Tenancy Services

What services does the Tenancy Services Section provide?

The section covers the following service areas:

• Tenancy Management
• Estate Management
• Sheltered Housing
• Leasehold Properties

What does Tenancy Management cover?

• Setting up new tenancies and termination of existing tenancies (including garage tenancies). This includes change of tenancy, making Joint Tenancy Applications, dissolving a joint tenancy and succession of tenancy.

• The Enforcement of Tenancy Conditions - including dealing with Anti-Social Behaviour carried out by our tenants, their families or their visitors.

• Rent Payment Enquiries including giving advice and taking payments over the phone.

• Tenant Participation - the Council runs two tenant forums to allow tenants to present their views about where they are living.
   
• Supported Tenancies - providing housing to support elderly people and sub-letting properties to organisations who provide support to people in need of help with independent living.

• Managing the different tenancy types.

• Managing the Mutual Exchange Registers. The Mutual Exchange Register is a list of people wishing to exchange properties within the Fareham Borough, these may be Council Properties or Housing Association properties.
   
• Providing information and advice on The Right to Buy your Council property and administering the scheme.

• Assistance with Garden Maintenance  - A scheme run by the Council to help elderly and disabled tenants manage their gardens.

• Assistance with Internal Decorations - A scheme run by the Council to help elderly and disabled tenants with decorating their properties.

What does Estate Management cover?

• Abandoned Vehicles - Advice on how to report vehicles abandoned on Housing land.

• Block Cleaning - General cleaning and window cleaning carried out to Council owned flats and maisonettes.

• Grounds Maintenance - Maintaining housing land including grass cutting and litter clearance.

• Estate Improvements - Improving housing estates to ensure they are safe places to live.

• Block Captain Regime - This scheme is run to gain feedback on the works carried out by the Council on the estates and allows the Council to deal with any issues which arise.

• Refuse Disposal - Dealing with items dumped on Housing land or within blocks.

 What is Sheltered Housing?

If you are of retirement age and have support needs, you may already have thought about sheltered accommodation. The name Sheltered Housing is given to a range of unfurnished accommodation especially suitable for persons aged over 60 years with a support need. It aims to provide comfortable, independent living conditions with the security of knowing that someone is always available should assistance be needed in a emergency.

The Council has over 650 units of sheltered accommodation located throughout the Borough. These are divided into the following categories depending on levels of service and your suuport needs:

Mobile Sheltered Housing Officer Service (Weekly visit made)
Sheltered Housing Officer visit/support 5 days a week
Sheltered Housing Officer visit 7 days a week
Sheltered Housing Officer visit 7 days a week - Enhanced Care & Support
Communal facilities are available at some of the schemes.

All units of accommodation have alarm systems fitted, which are linked through to a central control.

Calls for assistance are covered 24 hours a day, every day throughout the year.

For further information contact:

Sheltered Housing Team Leader on 01489 557511
or alternatively the Mobile Sheltered Housing Office on 01329 282318
You may find the information provided by Age UK useful www.ageuk.org.uk (this is an external hyperlink)

 What are Leasehold Properties?

Leasehold properties are flats or maisonettes which former Council Tenants have purchased under the Right to Buy scheme. Leaseholders own their property and are responsible for maintaining it.

They have certain rights and responsibilities and also have to contribute towards the cost of maintaining communal area and the exterior of the building as part of a Service Charge.

There are currently over 400 leasehold properties in the Borough.

 

Who should you contact?

The Tenancy Services Manager oversees the work of the division and can be contacted at Fareham Borough Council on Tel: 01329 236100.

Enquires relating to Tenancy, Estate or Rent matters should be directed to an Area Housing Estates Officer, who can be contacted on 01329 236100 or e-mail housing@fareham.gov.uk.

You can also call into the Civic Offices and ask to see the duty officer.

If you wish to see a particular officer we may ask that you book an appointment either by telephoning one of the above numbers or by calling in person to the reception on the ground floor of the Civic Offices.

From April 2010 the Tenant Services Authority (TSA) (this is an external hyperlink) became the new regulatory body for all housing organisations including Local Authority Housing.

Our policy is to try and be as helpful as possible in providing council services. If you have a comment, compliment or complaint or if you are dissatisfied with the way in which you have been treated, please talk to a member of our staff.