claim public funds in the UK to join), and
• are not guilty of unacceptable behaviour which would make you an unsuitable tenant.

If you are considered to be ineligible to join the Housing Register you will be advised in writing of the decision and the reason(s) for it. You will be entitled to request a review if you are unhappy with the decision. For more information about how to request a review, please see our ‘Housing Advice & Homelessness – 'Seeking a Review' factsheet.

Housing Register

What is the Housing Register and how will I be prioritised for a Housing Association tenancy?

The Housing Register is the way that all moves* into housing association homes are managed, including where the move is a transfer from one housing association home to another. (*With the exception of Mutual Exchanges and HOMESWAPS)

To be considered for a move you need to apply to the Housing Register. When you apply your application is assessed in accordance with the Joint Allocation Policy. The Policy tells us who gets priority and how we give that priority.

Who gets priority on the Joint Housing Register?

Below includes some examples of circumstances for which additional priority can be awarded to applications for the Hart Housing Register:

• People who are overcrowded or live in poor accommodation
• People who are homeless
• People who need to move for a medical reason

To ensure that we are treating everyone in a consistent way while recognising individual circumstances, we use a pointing system.

Everyone who applies for housing is given housing need points based on their individual circumstances.

Below includes some examples of reasons for which housing need points can be awarded:

• the facilities that you lack;
• how secure your home is;
• any disrepair in your current home;
• any medical or other factors that make your current home unsuitable, or mean that you would be better off in alternative accommodation.

We also give points if you have a connection with the Hart District through living or working here.

For further information concerning the Hart Housing Register points system, please see the Council’s ‘Applying for a Home’ leaflet.

Can I choose where I want to live?

Yes, we have recently introduced 'Hart Homes, a Choice Based Lettings scheme whereby applicants now bid for properties. Applicants can therefore bid any properties that they would like to be considered for, in the areas they want. For further information on 'Hart Homes' please visit www.harthomes.org.uk.

* Please note, applicants to whom the Council has accepted a duty to under homelessness legislation will be considered for any suitable property that becomes available for them in the District. We will, however, endeavour to take account of preference where this is possible.

Can I choose the type of property I want to live in?

Yes, you choose which properties you bid on which means you can choose what type of property you would like, e.g. house/flat/bedsit, but not the size of the property you would like to be considered for.

We would not, for example, nominate a single person or a couple to a three-bedroom home. In the same way, we would not nominate a family with 2 children to a studio flat. Your details are assessed and we will tell you what size property you will be allowed to bid depending on your family make up. This is to ensure we are making best use of available affordable housing vacancies.

Please also note that there is a severe shortage of social housing in the District and numerous competing demands for available properties. For this reason, it is unfortunately not possible for the Council to accurately predict when or where a household is likely to be offered alternative accommodation through the Housing Register. We would, therefore, recommend that you do not rely on the Housing Register to accommodate you and your household within a given timescale.

These are examples of the size of properties we consider families for:

Bedsit - Single person

1 bedroom property - Single person or couple (including same sex couples)

2 bedroom property - Single parent/couple with 1 child, or 2 children of same sex under the age of 10,

3 bedroom property - Single parent/couple with two children of different sex, or two children over the age of 10

4 + bedroom property - Single parent/couple with 4 or more children

How does the Council choose who is nominated to a housing association home?

When a property becomes available the Council will advertise it on the website and via phone. Applicants will be able to view the weeks vacancies from midnight Wednesday until midnight Sunday and bid for properties during this period. At the end of the bidding cycle we will nominate the applicant with the hightest number of points.* If there is more than one household who have the same points the property will go to the household who has the earliest 'effective date', which is usually the one who applied to join the Housing Register first.

*Please note that on occasions certain properties may only be suitable for certain groups, for example a bungalow that has been adapted for a wheelchair user. In this situation applicants may be skipped if they do not meet the criteria.

We will not usually offer a home to someone who has current or former rent arrears with the Council or other housing provider, or has breached their tenancy because of anti-social behaviour.

How many properties can I bid on?

You can bid for up to 3 properties each week. You can change your bids during the weekly advertising cycle, but at the closing date they cannot be changed.

I want to move because of neighbour problems

If you are having problems with a neighbour and you are a housing association tenant this matter should initially be referred to your landlord - it will not necessarily give you a priority to move. Your Housing Officer will give you advice on what action can be taken, on how disputes can be resolved and, where there is serious anti-social behaviour, how the Police and the Council can assist you.

If you need any futher information or advice please contact the Housing Options Team on 01252 774420.

If you are homeless or threatened with homelessness the Housing Register may not provide you with an offer of housing within a short enough timescale and you should contact the Housing Options Team to discuss your options.

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