Housing Allocations Policy Review 2025

Overview

The Housing Allocations Policy sets out how social and affordable rented homes are given to people in Trafford. Since Trafford Council does not own any housing, these homes are provided and managed by Registered Providers of Social Housing (RPs).

The Council is reviewing the policy to make sure it meets the current housing needs and demands in the borough. With more pressure on housing and changes to local and national priorities, it’s important the policy is fair, clear, and helps those who need it most.

The Council is asking for your views on the proposed changes to the draft Housing Allocations Policy. The Council welcome feedback from residents, partner housing providers, and organisations working in Trafford.

Social housing in Trafford is allocated using a priority banding system. People with the most urgent housing needs are placed in the highest bands, giving them a higher chance of being offered a property.

Trafford’s current Bands are as follows:

• Band 1 – Urgent need to move and owed Reasonable Preference
• Band 2 – Need to move and owed Reasonable Preference
• Band 3 – Owed Reasonable Preference but do not meet criteria for Bands 1 & 2
• Band 4 – No housing need but meet the Trafford Positive Community Criteria
• Band 5 – Reduced preference due to rent arrears, behaviour, no local connection, or savings, equity, or earnings above threshold.

Trafford’s proposed Bands are as follows:

• Band 1 – Urgent need to move and owed Reasonable Preference
• Band 2 – Need to move and owed Reasonable Preference
• Band 3 – Owed Reasonable Preference but do not meet criteria for Bands 1 & 2

If the proposed changes to the Housing Allocations Policy are approved, everyone currently registered with Trafford Home Choice will have their application reviewed. The system will automatically reassess all current and new applications based on the new policy and send out a decision, which will include the right to request a review.

Applicants currently in Bands 4 and 5 will have their applications cancelled and removed from the housing register. They will no longer qualify to be on the register unless their housing needs change.

Over the last four years:

• Bands 1 and 2 have resulted in the most rehoused applicants. This is as expected due to the order of the priority bands.
• In Band 4, 25 applicants were rehoused (0.11% of the total applicants). Applicants in Band 4 were specifically nominated for housing on the basis that they were in employment, alongside other criteria set by RPs, including age related minimums and maximums for properties.
• No applicants in Band 5 have been rehoused in the last three years.

The Council is also introducing the following changes to meet legal requirements and government guidance, and are therefore not consulting on them:

• update the local connection exemptions list to include households fleeing domestic violence (to comply with the Domestic Abuse Act 2021).
• updates to the local connection exceptions list to include households on government defined settlement schemes (e.g. Ukrainians, Afghans)​.
• updates to the priority banding list to strengthen the priority given to armed forces veterans and their spouses.