Nearly 2,000 households re-register on council’s housing register

Almost 1,700 households across West Suffolk have re-registered on the council’s housing register.

These applications now need to be processed and assessed by staff before they are made live from April 1.

West Suffolk councils will now be contacting all those who haven’t reregistered.

People can still re-register in March but their application may not be verified and processed before April 1. This means they may find themselves for a period of time, unable to log on to Home-Link, the system they use to view and bid for properties.

The change is happening because councils across the Cambridge Sub-Region, including Forest Heath and St Edmundsbury, are changing IT provider for the database it uses for its choice based letting scheme, Home-Link. A contract with the current IT supplier is coming to an end.

Over the past six weeks the councils have contacted people on its housing register via emails, letters and text messaging, while it has also run an awareness campaign on social media and in the local media. Anybody logging into to use Home-Link will also have seen an alert on screen advising them of the need to re-register.

Anyone who hasn’t re-registered by the end of this month will lose their place on the housing register on April 1 when a new register comes into effect.

Sara Mildmay-White, Cabinet Member for Housing, said: “We know it’s likely that not everybody will re-register as their needs may have changed. Equally new people may also apply to be on the housing register. This re-registration will ensure that the information being held is up-to-date and reflects people’s current housing needs and priority.”

There will be no change to how priority banding is decided, and the Home-Link scheme and housing policy under which people are assessed remains in place. If someone’s household circumstances have changed, there may be a change in their banding as is already the case whenever someone updates their details. All applications need to be assessed by staff before they are made live on the new system. This process takes longer if there is a change of circumstances that has not previously been declared.”

People can re-register at www.home-link.org.uk

More information can be found on the council’s website at www.westsuffolk.gov.uk/housingregister