Changes to council housing allocation have been proposed to tackle homelessness.

Brighton and Hove City Council is reviewing options such as allowing households at risk of being made homeless to join the housing register sooner, simplifying the housing register queuing system and keeping people on the register even if they have temporary accommodation.

It is hoped that alterations to the current Housing Allocations Policy, which was approved in 2016, will help to prevent homelessness, reduce reliance on temporary accommodation and give those fleeing domestic abuse more options.

They could also create “greater transparency for applicants and more choice for households that meet the legal definition of overcrowded”.

The council reported that there are currently 4,843 applications on the housing register and that in the last 12 months, 2,200 households applied to join.

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Meanwhile, only 600 social rented homes are allocated each year.

Councillor Gill Williams, cabinet member for Housing and New Homes, said: “There is no denying that Brighton & Hove has been significantly impacted by the national housing crisis.

“We’re seeing record numbers of residents presenting as either homeless or threatened with homelessness, which is putting substantial pressure on our services.

“We’re working on building more council homes to meet this demand, but in the meantime we must ensure we’re making the best use of council and housing association homes in the city.

“Social housing is an incredibly valuable resource, and it’s crucial that we ensure those who are in the greatest need are awarded the highest priority on the housing register.

“We need a robust system to manage this process, and changing our housing allocations policy could provide us with a fairer framework that means available council homes go to the people who need them most.”

The changes will be discussed at a cabinet meeting on Thursday, October 17.

The council ran a public consultation on the changes between March 1 and June 8 which generated 684 responses, which it says will “shape the final recommended changes to the housing allocation policy”.