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Accommodation/Housing

A safe and stable home can help you build the future you want. Whether you’re preparing to move out, returning to Tameside, or just exploring your options, we’ll help you plan, settle and feel secure. Your Social Worker and Personal Adviser will help you decide where you want to live and help you build the skills and confidence you need to live independently and feel happy and settled in your new home. They can also help with advice on bills, rent, benefits or setting up direct debits.

Your Social Worker and Personal Adviser can help with:

  • Finding a home: This could be social housing, private renting, supported accommodation, staying with people you trust, or making plans for the future, such as buying your first home.
  • Advice on managing your home: This includes understanding your tenancy and avoiding falling behind with payments.
  • Staying where you are: If you want to stay with your foster carer until you’re 21, we can help you do that.
  • Getting ready to live on your own: If you are not yet living on your own but want to start preparing.
  • Finding and paying for somewhere to live if you are seeking asylum.

 

Staying Put
Tameside is committed to helping you stay in a place where you feel settled and supported. If you and your foster carers agree, you may be able to stay in your foster home after your 18th birthday, up to the age of 21. This gives you more time to build your confidence and develop the skills you need for independent living before moving into your own accommodation.

You will be asked to make a small weekly contribution towards your stay. This will be discussed with you in advance so that you understand what this means and have the opportunity to ask any questions.

If you would like more information, please speak to your Social Worker or Personal Adviser.

 

Living with Family 
If you decide to move back in with your family, your Social Worker or Personal Adviser will be there to support you through the process. The support available to you may change depending on your age when you return home, as this can affect your care leaver status. We'll talk this through with you and make sure you understand what support you're entitled to.

 

Semi-independent living 16+ 
Semi-independent accommodation can be a great way to take the next step towards living independently, while still having support when you need it. In Tameside, these homes are provided by specialist organisations and usually accommodate between two and four young people.
You'll have access to support staff 24 hours a day, who can help you build your confidence, develop practical life skills, and prepare for living on your own. They will work alongside you to help you achieve your goals and make the most of the opportunities available to you.

 

Housing priority
As a care leaver, you are given priority for social housing, which means we will work with housing organisations to help you find the right home at the right time for you. Your Personal Adviser will guide you through the process, explain how everything works, and help you understand your options along the way.

The Tameside Housing Advice Team and Jigsaw Homes Team also provide some extra support for care leavers making the move to their own home. The Tameside Housing Advice Team can help you by:

  • giving you support with developing the life skills you need to manage a home
  • helping with deposit and rent in advance for private rentals if this is the right option for you
  • helping you return to supported accommodation if things don’t work out in your own place
  • finding you accommodation if you are struggling to pay your rent or facing homelessness

The Jigsaw Homes Team can help you by:

  • Offering a second chance if your first tenancy doesn’t work out, as they understand that moving into your own home can be a big change, and sometimes things don't go as planned.
  • Helping you get a place at Cavendish House, where you can live in your own home and get support to build confidence and learn the skills needed to live independently.
  • Tameside Young Persons Service (TYPS): Offering homes where you will get some support for up to two years to help you build the skills and confidence you need.

 

Accommodation financial support
There can be lots of things to consider when living independently. To support with this, we will:

  • a Setting Up Home Allowance when you are getting your first home
  • money to help you move your belongings
  • your first TV Licence
  • help with paying your deposit and rent before you move in if private rented accommodation is the best option for you
  • if you are going to university, your Personal Advisor can help you get accommodation support for up to three years (or four years in certain situations)
  • the Local Housing Allowance (LHA) is the amount of money you can claim to help with your rent. Different areas set their LHA rate at different rates depending on how expensive it is to live there. You can check the LHA rates here.
  • if you're a care leaver aged 18 to 25 and live in Greater Manchester, you may be able to get a Council Tax discount up to 100%. You can find out more about Council Tax discount here.
  • as a care leaver, you can access free replacement bins, free additional waste collections and bulky waste disposal

 

Support in an emergency
Sometimes things don't go to plan, and you may find yourself without a safe place to stay. If this happens, we'll work quickly with our Housing Team, local support services and accommodation providers to help you find somewhere suitable to stay while longer-term arrangements are made.

We will work together with our Housing Team to look at all available options, which could include staying with family or friends, supported accommodation, residential settings, or other emergency accommodation provided by partner organisations.

If you have an urgent housing problem outside normal office hours and do not have a safe place to stay, please contact us or your Personal Adviser as soon as possible.

Out of hours emergency contact number: 0161 342 2222
Your safety and wellbeing are important to us. If you are worried about where you will sleep that night, please get in touch immediately so we can support you and help you find a safe place to stay.

 

Homelessness
At Tameside, we want every care leaver to have a safe and stable place to call home. We know that moving towards independence isn't always straightforward, and that many care leavers don't have the same family support that other young people can turn to when things get difficult.
If you're worried about your housing, struggling to keep your accommodation, or have nowhere to stay, please speak to your Personal Adviser (PA). You don't have to deal with it alone. Your PA and our Housing Team will work alongside you to understand what's happening and find the best way forward.
We'll do everything we can to help you stay in your current home where it's safe and right for you. If that's not possible, we'll support you to look at other options and help you find somewhere suitable to live. Together, we'll create a housing plan that fits with your Pathway Plan and supports your goals for the future.

We'll take the time to talk through your options, answer your questions, and help you make informed decisions about your housing. Our aim is to help you feel safe, secure and settled in a home that's right for you.

Whether you're living in Tameside, studying away from home, living in another area, or planning to move back to Tameside, we'll work with the relevant services to make sure you get the support you need and that your housing needs are properly considered.

 

Supported Temporary Housing via Tameside Housing Advice (THA) including The Young Person’s Service (TYPS)
Where the Personal Advisor identifies that supported temporary housing via THA is the best option, a referral should be made to Tameside Housing Advice 6 months prior to the young person reaching 18 using the Common Referral Form. This referral should be forwarded to the following email address: Housing.options@tameside.gov.uk.

The referral will be forwarded by Tameside Housing Advice to appropriate providers of supported housing, and the Personal Advisor will be notified of who the referral has been sent to. In some cases, Leaving Care will also be asked to complete a risk assessment for a young person. A risk assessment will always need to be provided for TYPS. The supported housing provider will make arrangements to assess the young person’s suitability for their scheme and inform Tameside Housing Advice of the outcome of the referral. Tameside Housing Advice will advise the Personal Advisor by email on the outcome of this assessment who will be responsible for communicating with the young person.

Three possible outcomes are possible:

  • Young person is declined for the service; reasons will be provided and shared to facilitate working and support with the young person. Young person will have arrangements for review / appeal of such a decision.
  • Young person is accepted but there is no property available yet and the young person is placed on the waiting list.
  • Young person is accepted and offered a property.

 

Former unaccompanied asylum-seeking child
If you came to the UK as an unaccompanied asylum-seeking child, your housing arrangements may be a little different while you wait for a decision from the Home Office about your leave to remain.

During this time, the Care Leavers Team will make sure you have suitable accommodation and will continue to work with you on your pathway plan. We'll help you identify any areas where you may need extra support and make sure you know where to go for advice.

If your leave to remain is granted, you'll be able to access all of the housing options set out in this local offer.

If you have any questions or worries about where you're living, please speak to your Personal Adviser or contact our duty worker. We're here to help.

When you turn 18, you may also be offered support from a Transitions Worker, who can give you extra advice and help you develop the skills and confidence to manage your own tenancy.

 

What if there is a problem with your accommodation?
If you're having any problems with your accommodation, please get in touch with your Personal Adviser or call the Duty phone. We're here to help and will work with you to find the best solution.

Depending on the situation, we can support you to speak with your landlord, sort out any issues with your tenancy, look for alternative accommodation, or help you access emergency accommodation if needed. Your Personal Adviser or Duty Worker will work alongside you to try and resolve any difficulties you're facing.

If there is still a risk that you could become homeless, we can make a referral to the Adult Homeless Team (for care leavers aged 21 and over). They will carry out an assessment and look at what support is available to meet your needs.

If you're unhappy with the response you receive, we can help you make a complaint, or you can choose to do this yourself.

We understand that managing your own home can be a big step, and sometimes things don't go as planned. That's why the Pathway Service and our partners follow a 'second chance' approach. If your first accommodation doesn't work out, we'll support you to learn from the experience, build your confidence and skills, and help you move forward so you can try again successfully.

Remember, you're not on your own. If you're worried about your accommodation, talk to us as soon as possible so we can help.

 

Housing advice and additional support 

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