Senior citizens get social housing priority in rule change

Armed forces veterans and their families will get priority access to social housing under new rules published by the government.

Councils will have to prioritize veterans for social housing and relax rules requiring applicants to show ties to the local area for families of veterans under new guidelines.

The announcement is in line with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s promise to support veterans as well as care leavers and survivors of domestic abuse. “Guaranteeing a roof over their heads” in his Labor Party conference speech.

But housing charity Shelter said the rule change would have no impact until the government addressed the chronic shortage of social housing in the UK.

In his speech at Labour’s annual party conference in September, Sir Keir said the issue of homelessness among veterans was an “injustice hidden in plain sight”.

He said: “We will repay those who served us and all veterans who need housing. There will be homes for heroes.”

In November, the government announced it would spend £3.5 million to support homeless veterans, mental health care, job support and independent living by 2026.

The government does not publish figures on how many veterans are currently on the waiting list for social housing, but in the first three months of 2024, official figures show 650 elderly families in England Eligible for social housing to avoid homelessness.

Guidelines published on Wednesday Ask councils to set aside housing units and give extra priority to veterans.

Any financial compensation received for injuries received during armed service will now be disregarded when means-tested social housing is required.

The guidelines state for the first time that people with service-related mental health conditions in the military, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), should get priority access to social housing.

Councils will also be expected to exempt separated spouses and partners of service members from local connection rules, particularly in cases of significant disruption caused by domestic abuse or repeated relocation due to military posting.

Previously veterans and their families had only a five-year exemption from the local connection test.

Under the new system, councils must also improve the way they identify veterans among housing applicants.

The move is part of a manifesto pledge to fully bring the Armed Forces Contract – a promise to treat those who serve with fairness and dignity – into law.

Shelter chief executive Polly Neate welcomed the changes, but said the government would need to build 90,000 social rented homes a year for 10 years to give veterans affordable housing.

“It is absolutely right that veterans and all people experiencing homelessness are given priority access to safe, truly affordable housing,” Ms Neate said.

“Finding around the rules for who qualifies for homes will not address the fact that there is fundamentally not enough social housing available.

“Decades of failure to build enough homes for social rental have left us facing a massive housing shortage, with more than 1.3 million families forced to languish on waiting lists for years.”