North Northamptonshire Council approves changes to housing list
North Northamptonshire Council (NNC) has approved an updated housing allocations policy for the area, focused on making access to social housing fairer in the wake of a spike in demand in recent years.
Under the changes, a swathe of people who the council has determined to have ‘no housing need’ will be cut from the register as the council faces the number of applicants outstripping available properties.
The revised Keyways Housing Allocation policy, approved by the executive on May 12, will also give additional support to care-experienced young people, victims of domestic abuse, families living in severe overcrowding, armed forces personnel and residents with complex health or welfare needs to find a home.
Cllr Brian Benneyworth, executive member for housing, health and leisure, told members at the executive meeting that NNC’s housing register had grown by 129 per cent in just three years, but the supply of social housing had not kept up.
He said: “In those circumstances, doing nothing is neither fair nor sustainable and it would leave this council potentially exposed both operationally and legally.
“At its heart, this review is about fairness, it is not about arbitrarily excluding people from support. It is about ensuring that scarce social housing is allocated transparently, lawfully, and to those who need it most.”
According to Keyways housing data published by NNC, as of June 2025, there were 6,760 people on the housing waiting list. The monthly average for new housing applications received for assessment in 2024/2025 was 560 per month.
Concerns were raised by Corby resident and former Labour councillor Lyn Buckingham around how some of the most complex and vulnerable housing cases are being assessed due to the difficult judgments that need to be made on medical, welfare needs and domestic abuse risk.
She asked what assurance can be provided around the multidisciplinary oversight of decisions, adding that decisions ‘cannot simply become a paper exercise driven by housing pressure and scarcity’.
The revised policy follows consultation with a majority of respondents supporting the proposed changes.
The most supported proposal, with 72 per cent of respondents either agreeing or strongly agreeing, was to increase weekly bids per cycle from three to five for all households. The least supported was the proposal to disallow access to those applicants with no housing need, which had 43 per cent who agreed and 34 per cent who disagreed overall.
The report has confirmed that all service users affected by the new scheme will receive written notification with advice and assistance specific to their circumstances.
Applicants who may no longer qualify to join Keyways may approach the Housing Advice and Options team to receive advice and assistance in relation to other viable housing solutions.