Registering with Home Choice Plus
Who is eligible to join the Home Choice Plus Register
Anyone can join Home Choice Plus, but you may be excluded if you
have a history of serious rent arrears or anti-social
behaviour.
You must be over the age of 16 to apply to join
Home Choice Plus. If you are under 18 years of age at the
time of receiving an offer, you may be asked to provide a guarantor
for the tenancy until your 18th birthday.
However, if you are under the age of 18, please contact Housing
Services at Wychavon District Council to discuss your need
further.
Who is NOT eligible to join the Home Choice Plus Register
Some people travelling to the United Kingdom are not entitled to
housing by the Local Authority on the basis of their immigration
status as detailed in Section 160A of the Housing Act 1996 as
amended. Where an application form indicates that this may be
an issue, Home Choice Plus (Wychavon) will investigate to
determine whether the applicant is eligible.
The following will not be eligible: -
- Asylum seekers who are waiting for a decision;
- People whose immigration status does not allow them to apply to
services which depend on public funds and
- People who have previously been guilty of unacceptable
behaviour. This could include anti-social behaviour or
neighbourhood nuisance.
What we do, when we receive your Application
When we receive your application, provided that it is complete
and we do not need any further information we will:
- Send you an acknowledgement letter, with your personal
registration number and the banding you have been placed in. It is
important that you keep this number safe, as you
will require it when making a bid for a property.
- We will also send you a leaflet explaining to you how to make
your bids.
If your application is incomplete or you have indicated that you
may have a priority we will:
- Send you the relevant paperwork to either complete your
application or clarify your priority status by asking for further
information.
- Once we have completed your application we will send you an
acknowledgement letter, with your personal registration number and
the banding you have been placed in.
Your
responsibilities once accepted onto the Home Choice Plus
Register
- Tell us if there are any changes in your circumstances, these
may include: -
- A change of address
- Birth of a child
- Medical reasons
- Someone moves into/out of your household
Deliberately Worsening Circumstances
Where there is evidence that an applicant has deliberately
worsened their circumstances in order to qualify for higher
priority with Home Choice Plus, no additional priority will be
given. Applicants will retain the band they held before
worsening their circumstances.
Examples of where someone may have deliberately worsened their
circumstances would include: -
- Selling a property that is affordable and suitable for the
applicant’s need.
- Moving from an assured tenancy to insecure, overcrowded
accommodation with family or friends.
- For an applicant to have deliberately worsened their
circumstances there must be evidence that it would have been
reasonable for the applicant to have remained in their original
accommodation.
Allocations Policy
Details of the Allocations
Policy can be downloaded here (1.62 MB).
Removal from Home Choice Plus Register
We will remove you from the Home Choice Plus Register if
you:
- Are, or become, not entitled to be allocated housing;
- Ask to be removed;
- Change your address and do not tell us;
- Do not get in touch with us when we ask you (in writing) to do
so;
- Do not make a bid within two years of applying to the scheme –
a new application will have to be made.