5.1.2 Rapidity of housing

• Leadership of the housing strategy for Housing First

Housing First (or any equivalent third sector organisation) is unable to directly affect city housing strategy to address the shortage of properties. If the local authority took a lead on Housing First property strategy, there is the potential to influence the pathways for housing, for example, through incentivising developers (or landlords developing existing stock) to develop accommodation suitable for Housing First (e.g., single occupancy, range of locations).

The following suggestions are not necessarily contingent on a local authority-led Housing First property strategy (although it could make them more achievable).

• Minimum commitment of properties each year from local authority and social landlords

A commitment from local authority and social landlords to provide a minimum number of suitable properties each year would ensure a reliable supply of properties for Housing First, rather than Housing First falling within the universal pathway in the city.

This could be incentivised through, for example, Housing First provider acting as rent guarantors; using leasing arrangements, whereby Housing First providers lease the property and assume the risk (thus removing it from the landlord). Both have clear resource implications to be factored in.

Improving this supply of council and social rented properties would, in turn, reduce the reliance on private landlords, which has led to a lack of choice and examples of substandard accommodation.

Moreover, to avoid substandard accommodation and customer dissatisfaction, there is a need for quality assurance to check the basic standard of property, before and with subsequent reviews. This will require initial time to get to know the customer, build trust, and learn about their needs and wants for the property (appropriate property and location), as well as understanding the support they require to sustain a tenancy. It is also suggested that customers are involved in decisions about decorating/furnishing the property, to engender ownership and pride in their “home” and a sense of choice to the customer.

CRM and interview data highlighted the need to reduce the time from customer referral to them being housed. This is intrinsically linked to housing supply and the ability to call on a committed pool of properties each year (as above).

Increasing the tenancy management support, which is now introduced in Brighter Futures, could facilitate rapidity of housing.

A further interim measure to be considered, particularly while the limited supply of properties is addressed, is a pragmatic change from the present process of referring customers and trying to find a