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Welcome to the latest edition of Nouse News, the newsletter of the Nottingham Strategic Housing Network facilitated by Nottingham City Council's Housing Strategy Team.
We value your feedback - please email your constructive comments and suggestions to housing.network@nottinghamcity.gov.uk
 If you are a private landlord with a good standard 2 or 3 bed property in or around the Nottingham city area, the Nottingham Private Rented Assistance Scheme can offer you a tailor-made support package that could include:
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Financial Support
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Tenancy Facilitation
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Landlord Support
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Bond to cover damages & rent arrears
Direct rental payments
Rent in advance
Lifetime bond
Support with Selective Licensing
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Tenant finding service
Tenant checks
Sample tenancy agreement
Benefit/Universal Credit application support
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Tenancy support
Dedicated landlord line
Housing advice
Website with various guides
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NPRAS have been providing high quality support with landlords for over 10 years and are fully experienced in all housing relating matters. The team also have Housing Health and Safety Rating System training and are able to offer free advice to landlords.
Interested? Email:bond.scheme@nottinghamcity.gov.uk Phone: 0115- 876-1644
Nottingham City Homes Registered Provider Limited (NCHRP), in conjunction with Nottingham City Council, is launching a Private Sector Leasing Scheme. They are interested in leasing family-type accommodation in the City from private landlords for a period of 1 to 5 years. In return landlords will receive a guaranteed rental income monthly in advance. Landlords will also receive up to £500 worth of responsive repairs and gas servicing per year free and have a guarantee that the property will be returned in the same condition at the end of the lease. It really is a no management, no hassle and no risk solution for landlords.
Properties must meet local property licensing requirements to be accepted onto the scheme. Interested landlords should make informal enquiries to Mark Lawson at Nottingham City Homes e: mark.lawson@nottinghamcityhomes.org.uk
Following consultation over summer a new scheme of additional licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) was approved by the Council. The 5-year scheme will be implemented in January 2019 and will continue the progress of the Council’s current additional licensing scheme which ends in 2018. The majority of those consulted expressed their support, with 65% saying they were in favour of the scheme.
The new scheme completes a suite of licensing schemes resulting in approx. 90% of the city’s PRS housing being covered by some form of license in the next five years, helped by recent changes to mandatory HMO licensing which has brought around 300 additional PRS homes under licensing.
The government is also looking to reform the law relating to Assured Short-hold Tenancies, recently consulting on a number of elements including the suggestion that AST leases be increased to 3 years, with a six month break clause. Further news on this will be published on the Nottingham Nouse Twitter page when it becomes available.
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 The biggest reform to the welfare system will be implemented in Nottingham as Universal Credit (UC) full service goes live from 17th October. Replacing 6 key benefits it is paid directly to households (including any support for paying rent) in one monthly sum, paid in arrears. Applications and management of claims must be made online.
The changes will impact a large number of Nottingham’s citizens in terms of budgeting, claim management and personal responsibility. While each applicant will be assigned a named work coach to support them, it’s important organisations and landlords understand the new system to further support households and proactively tackle any issues.
A wealth of information and guidance is available including:
DWP guides for claimants, stakeholders, employers & landlords
Step by step claim guide DWP Youtube video
Citizen’s Advice checklist of everything a claimant needs before they apply
Digital Universal Credit: Get the Facts Nottingham City Homes advice booklet
UC will initially apply to all new claimants of one or more of the 6 benefits it replaces as well as current claimants whose circumstances change.
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 The Nottingham Winter Shelter has again opened its doors to provide emergency shelter for rough sleepers as temperatures fall. This season the shelter will operate for an extended 26 weeks, rotating venues around the city:
8th Oct – 11th Nov St Saviours Church, The Meadows
12th Nov – 9th Dec The Arches, Lenton
10th Dec – 6th Jan Thomas Helwys Baptist Church, Lenton
7th Jan to 3rd Feb Friends Meeting House, Clarendon Street
4th Feb – 10th March Mansfield Road Baptist Church
11th March - 8th April St Christophers Church, Sneinton
Referrals for individuals with low to medium support needs should be made to Emmanuel House (Mon-Fri 1030-1530) or the Street Outreach Team outside of these times. The shelter is facilitated by local homelessness charity Emmanuel House and is part of a raft of cold weather support measures for rough sleepers being implemented in the city.
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 Framework’s Big Sleep Out is back, hosted this year by Nottingham Forest Football and sponsored by Nottingham Building Society. Participants will spend the night sleeping under the stars at the club’s City Ground to get a small insight into what rough sleepers have to endure, while pledging to raise a minimum of £50 for local homelessness charity Framework. Activities & entertainment plus prizes for the most spectacular cardboard shelters are on offer.
The Big Sleep Out will take place overnight on 24th/25th November. For further information and to book a place click here.
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Nobody should ever become a victim of slavery or trafficking but when it happens it’s important to get victims the local support they need to recover. Greater Nottingham Modern Slavery Forum are raising awareness of victim support services for survivors of modern slavery and trafficking in Nottingham. All local victim support services have been mapped and will be presenting their services, criteria, referral pathway & challenges to staff from local statutory & voluntary organisations, agencies, community groups and others at a special workshop on the subject on 16th October.
The event is fully booked but cancellation places may be available – contact Minerva.hartley@nottinghamcity.gov.uk
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 Citizens can access information on energy saving schemes and advice that could help them save money on energy bills and alleviate fuel poverty this winter in a new handy leaflet.
Information and signposting on managing fuel debt, home insulation, energy provider switching and free energy saving products are all covered in the joint guide from Nottingham City Council, Nottingham City Homes, Nottingham Energy Partnership, Advice Nottingham and Age UK.
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 Nottingham City Council and its partners have developed a new Fuel Poverty strategy, launched in September. The 7-year strategy's aims include reducing energy bills, improving energy efficiency and maximising households' income to increase the comfort and well-being in the coldest and vulnerable homes.
The contents of the strategy were finalised following consultation feedback from citizens and stakeholders including Nottingham City Homes, Nottingham Energy Partnership, Advice Nottingham and Age Concern.
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 Longhurst Group is one of our HomeLink partners and were recently named as one of the UK’s Top ten landlords in the country by a prominent national housing magazine.
The Group, which owns and manages over 22,500 homes across the Midlands & East of England, received the recognition from 24housing as part of its Top 50 Landlords feature.
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Nottingham City Homes hosted its 5th annual Fun Day at the Bulwell Academy last month with more than 1,600 residents taking advantage of the many free activities on offer including face painting, crazy golf and live music. Residents also had the opportunity to speak informally with NCH staff about issues including repairs, housing options and employment & training opportunities. |
 Metropolitan partnered with Nottingham City Homes to celebrate the completion of new housing on the old Morley School site at the Love NG3 event in August. 130 people attended to enjoy food, music, games and activities and take the opportunity to meet Metropolitan & NCH staff.
The development of the site is part of the Building a Better Nottingham programme and comprises 33 houses and 6 bungalows. The scheme is the first social housing site in the UK to be awarded the Considerate Constructors Ultrasite status.
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A new tough strategy for tackling knife crime in the city and county has been unveiled. The Knife Crime Strategy 2018 will see partners working together with the voluntary sector to tackle every aspect of knife violence with a strong emphasis on education, early intervention and youth engagement.
Nottingham City Council may seek to evict tenants of Nottingham City Homes properties where household members are found carrying knifes and hopes that the risk of losing their council rented homes will act as a serious deterrent to NCH tenants.
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 According to the UK House Price Index, the average price of a home in Nottingham was £137,835 in July 2018. While this is a positive annual increase of 2.9%, compare this to July 2017 when growth was high at 7.9%.
In terms of property type July’s figures indicate the larger the property type the higher the rate of growth – prices for 1 bed homes grew just 0.5% compared to 4.1% for a detached property.
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 The median PRS rent levels for Nottingham in September are virtually unchanged on those recorded in June, according to Hometrack. However year-on-year median rents for 2 bed properties rose 3.7% and by 3.3% for 3 beds. Rents for 1 bed properties actually fell by £1pw, or 0.9%, highlighting demand for family accommodation in the sector.
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 Your round-up of notable events, consultations and policy changes for the coming weeks:
October
15-19 Tea and Tablets drop-in sessions digital inclusion themed sessions with an emphasis on hand-held devices
16 Victim Support for Survivors of Modern Slavery & Trafficking Greater Nottingham Modern Slavery Forum
18 STP Integrated Mental Health Strategy for the VCSE Nottingham CVS
18 Basic Law for Lettings EMPO Landlords
19 Nottingham Strategic Volunteering Conference NCVS
25 Nottingham City Signposting training event
November
05 East Midlands Property Expo
06 Intermediate Law for Lettings EMPO Landlords
07 Basic Law for Lettings EMPO Landlords
15 Multiple Needs and Mental Health: Meeting the Challenge Opportunity Nottingham annual event
24 Big Sleep Out Framework fundraiser
20 Tenant Fee Ban & Agent’s Housing Law update EMPO Landlords
23 Community Led Housing Roadshow East Midlands Community-Led Housing
29 Principles of HMO EMPO Landlords
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