Trafford Housing Trust offers support, advice and guidance to
those who are homeless or who are about to become homeless.
The Housing Options team at the Trust offer such assistance to
anyone who is homeless and/or fleeing domestic violence, violence
or harassment. Local surgeries are held each week - please
telephone 0161 968 0343 for details of surgeries local to you.
There are many reasons why a person becomes homeless; therefore
we assess each individual based on their singular needs and
circumstances. The Housing Act 1996 Part V11 and subsequent
legislation sets out the legal duties of local authorities. We will
only be able to offer you a permanent home if you are eligible for
consideration and are habitually resident within the UK.
You are not eligible if:
- You are from abroad and subject to immigration control
- You are from abroad and are not habitually resident in the
UK
- You are a British citizen and you have not been habitually
resident in the UK for a number of years
There are exceptions to this, which can be discussed with you at
interview stage.
So what is classed as homeless?
An individual is considered homeless if now, or within the next
28 days:
- There is nowhere that you and your family can stay
together
- You no longer have the legal right to stay in your home
- You have somewhere to live but cannot gain entry to it
- You are at risk of violence from someone living in your
home
- Your home is a caravan or boat and you have nowhere to legally
place it and live in it
- You have a home in which it is not reasonable for you to live
when compared with the housing conditions of other people living in
the area
We take seriously the matter of an individual being or becoming
homeless and class individuals on their priority needs. You are
considered to have a priority need if you, or a member of your
family, are:
- Pregnant
- Caring for a dependent child 16 years old or under, or aged
17-18 and still at school
- Vulnerable as a result of institutionalisation (time in care,
the armed forces, prison)
- 16-17 years old
- Vulnerable as a result of a physical or mental disability
- Homeless due to a fire, flood or similar disaster
- Forced to leave home because of violence or abuse
It is important to note that if you become homeless because
you did not pay your rent or mortgage and you could afford to do
so, you could be considered 'intentionally homeless'. If this is
the case, we cannot house you permanently, even if you have
children.
Generally, we will only house you if you or a member of your
family has a connection with the area. A connection is:
- You have lived here for six out of the last twelve months, or
three out of the past five years
- You have permanent work in the area
- Your close relatives - mum, dad, brother or sister - have lived
here for the past five years
- You have very special reasons why you must live in the
area
If you have no local connection, we will refer you to another
area where you do have connections, if it is safe for you to go
there.
However, we exercise the right to house you if it is decided we
have a duty under current homelessness legislation. If we are
satisfied you fulfil the criteria for homelessness, we may offer
you temporary accommodation while we make our decision or while
waiting for a permanent home to become available.
To discuss homelessness in further detail contact the
Customer Hub on 0300 777 7777.