£300,000 has been made available to people across North Ayrshire struggling with rent arrears due to the Covid-19 crisis.
At a meeting of Cabinet, elected members rubber-stamped the new Coronavirus Tenant Grant Fund to help private and social-rented tenants.
It will help those who are struggling with rent arrears and who could be at risk of homelessness. The money will be used to directly cut or pay off rent arrears accumulated.
North Ayrshire Council will help lower the left over arrears in their properties by matching the payments made by you. For example a tenant has arrears of £1000 and receives £500 from the Fund. The Council will clear the arrears and pay off £250, along with your £250, to make up the balance.
Arrears after this period will only be covered in exceptional circumstances. This is where the local council is satisfied that arrears relate to the continued impact of pandemic limits.
Councillor Joe Cullinane, Leader of North Ayrshire Council, said. “So many people, have been directly impacted by the pandemic through no fault of their own.
“The threat of being left homeless is a desperately worrying situation. I know from my own casework that more people than before are facing that threat due to the pandemic.
“As a social landlord, North Ayrshire Council is committed to supporting all our tenants and will continue to do so.
“But nobody in the 21st century, regardless of housing tenure, should be without a roof over their head. North Ayrshire Council will aim to make sure that everyone in North Ayrshire is awarded this basic human right. We will seek to use the Coronavirus Tenant Fund as an important tool to do that.”
The Scottish Government committed £10m to the fund, with the money distributed amongst Scotland’s local councils.
The administration of the Fund will, in the main, mirror the usual process for assessing Discretionary Housing Payments. In addition, these rules will apply:
Consideration will be given to other solutions (Discretionary Housing Payments, income maximisation, payment arrangement) before approving any award.
The award given will be 50% of the arrears accrued in the qualifying period, up to a maximum of £1000
The Fund is open from Tuesday 7 December 2021.
Email tenantgrantfund@north-ayrshire.gov.uk and telephone 0300 999 4606.
As a social landlord, North Ayrshire Council is committed to supporting all our tenants and will continue to do so.
JOE CULLINANE, Council Leader, North Ayrshire Council