Published: Friday, 26th January 2018
Cannock Chase Council’s Cabinet approved at its meeting last night to pilot a shared accommodation project in the District.
The project will see a small number of two or three bedroomed Council flats that are no longer required by families, offered for flat share accommodation. The accommodation will be restricted to single people, under the age of 35, who have no dependants and who are willing to share. A registered provider will be appointed, who will be responsible for managing the property and providing support to the tenants.
Councillor Frank Allen, Housing Portfolio Leader said “Government changes to welfare reform have had a significant impact on single people under the age of 35, who now only receive the shared room rate under the local housing allowance. However, there is a limited amount of supported shared accommodation available in the Cannock Chase area.
Therefore I welcome introduction of the pilot project to Cannock Chase which we hope will be a success and help to alleviate this problem.”
Cannock Chase Council has a stock of two and three bedroom flats which have previously been let to families. These flats are no longer popular, primarily due to a significant increase in newly constructed two bedroom houses by registered providers (Housing Associations) but the number of people who can apply for this type of accommodation has also reduced due to the introduction of the “bedroom tax” in 2013.
The Council only has a small stock of one-bedroom flats and with a waiting list of 191 (as of December 2017) single people under 35 have limited housing options.
It is anticipated that the registered provider will be appointed by April 2018 and the pilot project will start in June 2018. The project will be reviewed after 12 months, after which, if successful, will be extended to a further five properties.
We actively encourage housing applications from single people which can be made via our website https://online.cannockchasehousing.co.uk