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Getting Support to Help You Manage Your Tenancy
Help and assistance is available for people who might find it difficult to live independently or manage their tenancy. Some people may only need support for a short period of time. Others may need additional assistance to help them to remain in their own home.
Housing support is any service that provides support, advice or counselling to an individual with particular needs to enable them to continue to stay in their home. Housing support services are provided via ‘Supporting People’. The services someone gets is based on an identified, planned programme of support tailored to their needs. The services are aimed at:
- Developing an individual’s capacity to live independently in the community or sustaining their ability to do so
- Expanding tenure choices, for example for an individual who might remain in or be admitted to institutional care, or become homeless or suffer tenancy breakdown, if support were not provided
There are 21 prescribed activities that are eligible for Supporting People funding. The key principle behind these is assisting or empowering the service user to complete the day to day tasks which need to be done to live independently.
There are several ways to access housing support:
- If you are a tenant contact your landlord for details of how to get help tenancy
- If you own your home or are a private renter, contact Social Work Services to request assistance
- There are several support services aimed at helping people who are at risk of becoming homeless. If you are homeless or think you might become homeless, contact your local Council housing service to find out what help may be available.
You will be asked some questions to find out what is the most appropriate type of assistance for you. It may be that you need help with filling in forms or you might need help learning new skills that will let you manage your home by yourself.
We will try to get you the support that you need, but some types of support service may not be available in all parts of the Highlands. We can always offer advice and try to help you access support.
What is Supporting People?
Supporting People is the budget that funds housing support services for vulnerable people, including community care client groups. The funding comes from the Scottish Executive and is administered by the Highland Council. Organisations have contracts with the Council to provide services. As vacancies arise within these services they can be allocated based on an assessment of need. The local Supporting People Officer will be able to give advice on current vacancies. Contact them at your local Council Housing Office.
Services are subject to quality monitoring, through registration and inspection by the Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care. Local authorities also implement service reviews in accordance with the Scottish Executive guidelines.
Supporting People basically assists anyone, over 16, who is assessed by an appropriate agency or professional as requiring housing support services. Their needs must be clearly evidenced via an assessment that identifies a need for support in order to maintain independent living.
Paying for housing support services
Anyone who is receiving “long term” services may be required to pay for these. If a service aims to maintain a limited degree of independent living which is not expected to increase, and may diminish over time, as part of a permanent or open-ended arrangement it should be regarded as a long term service.
A financial assessment will be offered to each service user to determine their ability to pay. This will be based on the Highland Council’s Social Work Services Charging Policy. A leaflet explaining this policy is available to you on request.
If you have a low income or are on benefit or the help is for a short period of time it is unlikely that you will be charged.
Further information can also be obtained by contacting the local Supporting People Officer Contact them at your local Council Housing Office.
Supporting People enters into a contract with your housing support provider for the provision of housing support services. The local authority then pays the provider for the housing support services and collects any charges from you directly. This helps to make sure that, if you are financially assessed to pay less than the full charge made by the provider, the Council meets the full costs. You continue to pay rent and any housing management charges to your landlord.
People who get housing support services are entitled to ask for Supporting People funding to be paid directly to them instead of the support provider. This is known as a direct payment and if you wish to know more about this option you should contact Claire Sutherland, Direct Payments Support Officer on 01463 703425.
Where can I get more information?
More information about Supporting People is available on the Scottish Executive website (see External Links), on the Council’s web site and from the local Supporting People Officer who can be contacted via Council Housing Offices - Appendix A