Edition: July 2024
Our Housing Officers work incredibly hard with those facing homelessness to resolve the issues they are experiencing and to assist them in finding a solution.
The job varies immensely day-to-day, depending on who makes contact for support and what help they need; everybody has a unique set of circumstances. People are often curious about what happens when a person facing homelessness contacts us. We spoke to one of our Homelessness Officers to find out more.
The initial call for help
“Someone might make contact through self-referral, or a referral may come from another professional. We will discuss whether they qualify for help to secure accommodation, and if their circumstances meet the criteria as a ‘priority need’. This is a category defined in The Housing Act for those considered vulnerable - for instance, if they are the primary carer for a child.
"We will create a tailored plan together and agree a range of steps to help. This may include supporting negotiations with a current landlord, looking at private rental options, specialist housing options for over 55s, and supported housing. We will also seek to maximise household income by ensuring the individual is accessing benefits and other support they are eligible for."
Housing demand outstrips supply
“We aim to help irrespective of whether the household is in priority need, although we would only be able to offer interim accommodation if they are. We are guided by the law and the Homelessness Code of Guidance for local authorities. While we always want to help, we do not own any housing stock and the demand for social housing in the District far exceeds supply, so we work with housing associations and registered social landlords.”
We have fantastic partnerships with other agencies...
How we partner with other agencies
“We have fantastic partnerships with other agencies who can help support a person at risk of homelessness - including Citizens Advice, Turning Tides, and Horsham Matters. We also link in with partners at the Salvation Army, local church groups, drug and alcohol services and other organisations.”
How it feels to work in the Housing team
“Having an experienced team and a whole network of supportive agencies to refer to means we can often suggest options that someone hasn’t even considered which can make a big difference.
I’d encourage anyone facing homelessness to get in contact contact as soon as possible. People can feel intimidated about asking for support and might have misconceptions about us having available housing stock, or how our Housing Register works so we try to explain the process at each step and be clear about what they might expect and the resources we have available.”
Do you have an unoccupied property?
We work with housing associations and registered social landlords to provide properties for applicants on the Housing Register. If you have an empty property you’d like to rent out, your property could be an alternative option to house a family faster!
Our leasing and lettings services
We offer managed leasing (where you lease your property to us for three to five years) and a letting service (where we find a tenant for your property, and they pay you rent directly).
To find out more, please visit www.horsham.gov.uk/letwithus. If you have a property that might be suitable call us on 01403 215572 for an informal chat or email us at: horshamPSL@horsham.gov.uk.
For more information
You can find more information on our website at the link below. You can also contact the team on housing@horsham.gov.uk or call us on 01403 215204.
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