South Tyneside deposit help from Good Tenant scheme

The Good Tenant scheme is available to prospective tenants in South Tyneside. The local authorities will not only provide up to £500 to help cover a damage deposit, but the council also arranges the family to access other housing assistance including benefits and homeless prevention.

Any type of financial assistance is only provided to what are considered to be Good Tenants, and this assessment will be made as part of the application process for the scheme. In addition, the funds will only pay for private sector housing in which the property owner has agreed to the bond instead of a cash deposit.

The aim was to use the bond to help prevent homelessness South Tyneside. With the increasing cost of rents and lack of social housing, the demand from families for financial aid for a rental deposit is very high. Prospective tenants on both a low and moderate income are struggling. In an effort to meet this objective of decreasing homelessness, the council created this based on best practices from other charities and local authorities.

Assistance available as part of the Good Tenant scheme

Before the £500 bond is provided to pay the deposit, there are many actions that need to have occurred. They range from reference checks to the landlord and tenant agreeing to terms of the scheme. There will be written agreements that also need to be followed.

The Good Tenant scheme is available for free. There are no costs for a family to apply. All of the advice and support is also provided in confidential manner. This is meant to encourage people to seek help and not go homeless.

After someone applies for help, the South Tyneside Councils Anti-social Behaviour Unit as well as the Northumbria Police will start a reference check. This will determine the applicant’s income, whether they have a history of evictions in the past 5 years, proof of identification, or whether they are in debt arrears on council or other tax. If everything checks out, then the individual is provided with a passport.

The assessment process can take as long as 2 weeks. Some common reasons for a request to be denied in South Tyneside include a tenant is in rent arrears, they have fraud on their record, the family terminated a previous tenancy agreement illegally, or they have Anti Social Behaviour. There may be other factors as well.

The next step is the bond itself being issued. Since many landlords require more than £500 as a deposit, the renter will need to come-up with cash for the balance of the payment. The authorities can not help with this, but they can signpost the client to support such as job programmes or credit counselling for budgeting workshops.

The South Tyneside deposit scheme will only last for 12 months, or the length of the tenancy agreement, whichever is shorter. During that time frame the tenant will need to take on the deposit themselves. This means they need to save their money or somehow come up with the funds that are needed.

During this timeframe, the Good Tenant scheme will help the tenant maintain their accommodations. This covers monthly rent payments and other barriers that the family has, whether employment or family issues. The authorities also want to ensure that the terms of the bond are followed, so they want to keep the family in the home.

At the end of the tenancy agreement, all parties will inspect the home. The landlord, team from the council, and tenant will all drop in at the property. They will determine if the tenancy agreement has been breached. If there is no damage or rent arrears, then the tenant is free to move on.

However, if there is damage beyond reasonable wear and tear or if the person was in rent arrears, the landlord can make a claim against the South Tyneside council bond. If this were to occur the tenant will need to pay that additional money for repairing the flat.

The location of the Good Tenant scheme is at the main Customer Contact Centre. The post is Westoe Road, South Shields, Tyne & Wear, NE33 2RL. The customer service team can also be called at 0191 427 7000.