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Apply for a home

 

To apply to be registered on the South Lakes Housing waiting list you must fill in an application form.  From the information you have given us, we will decide whether or not you qualify to be put on the list.
 
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We will then inform you in writing whether or not your application has been registered.  If we amend your application in any way, or if we take your name off the list for any reason we will also write to you.
 
If you feel there are exceptional circumstances in your case please write and tell us.
 
We will tell you how many points you have when you have been registered and when we amend your application due to a change in your circumstances.  We can also give you an idea of how long you may have to wait to be rehoused in your preferred areas of choice.
 
When we are in a position to offer you a tenancy we will write to you, giving details of the accommodation type, size and rent.
 
If you are not happy with the way your application has been handled, please contact the Head of Housing Services at South Lakes Housing in the first instance.  If you are still not satisfied, the Council operates a formal complaints procedure.
 

Who can go on the list?

Anyone over the age of 16 can join the Housing Register (waiting list), except certain people coming into this country from abroad.  By law, we are not allowed to register such people on the waiting list.  If you need further details on this subject, please contact your nearest housing office.  However, although anyone may apply for housing, some groups of people will not normally be offered a tenancy. 
 
They are:
 
  • Applicants who have shown unacceptable behaviour serious enough to make them unsuitable to be a tenant of the Council
  • Applicants who owe a Council or registered social landlord a debt from a former tenancy
  • Applicants under 18 years old, unless the tenancy can be guaranteed and the applicant agrees to floating support being provided·    
 
There are other groups of applicants who will only be offered a tenancy if there are no other suitable applicants. 
 
These groups are:
 
  • Applicants whose current accommodation is adequate for their needs
  • Applicants who can afford to buy a suitable property.  This category would not include people who need specialist housing (eg sheltered accommodation) and there is nothing suitable for sale in the area of their choice
  • Applicants who have neither lived in the district for the last two years nor been on the waiting list for 12 months·    
 
Applicants who live outside South Lakeland unless:
 
  • they previously lived in South Lakeland and are currently living in armed forces accommodation, prison, hospital, rehabilitation centre or similar
  • they need to live in South Lakeland to give or receive support to or from a close relative and a minimum of ten medical points have been awarded
  • they are working or have a confirmed offer of a permanent full-time job in South Lakeland
  • they have previously lived in South Lakeland for most of their lives and left the district less than five years ago       

How are homes allocated?

The Council allocates tenancies according to a points system.  Applicants are awarded points depending on their current housing situation.  These points are designed to reflect the persons housing need.  When a flat or house becomes available, the application with the highest points total for that type of property will be offered the tenancy.  If two applications share the same points total, the one with the earliest date of application usually takes priority.
 

How long will I have to wait?

Unfortunately, this is the most difficult question to answer.  It depends on a number of things which we can often neither predict nor control:
 
  • the area(s) in which you wish to be rehoused
  • the type of property you need
  • the rate of vacancies in suitable properties
  • the number of people needing similar properties
  • the circumstances of these other people
 
Some Council property is not in high demand and you would not have to wait long to be offered this type of accommodation.  This particularly applies to some sheltered housing for the elderly.  Other accommodation is very popular and applicants have to wait for a long period before being offered this.  If you would like more detailed advice on which areas or types of accommodation are more popular, please ask at your local housing office.
 
If you are making an application you will want to see a summary of the Council's Allocation Policy which is available from any local housing office.  The information above is an extract from the summary.
 
Below is the average waiting time over the last 5 years prior to re-housing in a Council property throughout South Lakeland:
 
Waiting List Times
Area

Number

re-housed

Average

waiting

time

Allithwaite 2 5.6 years
Ambleside 65 2.3 years
Arnside 10 3.8 years
Backbarrow 2 0.4 years
Bowness 46 1.9 years

Beetham

1 3.5 years
Broughton Beck 3 1.3 years
Bouth 1 12.5 years
Broughton-in-Furness 4 4.9 years
Burneside 60 1.3 years
Burton 2 3.0 years
Cartmel 7 2.6 years
Casterton 2 1.6 years
Chapel Stile 4 0.9 years
Coniston 11 1. 8 years
Crosthwaite 1 3.2 years

Crook

1 5.1 years

Crooklands

1 8.2 years
Elterwater

5

1.7 years

Endmoor

3 2.1 years
Finsthwaite 3 1.3 years
Flookburgh 5 1.9 years
Grange-over-Sands

74

1.9 years
Grasmere 7 4.4 years
Great Urswick 21 1.3 years
Haverthwaite

9

3.0 years
Hawkshead 13 3.9 years
Holme 6 2.1 years
Ings 1 1.1 years
Kendal 437 2.4 years
Kirkby-in-Furness 11 4.6 years
Kirkby Lonsdale 26 2.3 years
Levens 4 2.5 years
Meathop 1 19.4 years
Milnthorpe 81 1.6 years
Natland 1 4.6 years
Oxenholme 1 4.2 years

Old Hutton

1 0.9 years
Sedbergh 66 1.8 years
Spark Bridge

3

1.6 years
Staveley 20 2.5 years
Swarthmoor 22 2.1 years
Ulverston

292

1.5 years
Windermere 168 2.2 years
Average 1505 2.1 years

Contact

South Lakes Housing at:
Little Aynam House, Little Aynam, Kendal, Cumbria, LA9 7AH (01539 717717)
Town Hall, Queen Street, Ulverston, Cumbria, LA12 7AR (01229 584424)
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