The government has offered an opportunity for individuals and organisations to submit evidence to its Review of Social Housing Allocations.

MHCLG intends to have a formal consultation on updated guidance in early 2027. It is likely that the final version will go live in 2027/28 which will presumably trigger a requirement for councils and their partners to carry out statutory reviews of local allocations and lettings policies.

This opportunity has also spurred the Chartered Institute of Housing into action. It is gathering evidence, data, research and case studies of how allocations are working for organisations and customers. For further information, contact [email protected].

The government review has four priorities:

• Improving access for vulnerable and homeless households
• Making the best use of available homes
• Strengthening cooperation between local authorities and households
• Consolidating guidance into a clearer and more user-friendly document.

It is, at this stage looking, for instance, for evidence on long-standing and frequently debated challenges:

• Nominations agreements and joint working between councils and their partners
• Qualification criteria especially local connections
• Relationship between homelessness and allocations
• Experiences of the armed forces communities and vulnerable groups such as victims of domestic abuse
• Accessibility needs.

Stakeholders have until by 2 October to submit their evidence by emailing by 2 October to [email protected].