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Social housing provides affordable homes to people on low incomes. To be eligible for social housing you must have some housing need, for example your current home is not suitable for you or a member of your household.
You can register for social housing through Kent Homechoice. Before you can start bidding for a home, you will need to complete a pre-assessment to check if you are eligible and if you qualify for social housing.
You’ll need the following information to complete this:
dates of birth of the members of your household
your income details
total amount of benefits you receive, including housing benefit or Universal Credit
If your application meets the criteria set out in our allocations policy, once your application has been verified, we will write to you to confirm your band, bedroom need and registration date. You can then start bidding on eligible properties through your Kent Homechoice account.
After completing the pre-assessment form you will have 28 days to submit all the necessary supporting information. Any incomplete applications after this time will be cancelled.
We will need to see copies of the documents listed below for every member of your household. When you apply to Kent Homechoice you will be given information about how to upload this information.
Documents you will need
photo identification, such as a valid passport or photo driving licence, for each named applicant
You will need to provide two from the following list:
recent utility bill, for example gas, electric, water
council tax bill
bank statement from the last month
tenancy agreement
rent card/book
entry on electoral register
driving licence
salary/wage slips for the past three months or if you are self-employed a copy of your most recent self-assessment tax return, and
proof of any income-related benefits received, for example, Universal Credit, and
statements from all bank and savings accounts for the past three months.
proof of receipt of child benefit or child tax credits.
current mortgage statement and recent valuation of the property
confirmation of the amount received from the sale or transfer of the property.
If you are an EEA national who lived in the UK before 31 December 2020, you need to provide:
a valid passport for each household member, and
Proof of Settled or Pre-Settled Status from the EU Settlement Scheme.
If you have Pre-Settled Status, are a Frontier Worker, or have applied to the EU Settlement Scheme but are waiting for a decision, you must also show evidence that you have the right to live in the UK. This includes proof that you are economically active, such as:
recent payslips
employment contract
P60 or P45
self-employed accounts
valid passport for each household member
Home Office documentation showing your immigration status in the UK and that of all household members. Such documentation includes:
biometric residence card or permit
UK Visas and Immigration account ‘share code’
To prove and share your immigration status, please use the online facilities on the government’s webpage:
If you do not have a fixed address, please provide either:
a contact address along with a letter from the person at that address confirming their consent to receive correspondence on your behalf
an email address
details of where you stay each night.
More on applying to the housing register
If you have children and live separately from their other parent, you should complete your application form using the address where your children normally live. Your application will be assessed based on that address.
To ensure we are seen to be treating all applicants fairly, any application from councillors, employees of the council or associated persons (for example, a relative) must be disclosed on the application form.
Such applications will be assessed in the normal way but, to ensure public confidence, any accommodation allocated to the applicant under the scheme must be approved by the Head of Housing following appropriate checks.
It is your responsibility to renew your application each year. Every applicant will be sent a renewal notification, close to the anniversary of the date of registration, which will include a request to provide information on any change in circumstances.
If the renewal is not completed within four weeks the application will be cancelled without further notice. An application can only be considered for reinstatement in exceptional circumstances and only if the request is made within six months of the cancellation date.
If you do not place any bids within a 12-month period, your application may be cancelled. This will not apply if you can show that no suitable accommodation became available during that time or if there were exceptional circumstances preventing you from bidding.
Applicants whose applications are cancelled may reapply. However, your housing circumstances will be fully reviewed before you are accepted back onto the register.
You will receive written notice if your application is cancelled for this reason.
You can ask us to review a decision made under this policy if you think it:
has not considered or is not based on all the facts
is legally wrong
is irrational or unreasonable
A representative can request a review for you.
We can only review information you originally provided. If your application was correctly assessed but you did not give the required information, you cannot request a review and you will need to make a new application. If you then qualify, your priority will start from the date we receive all the correct information. We cannot backdate applications.
You must request a review within 21 days of the decision. We will respond within eight weeks and let you know if more time is needed.
A senior officer who did not make the original decision will carry out the review. Their decision will be final and you will not be entitled to a further review of that decision.
