FAQ

If you are 16 and over you can apply to be on the housing list.

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You can apply for housing by requesting a Fife Housing Register application form from any of our partner offices.

If you have an email address you can also apply online. To complete an online housing application you will need to register for a secure account on Fife Direct. If you already have an account, login in using your existing details. Once you have registered and logged in you will find the option 'Online application for Housing' under the Housing section on the homepage of your account.

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Due to service disruptions caused by the COVID-19 outbreak, we are currently unable to process new housing applications or changes to existing applications within normal timescales. If you applied for housing from March 2020 there may also be a significant delay in your application being assessed.

If you are homeless, or need somewhere to stay urgently, please call 0800 028 6231 so we can discuss your housing options.

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A valid email address is needed to complete a Fife Housing Register application form online.

There are a number of free email account providers and, in most cases, a new email account can be created in a few minutes. You can search the internet for email account providers.

If you do not want to have an email address, you can still apply for housing using a paper application form.

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This depends on your circumstances. As you complete the application online you will be prompted to scan and upload documents. A reminder will be given at the end of the online application form. If you do not have a facility to scan the documents requested and to upload, please visit one of our partner offices or send a copy to Fife Housing Register Team, Fife Council, New City House, 1 Edgar Street, Dunfermline, KY12 7EP.

If you do not give us enough information or proof then there may be delays in assessing your application.

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The Fife Housing Register form asks you to provide your address history for the previous 3 years. If at any point in the last 3 years you have had no fixed address, please say “no fixed address” in the address history page along with the dates when these living circumstances applied to you.

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You can call 03451 55 00 33 and depending on what it is you need to tell us, we can either update your information or arrange for you to meet someone to go over this in more detail.

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You can return your completed paper application form and any additional information to any of our partner offices.

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The information provided by you when completing the Fife Housing Register application form will be used by the Fife Housing Register Partnership in order to process your application.

It will be shared with Fife Housing Register partners and information will be obtained from previous landlords, mortgage lenders and any other relevant contacts that you have provided in your application form to help with the assessment.

Further information on how your information is used and why can be found here. The Council’s Data Protection Officer can be contacted at dataprotection@fife.gov.uk.

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Once you have completed your application form either online or a paper form your application will be assessed. If additional information is needed for your application to be fully assessed someone will be in touch with you.

 

We aim to assess your form within 20 days if all the supporting information is provided. Once your application has been processed you will receive a letter and an application reference number. Check this carefully to make sure all the details are correct. If you need to give us more information or you feel it has not been assessed correctly, please call 03451 55 00 33 or visit one of our partner offices and we will check it for you.

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If you have forgotten any of your signing in details in FifeDirect, click on the options listed:

• Forgotten your password?
• Forgotten your username?
• Need help signing in?

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All applications are considered in the same way. Your application is awarded points and a category in line with your housing need and based on the information in your application form.

Although there is only one application form and one assessment, each landlord has their own allocation policy. Each partner’s allocation policy is available on their individual website.

 

 

Urgent Housing Needs	Points	Social and Medical Needs	Points
Statutory Homelessness	100	Illness and disability	20/40/60*
Sever Harassment	100	Retirement Housing	15/30/50*
Closure order/ Closure for re-development	100	Special Needs Accommodation	20/60*
Poor Housing Circumstances	Points
Lacking Amenities	12	Harassment	10/30
Unsafe Water Supply/ Inadequate Drainage/Rising & Penetrating Damp	12	Independent Living	60
No Central Heating	5	Social/Personal Needs	10/25/40
		Care Arrangements:
Too few rooms- Overcrowding (per room short)	25	Respite care	10
		Access to Children (when room required)	20
Severe Overcrowding (2+ overcrowding factors)	10 extra	Foster Care	20
Too many rooms - Under– Occupation in private sector Under- Occupation in Local authority or Housing association	5   25	Children’s Educational Needs	5/20
		*awarded after medical assessment
Sharing Facilities	6
		Management Needs	Points
Children’s Social Needs (garden/playspace)	10/20	Awarded by Housing Managers for best use of stock	120
Lack of Security	Points	Lack of Security	Points
Tenancy Time Limited but (no Notice to quit/Notice to leave)	5	Non Householder (single people or families living care of)
		Not sharing a bedroom	25
Notice to Quit/Notice to Leave:
Tied Accommodation	75	Sharing a bedroom with a sibling	25
Short Assured Accommodation	75	Sharing a bedroom with someone other than a sibling	25
HM Forces Discharge	75	No bedroom	25
Tenants without a Lease	25	No fixed abode	25
Owner Occupation Process of Re-possession/Advised to Sell	25	Families with children overcrowded	25 extra

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All of the Fife Housing Register partners have agreed a common assessment of need for assessing applications. This brings together the best parts of policy and practice within each of the partner organisations to make it simpler for applicants to understand and for staff to work with.

Through this, Fife Housing Register partners are committed to:

• Open and simpler access to housing for those who need to live in Fife
• The principle of equal opportunities
• Transparency and accountability in all aspects of the process
• The best use of housing to meet local needs and priorities
• Best value and making best use of resources

The Common Assessment of Need considers applicants who are:

• Homeless or at risk of becoming homeless
• Living in unfit housing
• Living in insecure housing
• Living in overcrowding conditions
• Victims of violence or harassment
• Having difficulties with their present home due to illness or disability
• Needing to move for social or employment reasons
• In homes that are too big for them
• Needing to move from other parts of the country as part of homeswapper

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You will be sent a review letter regularly to prompt you to tell us if any of your circumstances have changed and to find out if you want your Fife Housing Register application to stay on the housing list.

You must reply to the review, even if your circumstances have not changed. If you do not reply this could result in your application being closed.

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If your circumstances change you should inform us as soon as you can either by logging into your application on FifeDirect and updating the relevant information or by calling 03451 55 00 33 or visiting one of the partner organisation offices to advise. Depending on the update you provide this could generate an automatic letter confirming when we update the information you have provided or it could prompt us to contact you for further information.

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If you no longer wish to stay on the housing list you can click the “WITHDRAW” when signed into FifeDirect. Or you can ask for a withdrawal form at any of the partner offices so that you can sign to confirm that you want your application withdrawn.

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Yes, Mutual Exchange is a great option for council or housing association tenants.

Most Fife Housing Register partner landlords are now part of our Home Swap service. If you live in Fife and want to move in Fife applying for Home Swap may help you find a home that is better suited to your needs.

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We will get in contact with you. It is important that your contact details, address, telephone number and email address are always up to date so that we can get in touch with you.

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This will depend on your points and your position on the housing list and the availability of your choice of house type in the areas you have chosen.

Properties are allocated on the basis of housing need and points are awarded for a range of circumstances e.g. overcrowding, current accommodation having an impact on medical condition.

We cannot give you a time you will have to wait for an offer. Your position on the list will change as people are housed and new people apply, so this makes it difficult to let you know when you will be housed.

Keeping your application up to date with any changes to your circumstances and responding to any contact we make ensures your application is always up to date.

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If you have rent arrears from a current or previous tenancy we will suspend your application for housing. While your application is suspended you will not be made any offers of housing. To have your suspension removed you need to set up a payment plan with the landlord and have made payments for 3 months and be willing to continue to make payments. Once you have made payments for three months you can advise FHR.team@fife.gov.uk or visit/call any Customer Service Centre or any Housing Association partner office to advise. Your current or previous landlord will be contacted to confirm that this is the case. Once this is confirmed the suspension will be lifted and your application will be Live.

If you have outstanding charges for repairs this too can suspend your application and to have the suspension removed, similar to above a payment plan needs to be in place for 3 months before the application can be made Live again. The landlord will be contacted to confirm that this is the case.

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You will be asked to provide additional information to support your application. You will be advised of the information we require but depending on your circumstances it could include:

• 5 year address history
• Bank statements, proof of jobs applied for, proof of benefit, payslips
• Birth certificates, for you and household members
• Biometric residence permit
• Visa
• Home officer paperwork

We need this information to establish if you can have Fife Council added as a landlord option and if you are eligible to receive homelessness assistance, if relevant.

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If you have lived outside the UK within the last two years you will be asked to complete a Habitual Residence Test form and provide additional information and proofs. The test is used to establish if you and your household members are habitually resident in the UK and have a right to reside in the UK.

You will be asked to provide proof such as your current UK passport, Notification of benefits, tax notifications. We use this information to assess if Fife Council can be added as a landlord option and if you are eligible to receive homelessness assistance, if relevant.

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Once you have accepted an offer of housing your application status changes and all partners will no longer be able to offer you housing. You will no longer be on the Fife Housing Register housing list.

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You can complete the Housing Options Self-Assessment from this website. It takes between 5 to 15 minutes to complete and provides you with a summary of the housing options that are suitable and affordable to you.

You can also get support and advice to complete your Fife Housing Register application form by attending a Housing Option Interview. You can arrange an interview by calling 03451 55 00 33 or visiting one of the partner offices to make an appointment.

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