Serving and former members of the armed forces
Under Maldon Council’s allocation policy section 2.3-2.4 armed forces, reserve forces personnel and bereaved spouses or civil partners of armed forces personnel will under certain circumstances be prioritised within their band when they apply for eligible properties (link to Advice can also be found on the following websites: Gateway to HomeChoice allocations policy)
Advice about benefits and concessions for the Armed Forces, veterans and their families can be found onhttps://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/armed-forces
Housing advice can be found on:
If you are about to leave the army or have left the army and are homeless and have been unable to stay with family/friends and or find private rented accommodation you should contact the Housing options team by contacting us online. You will need to provide written confirmation of the date of your discharge from military service.
Leaving prison
If you have a tenancy and are sent to prison, see the Shelter advice below:
Eviction if you are sent to prison.
If you are due to be released from prison in the next 56 days, the Prison Service have a duty to refer you for housing options to a Local Authority where you have a local connection.
Please also see the Shelter advice below:
Help for Homeless ex-prisoners.
Leaving hospital
Discharge from hospital
If you are due to leave Hospital and have nowhere to go or your home is unsuitable for you to return to you should speak to nursing staff who will advise the Hospital discharge team. If you will be homeless, they will have a duty to make a referral to a Council. If you rent and your home will be unsuitable for you on discharge, then you need to contact your landlord in the first instance. If you rent or own your own property, then you should look at link Adapt your home to work for you: Overview | Essex County Council
You may also be able to join the housing register Gateway to Home choice.
Care leavers
If you are a care leaver you may be able to get housing assistance from social services. If you between the ages of 18-25 years and are threatened with homelessness or made homeless you should contact your personal adviser. The help you will get will depend on your age and what help social services provide locally. The Personal adviser may refer and or liaise with the Housing options service who will work through the accommodation options available to you.
If you are leaving care your Personal Adviser will agree a pathway plan with you before you leave care detailing where you will live and any support, you might need to live independently.
Advice can be found on the shelter website. Help and housing for care leavers.
Domestic Abuse
If you and or your children are in immediate danger because of domestic abuse, you should call 999.
If you cannot live in your home because of domestic abuse and it is not safe for you to go and live with relatives and or friends you can contact one of the agencies below to get some advice, support and assistance including information about refuge spaces.
National Domestic Abuse Helpline 08082000247 Home | Refuge National Domestic Abuse Helpline (nationaldahelpline.org.uk)
Next Chapter provide refuge and outreach services Next Chapter (thenextchapter.org.uk)
If it is dangerous for you to remain where you are, and you have been unable to find alternative safe accommodation then you should contact us on 01621 854477.
There are specially trained staff at Maldon Council and Citizens Advice Bureau who you can talk to about any domestic abuse issue, and they will seek to assist you with finding a refuge space for immediate safety, we will then work with you to ensure you can either return to your home safely or to move onto alternative accommodation in a safe area.
If you are a housing association tenant your housing association will also have specially trained staff to support you with your housing.
Rough Sleeping Persons
If you are rough sleeping or at imminent risk of rough sleeping you should contact us on 01621 854477 you can also contact CHESS for support and advise Apply for a Bed – Chess Homeless CHESS outreach service will contact you to discuss bed availability.
If you are aged 55 years plus and facing homelessness
You should contact us as soon as you think you are at risk of homelessness Contacting Us Online You should also register for housing on Gateway to HomeChoice www.gatewaytohomechoice.org.uk. You may be eligible to bid for one-bedroom Housing association sheltered housing flats that become available in the Maldon Council area on a regular basis. This may mean that you can resolve your housing difficulty without having to go into temporary accommodation and or have a very long wait for a one-bedroom general needs flat.