Issue - meetings

Housing assistance, disabled adaptions and grants policy - to approve a new policy

Meeting: 10/07/2020 - Cabinet (Item 9)

9 Housing assistance grants and loans policy pdf icon PDF 132 KB

To consider the head of housing and environment’s report. 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Cabinet considered the head of housing and environment’s report on the draft housing assistance grants and loans policy. 

 

The Cabinet member for housing reported that the aim of the policy was to:

·         provide a fair and transparent policy for the administration and management of housing related grants and loans

·         provide a clear framework for the delivery of grants and loans

·         ensure the council met its statutory duties and exercised its powers in accordance with relevant legislation and regulations

·         increase the range of grants and loans available to better reflect the needs of residents

·         increase the delivery of grants and loans subject to available funding

·         accelerate the delivery of grants 

 

The policy included new measures designed to deliver its aims by:

·         introducing new grants and services to benefit residents, including a grant for persons living with dementia

·         increasing the maximum disabled facilities grant entitlement from £30,000 to £50,000 to help fund more expensive adaptations

·         removing the means test for disabled facilities grant adaptions under £8,000 that would accelerate delivery and reduce waiting times for residents

·         using flexible funding arrangements to improve service delivery, such as the secondment of an occupational therapist to accelerate and increase the delivery of grants and reduce waiting times for residents  

·         in certain circumstances, recovering part of the cost of a disabled facilities grant from owner-occupiers to re-invest the funding in order to maximise the number of grants delivered

 

Cabinet supported the policy as it would provide a transparent framework for increasing the range of grants available and introduce new measures to enhance service delivery.  More importantly it would improve the lives of people with housing support needs by enabling them to live safely and comfortably in their own homes.  It also offered good value for money and could help bring empty homes back into use. 

 

Cabinet noted that officers were working on a communications strategy tailored to those in need of the service.  Cabinet welcomed this and suggested that publicity material was provided to Citizens Advice and community support groups. 

 

Cabinet thanked the officers for their work. 

 

RESOLVED to:

 

(a)      adopt the housing assistance grants and loans policy, as set out in the head of housing and environment’s report to Cabinet on 10 July 2020; and

 

(b)      authorise the head of housing and environment to make minor amendments to the policy. 


 

Contact us - Democratic services

Phone icon

01235 422520
(Text phone users add 18001 before dialing)

Address icon

Vale of White Horse District Council
Abbey House, Abbey Close,
Abingdon
OX14 3JE