Housing Options Guide

Hanover Housing Association

Background

Hanover Housing Association are one of the largest housing associations in Scotland. They provide 4,500 sheltered and amenity houses for rent throughout Scotland, mainly for the elderly.

The association is registered as a charity and is a “not for profit” organisation.

The accommodation offered by Hanover is unfurnished flatted accommodation each of which is self -contained with its own living, kitchen, bathroom and bedroom. On some developments 2 bedroom properties and cottages are available.

Hanover provide both sheltered housing and amenity housing. Sheltered properties have a sheltered Housing Manager and more communal facilities than amenity housing.

How to Apply

If you wish to be considered for Hanover housing you will need to complete an application form.

Forms are available from the address below. Hanover have tried to make the form quick and easy by using tick boxes.

It is important that you answer every question, giving further information when asked, as the answers you give will be used by Hanover staff to assess your application in accordance with their allocations policy.

Once you have filled in your form return it to the Glasgow office. The form will then be assessed by trained staff in the office using a points system which is explained below.

Hanover Housing Association

West Area Office

5 Newton Place

GLASGOW

G3 7PR

Tel : 0141 353 1353

Fax : 0141 353 1393

E-mail :admin@hanoverscotland.org.uk

Website :www.hanoverscotland.org.uk

Allocation System & Points

Points will be awarded after taking into account the different needs you may have.

Personal Needs - In section 9 of the application form, you are asked to agree or disagree with a number of statements about your personal needs in relation to where you live.

For each of these you will get 3 points for a “yes” response and 0 points for a “no” response. Hanover staff will then calculate the points you have received in this section to give an accurate assessment of your personal requirements.

Your application will then be placed in either a low, medium or high dependency category depending on the number of personal needs points.

The categories are as follows:-

1-15 Points - Low Dependency Category
16-30 Points - Medium Dependency Category
31+ Points - High Dependency Category

Housing & Social Needs – Section 10 of the application form concerns your housing and social needs. The questions in this section are connected to the facilities you have in and around your home. The questions and points are awarded as follows :-

Homelessness: If you are homeless or threatened with homelessness, you may be awarded 15 points.
Harassment: If you are experiencing any form of harassment where you currently live, you will be visited by a housing officer who will assess your application. You may be awarded up to 15 points.
Overcrowding / Undercrowding / Sharing facilities: 3 points may be awarded if you tick “yes” to any of these questions.
Available facilities: 3 points may be awarded if you answer “no” to any of these options.
Repair / Social contact / Wheelchair: 3 points may be awarded if you tick “yes” to any of these questions.

Your priority on the waiting list will depend on your position in relation to other applicants on the waiting list.

If there are other applicants with more housing & social points than you, then their application will take a higher priority.

Offers

When a vacancy comes up, if your application receives a high number of housing & social points within your dependency category, you will be visited by a Housing Officer.

The Housing Officer will check the details on your application, verify points awarded and check your suitability for the accommodation you have requested.

After a verification visit your points may increase or decrease.

Vacancies will be offered to applicants most in need. i.e the applicant who has the most housing & social points within the appropriate dependency category will be offered the property.

A maximum of 2 offers are made to each successful applicant. If both offers are refused, the application will be put on hold for one year.

Balanced Communities

Hanover allocates housing taking into account personal, housing and social needs within a dependency category.

Each vacancy within a particular scheme will be offered to one of these categories; high, medium or low. By the third vacancy in a particular scheme each category will have received an offer.

This allows the association to let housing to applicants who are in ”need” and to maintain a balance of dependency within developments.

Changes in circumstances

It is your responsibility to notify the association of any changes in circumstances, which may affect your application.

If for any reason you no longer wish to be held on the waiting list please inform the association in writing.

Nominations from South Ayrshire Council

Hanover may allocate 50% of its vacancies to applicants who are forwarded to the association by South Ayrshire Council.

You will automatically be nominated by the council, unless you specifically ask not to be.

You are therefore advised to apply to the Council’s waiting list as well as Hanover’s waiting list to increase your chances of being housed.

Transfers & Mutual Exchanges

The association also permits transfers & mutual exchanges by its tenants.
Further information is available from the Glasgow office.

Location & Stock

The table below details the location and stock type of accommodation provided by Hanover in South Ayrshire.

Location	Type	Rented	Owner Occupied
Racecourse Road, Ayr	Sheltered	0	30
Laighpark Road / Laighpark View, Coylton	Amenity & General Needs	10 Amenity (10 x 2 person sheltered cottages) 10 General Needs (6 x 4 bedroom & 4 x 5 person semidetached villas).	0
Alexandra Avenue, Prestwick	Sheltered	Total -21 (16 x 2 Person flats, 5 x 2 Person Cottages & 1x 5 Sheltered Housing Manager’s flat)	0
Cavendish Place, Troon	Sheltered	0	28
Portland Street, Troon	Sheltered	Total –26 ( 9 x 1 person flats, 9 x 2 person flats, 8 x 2 person basic sheltered flats & 1 x 5 person sheltered Housing Manager’s flat)	0

Rents & Service Charges

Rents are charged monthly by Hanover Housing Association, this charge includes both a rental charge and a service charge component.

The rental charge is fixed by the association and covers the costs of providing and managing the property. The service charge covers the costs of additional services provided in sheltered housing.

Rent & Service charges vary in each development. These charges are correct as at August 2004, however all charges are reviewed annually and are therefore subject to change* :-

Laighpark Road & Laighpark View, Coylton
Two Person Amenity Cottage £220.75 per month
Four Person General Needs House £240.00 per month
Five person General Needs House £253.00 per month
Alexandria Court & Alexandria Avenue, Prestwick
Two person flat £279.75 per month
Two person cottage £285.75 per month
Princes Square & Portland Street, Troon
One person full sheltered flat £290.75 per month
Two person full sheltered flat £305.75 per month
Two person basic sheltered flat £299.75 per month

H.O.M.E.S Mobility Scheme
If you are a current tenant of another public sector landlord (i.e. Council, Housing Association or R.S.L) you may be eligible to be referred to Hanover Housing Association by your current landlord.

Contact you landlord for further information.