Specialist Support Referral - Norwich City Council

The Specialist Support Team

Tenants want to live fulfilled lives where they can achieve their own ambitions. They need a home which is safe, affordable and where they can build connections with their friends, family, neighbours, and community.
The council is committed to ensuring that the right support is in place for tenants who need it, so that they can live independently in their home for as long as possible.

Support for tenant’s when they move into accommodation.

We know that moving house can be difficult. Setting up and managing a home for the first time isn’t always straightforward and it can be overwhelming particularly when you don’t have support.

For tenants who do not have the confidence to manage their tenancy from the start and do not have support, the team will offer them assistance to:

· develop the skills needed to set up and manage their home so they can feel confident that their rent is paid, they know how to look after their home and can access their community.
· develop the ability to solve problems and find solutions that work best for them should difficulties arise.

Support for tenant’s who are struggling to manage their tenancy

For tenants who are at high risk of eviction and abandonment the team can work alongside them to increase their ability to manage a healthy tenancy, for the long term.

We do this by:

Increasing the tenants feeling of safety within their home and community.
Increasing their ability to maintain their home.
Stabilising their financial situation and increase their ability to manage their bills including rent payments.
Improving their physical and mental health.
Increasing their ability to communicate and advocate for themselves.
Increasing their support networks – family /friends / services.
Increasing their positive use of time.

Criteria:

Be a tenant living in a Norwich City Council area
Be at high risk of; eviction / abandoning / keeping a healthy tenancy.
Tenant requires support in order to maintain their tenancy.
Or is a new tenant needing assistance with settling into their new home

Making the referral

Please do seek to gain consent from the tenant, prior to making the referral. (There are some circumstances where we will accept referrals without consent first). Please complete the online form below. Once you’ve submitted the referral you will receive a reference number for your records.

What happens next?

We discuss new referrals weekly, and if they are accepted for our service the tenant will be allocated a specialist support officer, who will make contact with the tenant and referrer within 10 working days.

The specialist support team may not always be the most appropriate service to work with the tenant, if this is the case, we will always discuss the best way forward and feed this back to the referrer.

If you would like to contact us regarding a referral before completing an online referral form, please contact: specialistsupport@norwich.gov.uk or ring 01603 987771.

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Online forms: Specialist Support Referral