Your Guide to Temporary Accommodation

When you make a homeless application, you will be offered temporary accommodation while your case is being assessed.

We have a duty to provide temporary accommodation if you are:

• Eligible for assistance
• In priority need
• Not intentionally homeless

If shared accommodation is offered this means you will have reduced self-contained facilities and may have to share a bathroom or kitchen. In some instances there may be no kitchen present but there will usually be an eating area and use of a fridge, microwave or kettle but facilities vary between providers.

It should be noted that we lack large family sized temporary accommodation and the majority of our accommodation will either be a one bedroom unit with shared facilities or a one bedroom self-contained unit. We aim to place you in Ashford but this may not always be possible.

We will only offer you accommodation if you are eligible and if we consider the property is suitable and meets your needs for temporary accommodation.

If accommodation is refused we would expect you to provide reasons for refusing a property to then determine the next steps. If the Council believes that the accommodation we have offered is suitable, and we don’t accept your reasons for refusing it, the Council will discharge our duty to provide you with temporary accommodation and no further offers of temporary accommodation will be made whilst your application is being assessed.

The length of time you spend in temporary accommodation will depend on how long it takes you to secure settled accommodation.

To find settled accommodation, you can:

• Bid on the housing register

To bid for any social housing properties you must be on the housing register.

If you are eligible, once registered you can log on regularly to bid for suitable properties but we also set up automated bidding for all applicants living in temporary accommodation and this is mandatory to ensure move on is as fast as possible. Finding a suitable home will depend on the availability of accommodation and your housing needs in relation to size, type and location.

Please be aware that, if you fall into rent arrears or have any housing related debt, your will not be eligible to move on until the debt is cleared. That’s why it’s so important that you pay your rent regularly.

For more information and to find out if you are eligible visit How to apply for the council's housing register/social housing within the borough of Ashford.

The majority of households that are in temporary accommodation wait an average of one year but this will vary dependent on the size and type of accommodation required.

If successful you will be expected to move from your temporary accommodation within two days and the property will be unfurnished. You should be prepared for this and all associated costs.

• Find privately rented sector accommodation (PRS)

Private rented sector accommodation will often be the quickest route to resolve your housing issues. If you find private rented sector accommodation please contact your Housing Options Officer as soon as possible. If there are financial barriers, we can discuss potential financial support such as rent in advance and deposit. Please be aware that you are not restricted to consider accommodation inside the borough.

Ashford Borough Council also have a small supply of private accommodation that we will offer to you if you meet the suitability and affordability assessment.

Failure to accept a suitable offer of settled accommodation can result in the discharge of our duty to assist you and your temporary accommodation will be closed.

If we feel that a move is required on the basis of size, type or location, the Temporary Accommodation Allocation Officer will be regularly reviewing your accommodation options to ensure that where possible we move you to an alternative temporary property.

If you feel that alternative temporary accommodation is required, please contact the Temporary Accommodation Allocation Officer who will raise the request with your Housing Options Officer. The majority of requests will be declined unless you can demonstrate that the property is not suitable as temporary accommodation.

There is a shortage of accommodation options and moves will be dependent on what is available at the time.

We also reserve the right to move you at short notice to ensure that we make best use of the limited vacancies that we get.

Failure to accept any offer of temporary accommodation where it is considered to be suitable for use as temporary accommodation will result in the offer being withdrawn and our duty to assist you may be negatively impacted. It is important to note that temporary accommodation will never be 100% suitable for your needs as it is not intended to be used long term.

If you move between temporary accommodation units you must tell the Allocation Team by submitting an Online Change of Circumstances.

Log into your Kent Homechoice account to do this. You also need to tell Housing Benefit of your change. More information on this is available on our benefits web page. 

If you have been placed outside of Ashford this will only because there were no other options for you at the time of placement. We will look to move you back to the borough as soon possible (where appropriate), however, it is likely that you could be outside for some time. Moves are usually prioritised based on how long a household has been outside of Ashford. Other factors such as support needs or children may also be taken into account.

Some nightly paid temporary accommodation providers offer accommodation that has basic furnishing. However, there are some that will not and this mean you will need to provide your furniture and white goods. This should be discussed with your Homeless Officer or Temporary Accommodation Allocation Officer at the time of the placement.

Yes. None of the temporary accommodation provided is free. You will be expected to pay rent and in some cases a weekly charge. These will be set out of your booking in paperwork and we will confirm the charges when the rent account is set up.

If you are on a low income you will need to claim Housing Benefit. The liability will be equivalent of the local housing allowance rate therefore if Housing Benefit does not cover this cost you will be liable for some charges.

To make a claim or to advise of a change in your circumstances such as address, household members or income, visit our benefits web page.

If you fail to provide information for housing benefit to proceed an application or you do not make regular payments you could lose your accommodation.

If you need to pay your own rent or service charges, there are several methods available. 

Officers will be regularly monitoring your temporary accommodation charge and will provide reminders and arrears letters. If you fail to engage and do not resolve your charges then this will result in the Council finding you intentionally homeless. If this happens, the Council will not have any obligations to house you and you will have to find your own place to live.

Generally you are responsible for all bills as you would be in a standard property unless you pay a service charge. This will be set out on your sign up paperwork. Please ask the Temporary Accommodation Allocation Officer if you are unsure.

You will need to vacate the temporary accommodation provided if:

• Our homelessness enquiries show that the council has no duty to continue accommodating you.
• You accept a property via private sector
• Find your own alternative
• You accept an offer of permanent accommodation from the Council’s Homechoice
• You lose the accommodation because we have evidence that you are in breach of your tenancy agreement.
• If you refuse an offer of permanent accommodation which is suitable for your needs

The move on can be very swift when an offer of accommodation is made. This is because you do not want to be liable for two properties and we require the accommodation for the next household in need.

Yes, because we may need to move you at short notice between temporary accommodation units or into settled accommodation, you should ensure that you are ready and prepared to move at any time.

We recommend keeping belongings to a minimum in the accommodation. We do not assist with the cost of moving and so you should ensure that you know how to move and can afford to  when instructed.

It is especially important to refrain from bringing your own furniture into the accommodation as this can make vacating at short notice difficult and you will be recharged for any clearances that we need to make as a result.

If moving to settled accommodation in the social sector, these properties are not furnished, they have no carpets or curtains or white goods. The lack of these items is not a reason to remain in the temporary accommodation. If you feel that you cannot move at short notice, you should advise us at temporary.accommodation@ashford.gov.uk.

If we are offering you settled accommodation, this will be a property selected by us for you because it meets your basic housing needs.

It will be in the private sector or the social sector regardless of whether you have directly applied for that property yourself.

We will not take preference for a specific area or property type into account unless you can demonstrate and evidence a risk to you.

If you have any area that you are at risk in, or if you need a property of a certain size or type, it is essential that you raise this prior to getting an offer of accommodation. You will need to evidence these reasons.

If you fail to respond to an offer of accommodation, we will take steps to end your temporary accommodation and you will no longer be eligible for further assistance.

An offer of settled accommodation can be reviewed within 21 days and your offer letter will provide you with the details of how to do this and the implications for you.

If you need help with your temporary accommodation or rent account please contact temporary.accommodation@ashford.gov.uk.

If you are struggling for any other reason, please contact your Housing Options Officer or housing.advice@ashford.gov.uk.

If you need advice about benefits, contact a Welfare Intervention Officer.

We will treat all requests individually but generally we lack a supply of temporary accommodation that will permit pets of any sort and so even if approval is given, we may still have to offer accommodation without your pet.

In all cases approval must be requested prior to bringing your pet with you into TA. Approval for a pet will only be given where the animal is:

• Adequately microchipped
• Vaccinated
• Flea treated
• Neutered / spayed.
• Permitted in the accommodation

We will take steps to end your accommodation if approval has not been given, if you fail to meet the criteria above or if your pet causes a breach of your licence.

If you have a disability and have a verified Assistance Animal such as a guide dog, we will ensure that all steps are taken to source accommodation for you with your animal. We are not obligated to accept emotional support animals or to provide accommodation where they are permitted.

If you cannot take your pet and are unable to make other arrangements, we can assist you to book kennels. Costs will be recharged.

You can take possessions, but you should not overcrowd the accommodation with furniture items. We recommend only taking your essential items as we can at any time request a move to an alternative accommodation and you will only have a few days to do that.

If the accommodation is unfurnished, then you will be expected to bring your own items.

If you cannot take all your possession and are unable to make alternative arrangements, we suggest that you book storage. We can at times assist you to book storage, but the costs will be recharged.

The Temporary Accommodation Allocation Officer can advise you at offer stage as to what is present in the property.