Swindon Home Bid

Application Bands

The Council uses a banding scheme to prioritise applications.

All housing and transfer applications received for rented accommodation will be assessed and placed in one of 4 bands, A to D. The list below gives examples of those applicants who would be eligible to be placed in each band.

Band A

Urgent Need for accomodation

• Urgent medical priority - medical category A.
• Property in Swindon deemed by the Councils' Residential Service Team to be statutorily overcrowded and or deemed as a Serious Hazard.
• Transfer applicants releasing family accommodation and requesting a non -family unit.
• Transfer applicants releasing 4 bedrooms or larger property and requesting a 1-bedroom unit.
• Urgent approvals agreed by Housing Department Senior Officers.
• Reciprocal requests with other registered social housing landlord.
• Agreed move-on arrangements from supported housing accommodation.
• Releasing an adapted property with major adaptations and no longer require the use of them.

Band B

Applicants in need of accommodation

• All applicants occupying accommodation in the Swindon area where facilities are shared with others who are not included in their housing application.
• Tenants of Swindon Borough Council, Registered Social Landlords and Private Landlords residing in Swindon, who occupy a property where they are lacking one or more bedrooms and/ or are sharing facilities with others not included in the housing application.
• Applicants accepted as homeless by Swindon Borough Council.
• Swindon Borough Council staff who have to vacate tied accommodation
• Key workers within Swindon Borough Council criteria
• Special Approvals on discretionary successions agreed by Landlord Services.
• Property in Swindon deemed by the Councils' Residential Team as hazardous category 1.

Band C

Applicants in low need of accomodation

• This group is for all other applicants who do not fall within Bands A or B or D.
• Applicants could be moved to Band B if there is a recognised medical/ and or welfare issue relating to their current property and where there are no other alternatives available to them.

Band D

Applicants not eligible to bid at this time

• Applicants who are lone parents and under 18 years of age
• Applicants requiring support in order to maintain a tenancy
• Applicants who are owner-occupiers under 60 years of age
• Applicants in residential care or other institutions
• Applicants in Swindon Foyer
• Applicants currently in prison or serious offenders
• Applicants in Swindon Borough Council tied accommodation and still in employment
• Applicants currently in a service/ other tied tenancy
• Applicants in Her Majesty's Forces and not currently being discharged

This is only a brief to give the bands.  Full explanation of each band is available in Swindon Borough Council allocation policy document February 2007