Blackpool, Fylde and Wyre councils, together with local housing associations, are welcoming people’s views on how home seekers find and are offered social housing in the area.



The consultation is now underway as providers are proposing to make changes to the process and make the My Home Choice Fylde Coast system easier and faster to use.

Proposed plans include changing how people are prioritised for homes. Although priority will still be given to local residents in each area, people who have moved between the three Fylde Coast boroughs will be able to get onto the housing register when previously they may not have met the local connection requirement.

The wide ranging proposals will also see the number of priority bands reduced to three (A-C), making applications simpler. The new system will offer at least 50% of homes, including those in the shortest supply, only to people in Bands A-C. The rest of the homes will be available to everyone on the list and offered on a first come first served basis. There is a target that across the whole system two thirds of lettings will go to people in Bands A-C.

In addition, homes will be advertised as soon as they are available rather than all being advertised at the same time each week.

Existing social housing tenants will only be able to use the system to find a new home if their needs have changed, giving more opportunities to new applicants who are not already living in social housing.

Cllr Christine Wright, Blackpool Council Cabinet Member for Housing, said: “Finding a home is so important to both families and individuals. The proposals are designed to make the system easier and faster.

“We want to ensure that people in the greatest need still have access to the most homes, while offering opportunities to everyone who needs to move quickly to find a suitable home as soon as it is available.

“We really want to hear people’s views on the proposals so that we can deliver the best system possible.”

Based on the responses received by Monday 18 December a new system would be developed and tested in the first part of 2018, and would go live in September 2018.

The full draft new policy is available on the MyHomeChoiceFyldeCoast and partner organisations’ websites and www.myhomechoicefyldecoast.co.uk