Tenancy fraud campaign offers

£500 reward

If you provide information about someone who is illegally subletting a property, and the Council gets back control of the property, you can receive up to £500 reward. You can report details on line. 

Repair reports go online

From Tuesday 1 December if you have a non-urgent repair, we’re asking you to report it online.

This means you can report a repair at any time of day or night and any day of the week, free of charge, through the internet.

If you don’t have your own computer or iPad you can use the ones in your local library, at the Housing Office in Chippenham Road, Harold Hill or at the Public Advice and Service Centre (PASC) in Romford.

When you are registered with See My Data it’s easy to report any repair you may need.

By noon on the next working day you’ll receive a text message telling you when the repair will be done – always within 28 days.

You will also receive a text the day before the appointment reminding you when the repair will be done and a third text on the day when the repairman is on his way.

Reporting non-urgent repairs on-line is more convenient for you and helps save the Council money – a winner all round.

Is it up to me?

Tenants and leaseholders are responsible for many basic repairs to their properties so before logging a report please check if it is up to you to do the repair or whether the Council is responsible. Find out full details of your responsibilities here.

Do it in a day means our contractor, Breyer Group, will be carrying out all the repairs at a specific location on the same day.

Tenants should still report repairs in the normal way, so Breyer Group knows how many staff, and what equipment, may be needed to do the repairs.

But if you see the contractor is working in your street and you have a non-urgent repair you can report it directly to them and they will try to get it fixed for you on that day.

Breyer Group will be in the following areas on these Wednesdays:

13 January: Morecambe House, Minefield House, Macclesfield House, Lynmouth, House, Luton House, Thrapston House, Haslingdon House, Halifax House, Glossop House, Epsom House, Gillingham House, Camelford House, Wilmslow House, Wolverton House, Newmarket House, Portmadoc House, Northampton House, Nelson House.

20 January: ​St Helens Court.

27 January: ​Napier House, New Plymouth House, Dunedin Road, Gisborne Gardens, Queenstown Gardens, New Zealand Way, Christchurch Avenue, Auckland Avenue.

Get details of the scheme here.

Damp and mould

Winter months often bring patches of damp and mould on walls and ceilings. The cause is often condensation. Get some tips on how to tackle damp and mould problems here. 

Is your child living with somebody else?

Thousands of children across the UK are living with someone who isn’t a close relative.  If this lasts for more than 28 days it is considered a private fostering arrangement.  This agreement is between a parent and a carer and Havering Council needs to know immediately.  The council can offer support, guidance and advice where needed.

If you have somebody else’s child living with you for longer than 28 days, please inform the Council if you are not an aunt, uncle, brother, sister, grandparent or step-parent.

Please email for more information.

Council Tax

Using Direct Debit means you don’t have to remember when your Council Tax or rent is due as the payment is made automatically, and for the right amount, every month.

You can choose whether the Council Tax payment is made on the 1st or the 15th of each month to suit your financial situation and it’s easy to set up too.

All you need are your bank account details and your Council Tax or rent reference number. Then contact us and we’ll do the rest.

More information on paying Council Tax here.

and Council rents

You can choose whether the rent payment is made on the  1st, 7th, 14th or 21st of each month

More information on paying rent here.

Help at hand

Family Mosaic provides a free support service to Havering residents aged 16 years and over, to help individuals develop and improve their ability to live independently in their own home or help them to explore their housing options if they are homeless. More information is available here.

Got a question?

If you have a question about any aspect of housing, there is now just one form to complete, which will then reach the right people to answer your question.

Just complete the online form here.

Like us on Facebook

Facebook is an ideal way to keep in touch with family and friends, and now it can be used to keep informed about what’s happening with Havering Council housing services.

If you ‘like’ us you will then get alerts when we add news to our page, including details of job opportunities, training courses, events and useful information. Like us on Facebook here.

The newly refurbished Hacton Lane Hall, in Hornchurch, is now available for hire and is an ideal venue for club and society meetings or family celebrations. Full details are available here.

Keep safe at Christmas

At this time of year we ask you to be more vigilant to avoid being a victim of crime. We have listed some useful seasonal tips to combat burglary.

Community Wardens carry many simple crime prevention devices so please stop and ask a warden for advice.  

Don’t Be Dim

Now that the nights are drawing in, the Community Wardens are currently patrolling on your estates to identify those flats and houses that are in darkness between 4pm and 9pm as that suggests to burglars that no one is at home.

We will deliver a letter asking you to call us so we can give you, and fit, a FREE light timer switch to your property to help make your home safer.

Recycle for London Campaign

Havering’s Recycling Team is very keen to reduce the amount of waste that currently gets thrown away when it could be either reused or recycled.  We are working closely with Keep Britain Tidy on the launch of a new campaign to get residents to think about what household items they could recycle that they don’t already.

During December Keep Britain Tidy staff will be visiting the flats listed below to find out what sort of items are already recycled and to give out information on what other household items can be recycled: 

• Napier and New Plymouth
• Waterloo
• Hillrise and Highfield
• Malan and Bader
• Rush Green Gardens
• Petersfield and Leamington

Please look out for the information leaflets that will be coming through your letterbox and help us to make Havering a greener, cleaner place to live.

Communal Composting

Ever thought about how much kitchen and other household waste could be kept out of your black sack by composting? This is another way of reducing the amount of waste that goes into your black sack.  Fruit and vegetable peelings, egg shells, teabags, toilet and kitchen roll tubes and cardboard can all be composted. Havering’s Recycling Team is hoping to work with residents at Hillrise and Highfield flats to start up a communal composting pilot. If there are any keen recyclers or gardeners out there who would like information on how this could be done in other areas then please get in touch with your community engagement officer.

Community Table Tennis Club

Want to get out of the house, meet new people and have fun? Come and play table tennis!  All levels welcome, equipment provided.  Thursdays, 1pm-3pm, myplace, Dagnam Park Drive, Harold Hill, RM3 9EN, £3.  For more information email Colin Sherrin.

Dog days

The Dogs Trust will be providing free advice and micro-chipping for dogs on:

Thursday 7 January, 11am to 3pm at White Hart Lane, Romford, RM7 8JU.

There’s a lot happening at your local library which offers much more than just books.

There are events and local clubs meeting there, exhibitions and computers you can use. We’ve launched a new email update to let you know what’s taking place in your local library so don’t miss out, sign up to receive Library News by email today.

Book in to be a volunteer

Volunteers are needed to collect and return library books for housebound residents. If you go to your local library and would be willing to help a neighbour please let us know by completing the online form.

Havering Council’s Housing Service runs three Job Clubs:

Every Monday, 9am until 12noon

Mardyke Community Centre, South Street, Rainham, RM13 8PJ. 

Every Wednesday, 10am until 1pm

Betty Strathern Centre, 41 Myrtle Road, Harold Hill, RM3 8XS

Every Thursday, 9.30am until 12.30pm

Highfield Towers Community Hall, Hillrise Road, Collier Row, RM5 3DQ

Every Friday, 10am until 1pm

Havering Citizens Advice, 9 Victoria Road, Romford, RM1 2JT

All job clubs are open to any Havering resident wanting help to find work.

For more information complete the request form here.

Jobs match service

Jobscentre Plus offers a universal jobs match service which allows you to look for vacancies online. More information available here.

You can apply to move house, for energy efficiency advice, to rent a garage and much more.

Check out the full list here.

You can also pay your housing or garage rent and Council Tax by Direct Debit by completing and returning the online form. You can pay online using credit or debit cards.

The Report It service is available to let the Council know about community and neighbourhood issues; housing issues; recycling and waste collection concerns and a lot more.

Council tenants and leaseholders can get secure access to all their housing information online through SeeMyData.​​​