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New housing allocation policy

From 1 April 2022 Wokingham Borough Council has a new Housing Allocation Policy. Our new policy ensures that we prioritise applicants so that available housing is let to those most in need and ensures that we make best use of the housing stock available. Our new policy will also ensure that we reduce homelessness, rough sleeping, and overcrowding, support sustainable communities, support regeneration decants, support move-on and assist independence.

For more details read the Wokingham Borough Council Housing Allocations Policy (PDF document).

For more details about the Housing Allocation Banding system, please visit the Banding System page.

At this moment in time we are currently allocating from Band 2 in date order and we are not prioritising any single group of applicants. This will be subject to review should demands and needs change.

Who can join the Housing Needs Register?

In order to join the Council’s Housing Register an applicant must have a local connection with Wokingham Borough. This means that they must have been resident in the borough for five consecutive years or more, immediately prior to the date of application and that they are still resident in the borough at the point they receive an offer of accommodation.

We measure five years up to the date of the application. Qualification can be that the applicant meets the five-year residency rule or a member of their household does. Evidence will be required to show that the local connection test has been met.

Please note that, following changes in legislation, the following applicants are now exempt from the local connection test on our Allocations Policy:

1. Applicants who are or have been a victim of domestic abuse carried out by another person, who need to move for reasons connected with that abuse, including from accommodation initially occupied on a temporary basis, as per the Allocation of Housing (Qualification Criteria for Victims of Domestic Abuse and Care Leavers) (England) Regulations 2025.
2. Applicants who are an eligible child, a relevant child or a former relevant child as per the Allocation of Housing (Qualification Criteria for Victims of Domestic Abuse and Care Leavers) (England) Regulations 2025. Eligible child has the meaning given by paragraph 19B of Schedule 2 the Children Act 1986. An eligible child is a 16- or 17-year-old who has been looked after by a local authority for a prescribed period, or periods amounting to a prescribed period, which began after the child reached a prescribed age and ended after the child reached the age of 16. Relevant child has the meaning given by Section 23(A) of the Children Act 1989. A relevant child is a 16- or 17-year-old who was an ‘eligible child’ in local authority care who is not currently being looked after by the authority but is still receiving support from the authority that last looked after them. Former relevant child means a person aged under 25 who falls within the meaning given by section 23C (1) of the Children Act 1989. A former relevant child is a young person aged 18 to 25 who was in the care of a local authority (either an eligible child or a relevant child) on or after 16th birthday.
3. Applicants who satisfy the Allocation of Housing (Qualification Criteria for Armed Forces) (England) Regulations 2012. These are:
   • Serving members of the regular forces.
   • Former members of the regular forces
   • Serving or former members of the regular forces or reserve forces who suffer from a serious injury, illness or disability sustained as a result of their service.
   • Bereaved spouse/civil partner of a former member of the regular forces and have ceased (or will cease within 28 days) to be entitled to reside in services accommodation following the death of their spouse/civil partner

Our Allocations Policy is being updated to reflect these changes. Please contact Allocations@Wokingham.gov.uk if you have any questions about local connection or exemptions to this.

For more details about exceptions to the local connection test read the Wokingham Borough Council Housing Allocations Policy (PDF document).

Register for housing online

You can join our housing register and update your details online using the Housing Online website.

Housing online performs best with the following mobile devices: Android, iPhone 8 and above, and iPad IOS 12 and above.

Apply for housing online

Medical Priority 

An applicant can apply for re-housing on medical grounds by completing an additional medical application and providing supporting documentation. A decision will normally be made as to whether to award medical priority based upon the information provided but in some cases an opinion will be obtained from an Independent Medical Advisor or occupational Therapist. 

To request a medical priority application form, please contact hnmedicals@wokingham.gov.uk 

For further guidance on how the Council will assess medical priority read the Wokingham Borough Council Housing Allocations Policy (PDF document).

Social Priority

An applicant can apply for Social Priority if their household is experiencing hardship due to social factors. There are two levels of priority:

Social Priority A: is reserved for exceptional cases where the applicant needs to move due to severe harassment, severe violence or severe disrepair which is of a life-threatening nature. 

If Social A is awarded, the applicant will be placed in Band One.

Social Priority B: is awarded where the applicant needs to move urgently for other social reasons, for instance:

• The applicant or a member of their household is subject to persistent harassment which is of a serious but not life-threatening nature
• In order to give or receive care or support.
• Child protection reasons

If Social Priority B is awarded, the applicant is placed in Band Three (unless their general housing need places them already in a higher band).

Social Priority requests should be made in writing to housing.needs@wokingham.gov.uk For further guidance on how the Council will assess and award social priority read the Wokingham Borough Council Housing Allocations Policy (PDF document).