30th
Aug 2022
Cornwall County council has extended a pilot scheme described as helping “tenants threatened with eviction to stay in their homes” after being awarded hundreds of thousands of pounds in new funding.
The council’s scheme Tenancy Sustainment and Rescue Project helps private tenants in rental arrears at risk of being made homeless, which will give successful applicants as much as £5,000 to help them stay in their ‘homes’.
In December 2021, the council and Citizens Advice Cornwall (CAC) received a grant of £800,000 courtesy of the Covid Outbreak Management Fund and from government money put aside to combat homelessness.
Since the end of last year the scheme has ensured that over 40 households were able to stay in their homes and also provided further support to help address the problems with the rent arrears.
With the original pilot ending, Cornwall council and the Citizen Advice Cornwall have now have received additional funding of £434,000 and are now extending the scheme until March 2023.
The funds will be used to help people who are in dire straits who either ask for assistance or are put in contact with the department by third party organisations.
The scheme’s funds are also available to landlords who intend to serve notice because of rental arrears as well as PRS tenants who are in danger of being made homeless.
CAC will work with both landlords and tenants in a case-by-case scenario finding out the reasons for rental arrears, providing advice and assistance to help them keep their tenancy. Upon finding a financial solution for the arrears, landlords will then have to let tenants stay in the properties for up to 12 months.
Cornwall councillor Olly Monk says: “Preventing homelessness is a priority. Keeping people in their homes is clearly very important, especially given the current pressures on housing availability. This scheme will help to ensure that people who have perhaps fallen on hard times and may otherwise have become homeless will be able to stay where they are.”
Gill Pipkin from Citizens Advice Cornwall adds: “Our charity is seeing ever increasing demand from people struggling in the current cost of living crisis. Security of housing is a key element of keeping people safe and reducing pressure - this funding is helping us make a real difference to people in crisis, enabling them to stay in their properties and maintain their social, work and support networks.”
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