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Hackney

Hackney

 

Welcome to Hackney Choice. The Council introduced choice based lettings (CBL) in September 2006. The Hackney CBL scheme is called Hackney Choice. This is a major change in the way people and properties are matched together.

 

Minor Changes to the Bidding Process

 

As advertised last week the changes below have now come into effect and will apply to all bids placed since Friday 4^th December 2009

 

Hackney Council aim’s to give our applicants choice in the properties they bid for at all times, however we do need to make a few minor changes. To reduce the number of incidents of non-attendance at viewings and the amount of time a property remains empty we will be suspending the top two successful bidders until they have viewed and either accepted or rejected the property. There will continue to be no penalties if you choose not to accept a property.

 

What does this mean for me?

 

• You will not be able to bid for any properties until you have viewed the property you have successfully bid for.
• To avoid any inconvenience please make sure you only bid for properties that you are seriously interested in living in.
• Make sure the area you have selected is right for you (i.e. consider schools, work and transport links, floor height etc)
• Ensure we have up to date contact details for you so we can contact you swiftly for viewings

 

This change will only apply to council properties and not Housing Association properties.  We hope that this minor change will mean that more applicants get a chance to view properties.

 

If you have any queries regarding the above, please contact us using the details below.

To contact us

Email hackneychoice@hackney.gov.uk

 

Telephone 020 8356 2135 or 020 8356 3000

 

Website www.hackney.gov.uk/hackneychoice (this will open a new page)

 

If you are housebound or living in temporary accommodation outside Hackney please contact us and we can send you the magazine.

 

Further information about Hackney Choice is available from local housing offices and Housing Reception at Christopher Addison House 72 Wilton Way E8.

Magazine, kiosk and free computer access

The magazine can be found at locations around the borough along with all the Council offices listed and the places where you can get assistance with bidding:

Council Locations		Other Locations
Cashiers Office 2 Hillman Street E8 1FB Reception Hackney Town Hall, Mare Street, E8 1EA Reception, Christopher Addison House (can assist with bidding) 72 Wilton Way, E8 1BJ CLR James Library (can assist with bidding) 24-30 Dalston Lane, E8 3AZ Hackney Central Library (can assist with bidding) 1st Floor, 1 Reading Lane, E8 3AZ Homerton Library (can assist with bidding) Homerton High Street, E9 6AS Homerton Neighbourhood Office (can assist with bidding) 92 Well Street, E9 7JA Queensbridge and De Beauvoir Neighbourhood Office (can assist with bidding) 31 De Beauvoir Road, N1 5SJ Shoreditch Library (can assist with bidding) 80 Hoxton Street, N1 6LP Shoreditch Neighbourhood Office (can assist with bidding) Bletchley Court, 1 Cropley Street, N1 5SJ Stoke Newington Library (can assist with bidding) Stoke Newington Church Street, N16 0JS Stamford Hill Library (can assist with bidding) Portland Avenue, N16 6BS Stoke Newington Neighbourhood Office (can assist with bidding) Stoke Newington Church Street, N16 OJR. Stamford Hill Neighbourhood Office (can assist with bidding) Clock House, 149 Stamford Hill, N16 5LG		Citizens Advice Bureau (can assist with bidding) 236 - 238 Mare Street, E8 1HE Leaving Care Service 19 - 24 Marcon Place E8 1LP Age Concern Hackney (can assist with bidding) 22 Dalston Lane, E8 3AZ Disability Hackney The Print House, 18 Ashwin Street, E8 3DL London Alevi Cultural Centre and Cem-evi (can assist with bidding) 89 Ridley Road, E8 2NH   Bangla Housing Association 243 Lower Clapton Rd, E5 8EG St Leonard’s Learning Disability Services St Leonard’s Hospital, 3rd Floor, Block D, Nuttall Street, N1 5LZ An Viet Foundation An Viet House, 12-14 Englefield Road, N1 4LS Robin Redmond Resource Centre 440 Seven Sisters Road, N4 2RD North London Muslim Community Centre (can assist with bidding) 66-68 Cazenove Road, N16 6AA Halkevi Community Centre (can assist with bidding) 92-100 Stoke Newington Road, N16 7XB Agudas Israel Housing Association (can assist with bidding), 206 Lordship Road, London N16 5ES Hanover in Hackney 18 - 20 London Lane N16 3PR

Hackney This map of the borough shows you the lettings areas we use to indicate where the available properties are

How the system works

Under Hackney Choice applicants are still assessed according to housing need and placed into bands.

1. Emergency
2. Urgent
3. Priority/Homeless
4. General
5. Reserve

Hackney Council has a waiting list of over 12,000 people, and like many other London boroughs, does not have the supply of properties to match the huge demand. Successful bidders will be those with the greatest need and likely to be in the top three bands.

 

 This symbol means everyone in the five bands can bid for the property shown, unless there restrictions in the advert.

However, if you are in the bottom two bands – General or Reserve – there is no guarantee you will be successful.

 

Most applicants are now expected to bid for advertised vacancies. Bids made for each property are ranked by bands and date order.

 

Since April 2007 older applicants, who have low level or no support needs, may bid for sheltered accommodation.

 

We have produced a guide to our scheme “Hackney Choice: Our lettings, your choice” which is available from our offices and can be viewed on our web site.

 

Hackney Council has published a guide to its lettings policy “How We Let Our Homes: Hackney’s Lettings Policy”. It explains the scheme and covers the policies both for tenants looking for a transfer and those joining the housing register. There are also six easy to understand publications, each explaining the separate parts of the scheme. These are available from our offices and can be viewed on our web site. 

What happens when bidding is over

When bidding closes all bids are sorted into priority order with those in the highest band and with the oldest band date being placed at the top of the list. Eligibility checks are then carried out by the lettings team, including checks for rent arrears, local connection and immigration status.

 

After the checks have been completed, a list of the top five eligible bidders will be sent to the Council neighbourhood offices or Housing Associations.  ‘Shortlisted’ applicants will usually be contacted within a week by phone or letter and invited to view the property, for this reason it is important to let us know if your phone number changes.

How long can I expect to wait before I make a successful bid?

The table below shows how long Hackney Choice customers have waited in their band before successfully bidding for a new home. These figures are for the period 1^st April 08 to 31^st March 09.

 

	Studio	One Bed	Two Bed	Three Bed	Four Bed +	Total
Band	Wait in weeks	Wait in weeks	Wait in weeks	Wait in weeks	Wait in weeks	No. of Applicants waiting (Sept 09)	Number of Lettings
Emergency	-	26	13	30	74	9	24
Urgent	-	52	66	75	157	1070	671
Priority	51	80	130	180	275	1847	770
General	165	190	-	-	-	5280	188
Reserve	-	138	-	-	-	7482	12
Lettings Total						15688	1665

 

The waiting times are indicated in weeks and show the AVERAGE wait by band and number of bedrooms. Actual waiting time may be longer or shorter depending on location, property, floor height and other details. The 12 units in the Reserve Band were sheltered units let to applicants over the age of 55 only.

 

If you have any queries regarding the above, call us on 020 8356 2135 or email hackneychoice@hackney.gov.uk. 

 

Remi Osadiya, Housing Demand Manager