Westminster City Council has announced a new housing allocation policy that will benefit those seeking work.
Within days after this news, it was revealed that Housing Minister Grant Shapps is planning to issue local authorities with a new 'allocations sheet', which will aim to give those in or actively seeking work a better chance of getting social housing.
Westminster Council's proposed new poloicy will mean that people who have been in work for more than two years are to be given priority when applying for a new council home.
Those actively seeking work and those who have a sustained link to the area will also benefit under the new policy.
Residents are currently given priority according to need including factors such as young children, homelessness and those that need special medical attentions. In some cases minus points are also given for all adult households.
Now priority will be given to families or individuals where the main applicant has been in employment under a written contract for at least two years. Those with temporary contracts must prove they have been employed continuously with no more than one month's gap between contracts.
Alternatively those who have been actively seeking work for the same level of time will also be eligible for the extra points. In such cases, the main applicant must have been actively engaged with the Council's Homelessness Employment Learning Project.
The scheme will give extra priority to applicants who have strong links to the City, having lived in Westminster continuously for ten years. The applicant must produce birth certificates, tenancy agreement and Council Tax records in order to prove this and receive the points.
The Council's proposed changes will be applied to applications made from 30 January 2012.
Under Grant Shapps plans, it is also expected that those who have been employed for more than two years are given more points to rise up the housing queue. The Minister's intentions became clear when he told the Daily Telegraph:
"Up until now, access to council housing has too often been blocked for hard-working families who do the right thing. So I'm determined to end the something-for-nothing culture and replace it with a system that actively recognises individuals who work hard and play by the rules.
"When someone strives hard to hold down a job, I simply don't see why this should count against them when it comes to their housing. That's why I plan to change the system of allocating homes to allow councils to actively support those in work, as well as continuing their duty to look after the most vulnerable in society."
