Tenants Incentive Scheme 2024 onwards

Eligible

The Tenants Incentive scheme (TIS) is available to Council tenants who meet the following criteria. They:

• Have been secure tenants of Wealden District Council for at least one year.
• Move into a property made available through a Council letting or a nomination to a Private Registered Provider (Housing Association) – see point C for restrictions.
• Transfer to a property, the size of which meets the household’s needs according to the Allocations Policy.
• Provide vacant possession of their current home.
• Obtain permission from their Housing Officer that the move can take place.

Not eligible

Tenants Incentive payment for transfers is not available to tenants who:

• Are not the named tenant/s of the property being released.
• Are subject to a Possession Order.
• Have been served with a Notice of Seeking Possession.
• Have been served with a Demotion Notice.
• Do not qualify to join the housing register, or would not qualify to join the housing register, should they apply for a transfer.
• Hold any tenancy other than a secure tenancy.  
• Have previously received a TIS payment.
• Are a successor (following the tenant’s death) who is under occupying the property and is a family member. This does not apply to under occupying successors who were a spouse or civil partner. 
• Is living in a disabled adapted property where the adaptations are no longer needed – Housing Act 1985 Schedule 2 Ground 13.

Size of the new property

• The tenant/s will be assessed under the Housing Allocations Policy to see how many bedrooms they need. They will then be registered for, and able to bid on properties of that size. This applies unless they are occupying a property with three or more bedrooms, when they would qualify for a two bedroomed bungalow, even if they are only entitled to a one bedroom.

If the transfer is approved under this scheme and the tenant’s rent account goes into arrears, the Council will use part or all of the payment to ensure any rent arrears or other money outstanding are cleared.

If the tenant/s is currently in arrears on the rent account, the application to move will be considered on its individual merits.

Incentive payments

Payments will be made in accordance with the table below. Although demand for all property types exists the payment amounts reflect the current demand for and availability of different property types.

There is no financial incentive for tenants moving to one bedroomed general needs accommodation due to high demand for this type of accommodation.

Moving out of a Housing Association/ Registered Provider property

No payment or assistance under this policy will be made. However, the tenant will benefit from increased priority for housing under our Allocations Policy when applying for a transfer (details can be found at:www.wealden.gov.uk/housingstrategiesandpolicies)

Please speak to your social landlord to see what other support might be available.

Moving out of a council property and into a Housing Association Registered Provider property

Payments will be made as follows:

Moving out of a council property and into another council property

Payments will be made as follows:

A general needs property is any property except a Retirement Living or an aged-restricted one (these includes: Molesey Court, Helen Court, New Barn Close and St Peters Mead).

Please note: access to bungalows and retirement living is subject to the criteria set out in our Tenancy Policy: currently those aged 60+ or who are disabled.

Removal Costs

All under occupiers eligible for TIS when transferring and leaving their current tenancy will have their removal expenses up to a value of £600 paid by Wealden District Council. If the cost of the removal exceeds £600 the shortfall will be deducted from the transfer incentive payment.

The removals will be carried out by a contractor employed by the Council on the tenant’s behalf.  If the tenant/s wish to use alternative contractors or carry out their own removals this is acceptable, but no cash alternative will be offered.

The Council will reduce the payments above by one or more of the following:

• The amount of any rent arrears owed to the council at the time of transfer.
• The cost of any works the Council has to undertake to the vacated premises as a result of damage or neglect on the part of the tenant/s or any other housing related debt. Before the tenant moves out, the Housing Officer will visit and advise if any works are needed before the tenancy ends, to avoid deductions.
• Any outstanding court costs.
• Removal costs which exceed £600; with the tenant/s liable for any costs over and above £600.
• Other costs as agreed with the tenant/s such as Council Tax arrears.

The above amounts are payable once the tenant/s have moved, returned the keys to the Council and we have confirmed if there are any works to be recharged to the tenant/s or other housing related debts. All tenants are asked to leave the property in a clean and tidy condition. Payments will be made within 4 weeks of the move taking place and the TIS form being completed with the new property details and submitted.

Practical Help to Move

Practical help with moving is available through the Practical Help to Move service.

Tenants who qualify for the TIS scheme, can access support from this service to help with the move.

The amount of help will be personalised the tenant/s needs and can include help to apply for a transfer as well as help to apply for the TIS, help with bidding and viewings/tenancy sign-up. As well as things like notifying utility companies when you are moving and setting up new accounts for the new property and informing all the services that you need to let know.

For anyone over 65 years or disabled and in receipt of a disability benefit they can also access a free handyperson service to put up shelves, install new light fittings, curtain poles or blinds etc and other small jobs. Brighton Housing Trust will help tenants to access this service.

To access this support services, please contact your Housing Officer. 

Application & Assessment

Those wishing to apply for assistance under the Scheme must complete a Housing Application form and a TIS application form to be registered for assistance under the scheme. 

For those unable to access this online, they can contact their Housing Officer so that the Practical Help to Move Service can help.

Once their housing application is processed, they will be able to log on to Sussex Homemove and place bids on properties they would consider moving to and are eligible for. Further details will be sent once the application is live, those without internet access can either ask for assisted bidding (where the Council place bids on suitable properties on their behalf) or if accessing the Practical Help to Move Service ask Brighton Housing Trust to help with this.

Eligible transferring tenants who wish to move into a Retirement Living property will be placed in band A. Other eligible applicants moving to a smaller general needs home will be placed in Band B.

Once your housing application is received and processed you will be visited by your Housing Officer.

Any tenant/s who are under occupying and move into smaller accommodation either owned by Wealden District Council or a Housing Association will not be entitled to the TIS payment unless they meet the criteria set out in the policy.  For example, moves to nursing/residential care, extra care, owner occupation, private rented, shared ownership or into accommodation with families/friends will not meet the criteria set out in this policy. 

Budgetary Constraints

The above payments will be subject to a budget limit. If there are more requests for transfer incentive assistance than there is funding available in any given financial year, the Council will:

• Give priority to those moving from accommodation that is more urgently needed; or
• Assist with a transfer in the next financial year.

If the funding runs out before the end of the financial year the Council will write to all TIS applicants to let them know. Tenants can still move but they will not receive any TIS assistance.