Manchester proposes changes to allocation of social housing

Manchester City Council has proposed changes to the social housing allocation in order to help the city’s most vulnerable people. 

The proposed changes include improved housing opportunities for homeless residents, introducing a two-year residency rule to apply to be on the housing register, different levels of priority for degrees of overcrowding, and ensuring that homeowners will no longer be able to join the housing register to bring in line with other local authorities.

Councillors will be asked to approve the changes and when agreed, the changes are expected to be implemented in the autumn of 2020.

Manchester currently has more than 65,000 social rent homes, but demand is extremely high, with more than 5,000 households currently on the register in priority need.

The turnover of social homes has also decreased significantly, this means that many residents are choosing to stay in social housing for longer and those on the housing register are waiting for longer to access a new home.

Cllr Suzanne Richards, Manchester City Council’s executive member for housing and regeneration said: ‘The housing landscape in the city has changed a lot in the last few years due to a range of factors, including welfare reform and increasing private rents.

‘This means that demand for social housing is going up, while we continue to lose stock through Right to Buy.’

‘It is important then that we can react to changing factors to ensure social housing can be accessed by those who need it most.

‘At the same time, the number of people presenting as homeless in the city has increased massively in the past few years, putting an unsuitable strain on temporary accommodation.

‘It is right therefore that we can support these residents more effectively with improved access to social housing.

‘Real-life insight is vital so that we can understand the housing pressures in the city and react to them properly.’

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