Social housing waiting list overcrowding
Dear Lewisham Borough Council,
Please can you provide the following infromation about the councils housing waiting list
Q1) For 1st January 2019 to 31st December 2019, please confirm:
Q1a) How many households who had Band 3 priority for overcrowding successfully obtained social housing through choice based lettings?
Q1b) How many households who had Band 2 priority for overcrowding successfully obtained social housing through choice based lettings?
Q2) For 1st November 2021 to 31st October 2022, please confirm:
Q2a) How many households who had Band 3 priority for overcrowding successfully obtained social housing through choice based lettings?
Q2b) How many households who had Band 2 priority for overcrowding successfully obtained social housing through choice based lettings?
Yours faithfully,
Jo Staines
Dear Jo Staines,
Re: Freedom of Information Act 2000
Environmental Information Regulations 2004
Reference No: 16058949
Thank you for your recent request.
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Kind regards
Customer Resolutions Administrator
FOI/EIR Team
Corporate Complaints and Casework
Corporate Resources Directorate
Lewisham Council
Information request
Our reference: 16058949
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Dear Jo Staines
Thank you for your request for information received on 11 November 2022.
Please find attached our response to your request.
Yours faithfully
Senior Customer Resolutions Officer
FOI/EIR Team
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Dear Lewisham Borough Council,
Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.
I am writing to request an internal review of Lewisham Borough Council's handling of my FOI request 'Social housing waiting list overcrowding'.
I question the data provided. One of the reasons is that the answer to Q2b states that no households were given Band 2 for overcrowding in the year to 31st Oct 2022. However, this is clearly incorrect. The housing allocation scheme awarded Band 2 for overcrowding during this period, and there was no change in the allocation scheme between 2017 and 31st October 2022 in any event.
Therefore the council still needs to provide the answer to Q2b.
Furthermore, the numbers in answer to Q1a and Q1b appear too high. This is because during 2019 the council was restricting each property on choice based lettings to a specific group (eg. homeless, medical need etc.). And the below FOI showed that very few of the properties were reserved for overcrowded households. Therefore, when so many of the properties were let to specific groups (not including overcorwding), it is improbable that 292 homes were let to overcrowded families that year. Here is the relevant previous FOI about the restriction of properties in 2019 to specific groups:
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/h...
A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/s...
Yours faithfully,
Jo Staines
Dear Jo Staines
Re: Freedom of Information Act 2000
Environmental Information Regulations 2004
Reference No:-15682601 -Appeal
Thank you for your email.
We acknowledge receipt of your appeal of our response to your information request, reference number 16058949 . We will now undertake a review of our original response. We will endeavour to respond to you as soon as possible and within 20 working days.
Yours sincerely
Senior Customer Resolutions Officer
FOI/EIR Team
Corporate Complaints and Casework Team
Corporate Resources Directorate
Lewisham Council
Dear Jo Staines
Re: Freedom of Information Act 2000
Environmental Information Regulations 2004
Reference No: 16058949
We have now considered your appeal of our original response to you. Your request was for information regarding 'Social housing waiting list overcrowding'. In summary, we wish to issue you with a revised response using the below information provided by our colleagues in Housing.
See revised answers below. Apologies for the confusion on this one. We've changed systems recently and previous data on lettings has not come across as expected. The introduction of the new Allocations Policy had also meant that the banding has changed recently leading to the confusion on question 2.
1a) 77
1b) 46
2a) 124
2b) 159
We hope you find this response to your review satisfactory. However, you have a further right of appeal against this decision, which you can do so in writing, stating your reasons to the regulating body, the Information Commissioner's Office.
Contact details: http://www.ico.org.uk/ or 0303 123 1113 or Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF.
Yours sincerely
Senior Customer Resolutions Officer
FOI/EIR Team
Corporate Complaints and Casework Team
Corporate Resources Directorate
Lewisham Council
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