If you wish to apply to come onto the Housing Register, you will need to complete a BFC My Advice Assessment first to see if Social Housing is one of your options.
How long do I have to live in the borough to be able to join the Housing Register?
All applicants must have lived in the borough for 4 years continuously and provide proof of this residency before being accepted onto the Housing Register. Proof will need to be in the way of either council tax bill, tenancy agreement, utility bills, GP, dentist or children’s school admission letter.
If you are living at home with family and you are not the current tenant, you can provide a mobile phone contract, GP or dentist letters.
What determines a housing need?
A housing need is established from the information provided when completing the application form. From this information it will determine which band you have been prioritised in. All information will be checked and verified. Home visits, if required, will also be carried out to validate information and check that the housing need is correct.
Who can be considered a household member?
Please refer to page 4 of our current policy, for a list of persons who can be included in your household. For the purposes of the register, you should only add the names of the persons who would be moving with you, for example a single parent who is staying with their family would only name themselves and their child/children as household members because these are the people they want to be rehoused with.
Why are we asked about who shares a bedroom with the main applicant?
This should only be ticked where you would usually share a bedroom with the main applicant. If you are sharing a bedroom with a household member who would usually have a room of their own, you would not tick this box.
Why do I have to provide documents to support my application?
Anyone applying for the Housing Register needs to provide documents to prove they have the Right to Rent a property within the borough. Documentation is required as part of proving your eligibility for BFCMychoice.
Documents need to be provided for verification purposes:
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proof of ID for everyone in your household (birth certificate, passport, driving licence, (including one form of photo ID for all adult applicants))
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Home Office immigration papers (residency permit, evidence of registration of EU Settlement Scheme)
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proof of your current address (utility bill, council tax bill, bank statement)
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documents to confirm 4 years residency in the Bracknell Forest borough (council tax bill, tenancy agreement, school admission letter, utility bills)
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proof of income for Jobseeker’s Allowance, Employment Support Allowance, Income Support or Universal Credit
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proof of your Child Benefit and Tax Credits
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proof of your income (3 most recent monthly payslips, 3 most recent fortnightly payslips or 5 most recent weekly payslips)
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2 most recent bank statements for all accounts held (yourself and your partner if applicable)
If relevant:
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proof of pregnancy
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evidence of sale of any previously owned property and a copy of the completion statement showing any monies you received from the sale
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evidence of residency or shared care for children
Why do I have to provide 10 years proof of address?
You are required to provide your last 10 years proof of address as part of the eligibility and verification process to help establish your local connection to the Bracknell Forest borough.
Why do I have to provide 2 months of bank statements?
This is required as part of our proof of address, proof of income and affordability checks. This also assists the Housing Association and the council to see if an applicant can afford the rental liability on either Social Housing or an affordable rent property.
What constitutes working priority?
Working priority is where an applicant or partner works 16 hours or more per week, in order to receive working priority.
To demonstrate that you are working, payslips need to be provided. If paid monthly, you will need to provide 3 months payslips, if paid weekly then 5 payslips need to be provided, if paid fortnightly you will need to provide 3 payslips. If you are self-employed, then a copy of your business accounts, that you would provide for tax purposes, showing your earned income are required.
If you are a full-time carer and unable to work, then you will need to provide proof of this to be able to receive working priority.
To retain working priority, you will need to continue to provide proof of working upon your annual renewal.
I am/we are self-employed, what documents are required for the working priority to be added?
We will need to see your latest business accounts, invoices to clients and proof of your company details logged with HMRC.
How long does it take for my application to be made active?
Applications will normally be assessed within 20 working days, once all the required information has been provided. Your application will need to be checked, verified and a home visit may be carried out as part of the verification process. Once everything has been checked your application will be made active.
What Banding am I in?
Once your application has been made active, you will be notified of your banding in your registration letter.
Confidentiality
Information about you as an applicant is treated as confidential. We will not discuss any details of your application with anyone else, except in the circumstances detailed below, unless you have given your written consent. This includes members of your family who are not part of your housing application.
If Welfare & Housing Caseworkers become aware of issues that relate to your priority for housing need for care and support, or potential risk to you and/or others, they will liaise with relevant statutory and voluntary agencies in order to assess your situation fully.
This will be done on a 'need to know' basis and, wherever possible, with your direct consent. Information relating to child protection, or risk to the community, will always be passed to Social Services and other relevant agencies.