HomeView offer a comprehensive housing advice service, whatever your circumstances, including homelessness, tenant and landlord issues and wider housing options, for example, affordable rented, private rented and low-cost home ownership.
The advice service is free, confidential, impartial and independent.
HomeView also offer a letting service that aims to improve access to affordable housing within the Cotswold District by advertising available homes and allowing applicants to apply for them via the website, by telephone, by text message or by visiting the office in person.
The letting scheme assesses applicants housing need through the priority banding system and takes account of the date on which the application was registered.
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What is the Cotswold Accommodation Partnership?
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The Cotswold Accommodation Partnership (CAP) refers to the Cotswold District Council, Housing Associations and other Landlords working in the Cotswold District, who have joined together to operate the HomeView Register.
This means that you only have to make one registration if you are looking for affordable housing to rent or buy from any Landlord using the Register.
Representatives from the Cotswold Accommodation Partnership landlords also sit on the CAP Panel to make decisions on certain registrations to HomeView Lettings.
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What should I do if I am, or are about to become, homeless?
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You need to contact HomeView on 08450 582 099 as soon as possible. HomeView investigate homeless applications on behalf of Cotswold District Council, to determine whether the Council has a duty to rehouse you under homelessness legislation.
They will be able to offer you advice and assistance, and in some circumstances, may be able to offer temporary accommodation whilst your homeless application is investigated.
Registrations are accepted from anyone over 16 years of age who considers themselves to be in housing need.
Yes. The Government has specified people who are not eligible to register for housing. These people include:
- Immigration - any person subject to immigration control within the meaning of the Asylum and Immigration 1996, unless they are either a secure or introductory tenant of the Council or an assured Tenant of accommodation allocated by the Council or fall within a class prescribed by regulations made by the Secretary of State;
- Habitual Residence Test - any person who does not satisfy the habitual residence test prescribed by law. This will usually only apply where the applicants has entered the country within the last two years.
- Unacceptable Behaviour - the CAP may exercise its power to class an applicant as ineligible if they are satisfied that there is substantiated evidence that the applicant, or any member of their household, has been guilty of unacceptable behaviour serious enough to make them unsuitable to be a secure tenant of the authority at the time the application is considered.
If your registration has been refused on the grounds that it is ineligible, you can request a review of the decision.
You need to complete a HomeView registration form. You can do this on-line on our website, or you can phone HomeView on 08450 582 099 to obtain a registration form.
The questions asked on the registration form will help HomeView to work out your level of housing need under the banding system. Please make sure that you answer each question carefully or the registration of your application may be delayed.
If you need help to complete the form, please contact HomeView on 08450 582 099 who will be pleased to help you.
If you are over 16 years old and you are eligible to apply, your registration will be accepted. However, in some circumstances your application may be suspended from expressing interest in available properties.
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In what circumstances can my application be suspended?
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You registration may be suspended for the following reasons:
- If you, or a member of your household, use violence or aggression against staff working for one of the partner Landlords, the Council or HomeView Team;
- If you are the perpetrator of domestic violence and there is an injunction, Non-Molestation Order, Occupation Order (Ouster), with or without the power of arrest against you, and you have lost your accommodation as a result of the domestic violence, e.g. through eviction or matrimonial proceedings
If your registration has been suspended, you are entitled to request a review of that decision.
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In what circumstances can my application be removed from the HomeView Register?
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Your application can be removed from the HomeView register, other than at your own request, if:
- You fail to complete and return a review request that is sent to you;
- You fail to inform HomeView of a change in circumstances;
- You move to permanent accommodation that is appropriate to your needs that has been provided by a local authority or housing association;
- You deliberately provide misleading or inaccurate information on your application form;
- You are made an offer of accommodation after providing false or misleading information. The offer will also be withdrawn.
If your application is removed, other than at your own request, you can request a review of the decision.
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What happens when my registration form is received?
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Your completed registration form will be used to assess your level of housing need. HomeView use a banding and registration date system to do this.
HomeView will carry out an initial assessment of your application and inform you within 25 working days, in writing, of the result of your assessment. If you have not answered all of the questions, or you do not provide additional documents that are requested, for example, proof of pregnancy, the assessment of your registration may be delayed.
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What are priority bands and how do I know which one will apply to me?
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The HomeView assess applicants according to their level of housing need and places each applicant into a 'Band'. If more than one housing need factor applies, the most serious factor will be used to award the banding and additional time will be added to the registration date to reflect additional housing need factors.
The Gold Band covers applicants in the greatest need who are considered to have an urgent need to move as a result of statutory requirements or due to a serious risk to their health, safety or well-being.
Applicants in the Silver Band have an identified housing need but there is not a serious risk to their safety, health and well-being, and there will not be a need to move in order to meet statutory requirements.
The Bronze Band recognises that some applicants will not have identified housing need but will still wish to be rehoused within the Cotswold District. Bronze Band status will be awarded to all applicants who do not meet the criteria for Gold or Silver Bands.
Your banding assessment will be based upon the information you provide in your HomeView registration and you will be informed of the decision in writing. If you think that your registration has been incorrectly assessed, you can request a review of your banding.
Time limits are applied in certain circumstances for Gold Band priority.
If you are a Gold Band homeless applicant, your banding priority will be reviewed after a period of 3 months. The Gold Banding priority may be extended for a further 3-month period, or a final offer of suitable accommodation may be made to discharge the duty.
Gold Band priority will also be time-limited to 3 months if you have been granted succession of a tenancy but are required to move due to under-occupation or disabled adaptations. Your banding priority will be reviewed after 3 months and the banding may be extended for a further 3 months, or a final offer may be made. You should note that the Landlord can take possession action between 6 and 12 months following the tenant's death if a final offer is refused.
In considering whether or not your Gold Band award should be extended, HomeView will have consideration for the number of suitable properties that have been advertised, whether you been expressed interest in them, and your position on the shortlist at the end of the cycle.
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Why has my banding been reduced or demoted?
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Your banding may be demoted to bronze for the following reasons:
If you owe money to your landlord, or a former landlord, arising out of occupation of rented accommodation
If you owe money to your mortgage lender, or a former mortgage lender, arising out of owner-occupied accommodation
If there is evidence that you, or a member of your household, are guilty of unacceptable behaviour
A demotion means that you are still able to bid for a property, but you have less priority than you would normally have been entitled to.
If the circumstances leading to the demotion change, for example, you pay off the money that you owe, you should inform HomeView so that they can review your application.
If your banding is demoted to Bronze band you can request a review of that decision
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How does the registration date work with the banding?
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Once your registration has been assessed and awarded a banding, you will also be given an application date, as follows:
| Homeless Applicants accepted under Part VII of the Housing Act 1996 (as amended) |
Date formal homeless application is made to the local housing authority (If a 3-month limit applies, the 3 months will run form the date of the day after the notification letter is sent, but the application date will remain the date that the homelessness application was made) |
| New Applicants |
Date HomeView registration is received for assessment |
| Transfer Applicants |
Date HomeView registration is received for assessment |
If you have a change in circumstance, your banding award may change. If you move to a higher band, your application date will be the date that the higher band was awarded. If you move to a lower band, you will keep your original application date.
If more than one housing need factor applies to you, the most serious factor will be used to award your banding. Additional time can be added to your application date in recognition of the additional housing need factors that affect each household member.
The additional time to be awarded for each subsequent housing need factor (after the highest identified need which determines banding) for each household member will be as follows: Gold need factor, 3 months; Silver need factor, 2 months; Bronze need factor, 1 month.
The partner Landlords that have agreed to participate in Choice Based Lettings have undertaken to advertise all vacant properties in the Cotswold District,
through HomeView. However, some Landlords may choose not to participate, and even where they are part of the scheme, there will be exceptional occasions
when it is not possible to advertise a property, for example, if a Landlord needs to decant tenants whilst major works are carried out in their own property,
or where an offer must be made to meet a statutory housing duty. In these instances, it will not be possible to advertise the vacancy.
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How will I know which properties are available?
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Properties that are due to become vacant will be advertised on a weekly cycle in the Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard and the Gloucestershire Echo (both on a Thursday) and on our website
http://www.HomeView.org.uk
You will also be able to get information on vacant properties from any of the partner Landlord offices and from the Council's offices and Information Points.
The adverts will tell you the location, size, rent and special features of the property.
It will also tell you which band customers are eligible to express an interest and whether there are any age or other, for example, local connection, restrictions.
On the website, the advert will contain a photograph of the property (where applicable) and links to information about the local area and facilities.
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What should I do if I am interested in a property?
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If you are interested in an advertised property and you meet the eligibility criteria, you need to apply for the property by the advertised closing date.
This is commonly known as 'bidding'. You can bid for a property via the website, by telephoning 08450 582 099, by texting 0780 0002178 or by visiting our office.
You will need to have the property number and your registration number ready. If you need help to bid for a property, please let us know.
If you wish to text your bid you need to follow a prescribed format. The format is as follows:
Registration Number#Date of Birth (ddmmyyyy)#Property Number#
For example, if your Registration number was 307, your date of birth was 10th January 1960 and the property you were interested in was reference number 6142000,
you would send the following text message: 307#10011960#6142000#
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How many properties can I express an interest in?
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You can only bid for one property in each advertising cycle. If you change your mind during the cycle, you can move your bid to a different property.
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How do you decide who is offered the property?
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Once the closing date has lapsed, all bids are put into a list. The list is ordered by eligibility, band and application date (i.e. the applicants who meet the eligibility criteria followed by highest band followed by the longest application date).
The property will be offered to the applicant at the top of the list, subject to their eligibility being checked. In a small number of cases, there may be a reason why the property is not offered to the top applicant. The Landlord will explain, to the top applicant, why they are not receiving the offer.
If after reasonable checks, the top applicant is not eligible for the property, or refuses the offer, the offer will made to the next person on the list until the list is exhausted.
Landlords have the right not to offer an applicant a tenancy if the applicant has rent arrears, or there is evidence of unacceptable behaviour, where this is in accordance with the Landlords own policies.
If you do not hear from the landlord within five working days of the closing date, you should assume that you have been unsuccessful. You will be able to bid for another property in the next advertising cycle.
If you are at the top of the list, the landlord will contact you to check your registration details are up-to-date and to make sure that you are eligible for the property. This may be a telephone call or a visit.
If the telephone or visit check are satisfactory, a formal offer will be made to you. This may take place before the property is available for viewing, but it should be possible to arrange a viewing as soon as the keys are available.
You will not be able to bid for properties that are advertised whilst you have an outstanding offer.
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What happens if I want to refuse the property?
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If you wish to refuse the offer, either when the initial formal offer is made (this may be verbal) or after viewing the property, you should inform the Landlord as soon as possible. The property can then be offered to the next applicant on the list.
Once you have refused the property, you will be able to bid for advertised properties.
If you wish to accept the offer, the landlord will arrange an appointment for you to sign up the tenancy to the property. The conditions, rights and obligations of your tenancy will be explained to you at the sign-up.
Once you have accepted and signed the tenancy agreement, you will be removed from the HomeView Register. If you wish to move in the future, and want to be considered by one of the partner landlords, you will need to complete a new registration form with HomeView.
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How will I find out what has happened to advertised properties?
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Information about properties that have been let will be published in the weekly advertising cycle. The information will include,
the type of property, Parish, the number of applicants who bid and the band and application date of the successful applicant.
This information will give you an indication of how long you are likely to have to wait in particular areas.
You may decide that you wish to apply for less popular areas or different property types so that you do not have to wait for so long.
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Who do I contact for further advice or information?
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If you have any questions, or require housing advice or assistance, you should contact the HomeView team on 08450 582 099.
You can request a review of a decision that you disagree with if:
- Your registration has been determined as ineligible
- You have been suspended from bidding for properties as a result of violent or aggressive behaviour or domestic violence
- Your banding has been demoted to Bronze band due to rent arrears or unacceptable behaviour
- Your registration has been removed from the HomeView Register, other than at your own request
- You think you have been awarded the wrong banding.
To make an appeal, you must contact HomeView within 21 days of the notification letter, to explain why you disagree with the decision and to provide any supporting evidence.
The CAP Panel will investigate your appeal and will make a decision, in writing, within 56 days. The letter will advise you of the outcome of the review decision and the reasons for it.
The CAP Panel is made up of a Council Representative and two Housing Association Representatives. The Housing Association Representatives will not be the same people that were involved in making the original decision, and, if you are currently a Housing Association tenant, will not be your landlord.
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