Agenda item

Report from the Strategic Director of Adult Care, Housing and Public Health.

Recommendations:

That Cabinet:

1.    Notes the outcome of the consultation and the Council’s response to the broad themes identified (Appendix 1).

2.    Approves the adoption of a revised Housing Allocation Policy (Appendix 2).

3.    Approves the adoption of a revised Strategic Tenancy Policy (Appendix 3).

4.    Delegates authority to the Strategic Director responsible for Housing in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Housing to make minor amendments to the Housing Allocation Policy including local lettings policies to meet the needs of a local area.

5.    Delegates authority to the Strategic Director responsible for Housing in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Housing to agree reciprocal arrangements with other placing Local Authorities in respect of Care Leavers.

Consideration was given to the report which presented the Housing Allocation Policy and Strategic Tenancy Policy for approval. In June 2024, Cabinet approved the review of the current Housing Allocation Policy to include a 12 week public consultation. The review and consultation had concluded, and the report recommended the adoption of a new Housing Allocation Policy, that was attached to the report at Appendix 2, incorporating 22 amendments. The review and consultation also incorporated proposed revisions to the Strategic Tenancy Policy which were also recommended for adoption, attached to the report at Appendix 3.

If approved, the new Housing Allocation Policy and Strategic Tenancy Policy would be effective from 1st December, 2025, to allow for a 3 month implementation period. This would include changes to IT systems, staff training, communication with stakeholders and applicants, and necessary changes to existing housing applications.

The Council’s current Housing Allocation Policy was adopted in 2014. Since then, it had undergone periodic revisions and additions. The most recent update was in November 2023, which strengthened the Council’s commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant. Prior to this, the last partial review was in April 2021, which focused on the impact of the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017. The intention was to continue to rank priorities considering the Housing Act 1996, which required that Allocation Policies must give reasonable preference to specified groups as set out in paragraph 2.2 of the report.

The review identified 22 proposed amendments to the existing Housing Allocation Policy. A revised draft Allocation Policy incorporating the amendments was published alongside a summary table of changes. As proposal 22 related to the use of fixed term tenancies, a revised draft Strategic  Tenancy Policy was also published. During the 12 week consultation period, 220 formal responses were received. Council officers also engaged widely with the public, partners, and staff during the consultation period.

The table of 22 changes was included in Appendix 4 and the table at paragraph 2.5 of the report provided the response rate to all 22 proposals. Overall, there was strong support for all proposals. Following consultation, 5 amendments to the original 22 changes had been proposed and were detailed in sections 2.7 to 2.19 of the report.

One of the key changes highlighted in the meeting was proposal one which was a change from a 3 year local connections criterion to a 2 year residency test. The Leader stated that this was to ensure that the housing delivered was for Rotherham residents. Proposal 15 related to awarding Band One to Rotherham Care Leavers and Band Three to out of Borough Care Leavers including Care Leavers who had been placed in Rotherham by other local authorities.

         
A 12 week public consultation, including telephone and online surveys , had been undertaken. To supplement this, engagement with cross-party Elected Members had been completed. The Council had liaised with a number of partner organisations including Housing Associations, Housing Improvement Panel, and the Armed Forces Covenant Group.

Resolved:

That Cabinet:

1.    Note the outcome of the consultation and the Council’s response to the broad themes identified (Appendix 1).

2.    Approve the adoption of a revised Housing Allocation Policy (Appendix 2).

3.    Approve the adoption of a revised Strategic Tenancy Policy (Appendix 3).

4.    Delegate authority to the Strategic Director responsible for Housing in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Housing to make minor amendments to the Housing Allocation Policy including local lettings policies to meet the needs of a local area.

5.    Delegate authority to the Strategic Director responsible for Housing in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Housing to agree reciprocal arrangements with other placing Local Authorities in respect of Care Leavers.