The Knowsley Housing Solutions Team provide residents with specialist housing advice and support.
If you are homeless or worried about becoming homeless, we can offer advice and support based on your own circumstances.
If you require advice and support with housing, please complete our online form or contact us on 0151 443 2333 if you are unable to or require help to complete the form.
Complete our online presentation form
Duty to refer
Public bodies have a duty to refer people they consider may be homeless or are likely to become homeless within 56 days.
The public bodies which have a duty to refer are as follows:
- Jobcentre Plus
- social service
- authorities
- probation services
- hospitals, as part of providing inpatient care
- emergency departments
- urgent treatment centres
- prisons
- youth offender institutions
- secure training centres
- secure colleges
- youth offending teams
- Royal Navy
- Royal Marines
- Army
- Royal Air Force
What do I need to know?
- You can refer any customer / service user you've identified as being either homeless or threatened with homelessness. Take a look at the other information in this section for more advice.
- The customer / service user must give their consent to be referred.
- The individual can choose which local authority they wish to be referred to, so ask them where they would like the referral to be sent.
Important:
This process does not replace or affect any safeguarding concerns and referrals. Please report safeguarding concerns in the usual way.
Complete the Duty to Refer Form
On this page you will find information for:
Homelessness and homelessness prevention
A person is threatened with homelessness if they:
- are likely to become homeless in 56 days
- have received a valid notice to quit (S21 notice)
- have received a notice that landlord requires possession of accommodation (NOSP) which expires within 56 days
If you're threatened with homelessness and are eligible for help, we can help to prevent your homelessness.
A person could be homeless if they:
- have no home in the UK or elsewhere that they have a legal right to occupy
- have a movable home such as a boat or caravan and there is nowhere it can be placed lawfully
- they are at risk from harm if they stay in their current home
If you think you may be homeless or threatened with homelessness, we may be able to help you to remain in your home or move to another home. The earlier you contact us the more we'll be able to help you.
If you're homeless we'll look at whether or not you have local connections in the area such as:
- how long you've lived in the area
- if you're employed in the area
- you've close family in the area
- other special circumstances
We'll talk to you about your circumstances. This will help us to understand your situation and any support and help you may need. We'll work with you to complete a Personal Housing Plan and agree with you what you need to do and also what we need to do to help you. Over the course of your application we'll keep you up to date with what we are doing to help you. You'll also need to make sure you get in touch with us regularly to let us know what you've done from your Personal Housing Plan.
You can take a look at more information on this webpage about your own circumstances. If you need any more help you can fill in our online form or call us on 0151 443 2333.
Rough Sleeping
If you're sleeping rough or know someone who is sleeping rough you can contact the Housing Solutions team for help. If you're sleeping rough or know someone who is sleeping rough you can contact the Housing Solutions team for help on 0151 443 2333.
Armed Forces
If you've been a member of the armed forces, there are a range of organisations that can offer help and support, including housing. You can find further details on the Armed Forces Community Covenant section.
If you need any more help, you can fill in our online form.
Domestic Abuse
If you are homeless or at risk of homelessness due to domestic violence please contact us for support and assistance.
There are also a number of services and agencies that provide specialist support. Visit our support with domestic violence page.
Care leavers
If you've been in the care of the local authority there are a range of services available to help you. This can include help to get accommodation and support.
For more information about what assistance is available to you and details of who to contact for further advice please visit Knowsley Care Leavers - Local Offer website.
If you've been in care and are about to become homeless or are homeless and you need more help, you can fill in our online form or call us.
16- & 17-year-olds
If you're aged 16 or 17 and you're homeless or threatened with homelessness, a joint assessment will be completed with Housing Solutions and Children’s Social Care. This assessment will include discussing your circumstances and any support needs. This will help us to prevent you becoming homeless and assist you to return home where this is suitable.
Prison Release
If you're in prison or youth detention and will have no home on release, we can assess your needs and we will work with you and any professionals helping you to find a home.
We can offer advice on a range of issues. It's important for you to get in touch as soon as possible to give time for an assessment so that housing options can be explored and accommodation found. If you need any more help please speak to the support services available to you in prison.
Hospital Discharge
If you're in hospital and will be unable to return home because of your ill health it may be possible for your home to be adapted to help you to stay there. Please see our 'Physical difficulties in your home' section.
If you have no place to return to when you're discharged from hospital, the Housing Solutions team can assess your housing and support needs and work with you, and any professionals, to ensure accommodation is available for you when you are well enough to leave hospital.
It's important to make contact as soon as possible to allow time for assessments to be completed and accommodation to be identified. Fill in our online form or call us.
Physical difficulties in your home
If your property is no longer suitable for your needs please visit our financial assistance for housing repairs page to see what support is available to help you stay in your current home.
If you need any more help you can fill in our online form or call us.
Support for Private Tenants
If you are renting your home privately and want to know more about your rights or are having problems with your landlord, please visit our housing section.
Financial advice and support
A number of local and national services can offer you free help and support. They can help you manage your money, sort debts or claim the benefits you are entitled to. For more information please visit our Advice on money, benefits and debt section.
Help finding a home
There are a number of housing options available to you when trying to find a home, please consider the following types of housing that may be available to you.
Social Housing
Social housing can provide you with more affordable housing if you are on a lower income. It’s normally provided by social housing landlords.
For more details on how to access the Council’s Property Pool Plus service please visit the Property Pool website.
You can also apply directly to Housing Associations for a limited number of properties that become available outside of the Property Pool Plus Service, for more information please visit our Apply for social housing section.
Please note that the demand for Social Housing in Knowsley is extremely high, you should therefore also consider other housing options that are available to you.
Private rented
Private rented homes can offer lots of different types and sizes homes in Knowsley. It can be quicker to get a home that is rented privately as there are no waiting lists.
You can find a private rented home by looking on the internet and searching for 'private landlords' or 'letting agents in Knowsley'. You could also visit a local letting agent for more information and homes to rent.
There are also other web sites that may help you to find a home to rent:
Help with a bond or deposit
If you're homeless or threatened with homelessness we may be able to help you with a bond or deposit. For more information please visit Help for homeless people looking for housing | Knowsley Council or contact us by filling in our online form or calling us.
Supported Housing
Depending on your situation, you can apply for supported housing that is adapted according to your needs or provides extra care to help your day-to-day living. For more information please visit the apply for supported housing section.
Young people
If you’re a young person in Knowsley and need support in accessing housing, there are numerous services that may be able to help:
Or you can contact us via our online form or on 0151 443 2333.
Help buying a home
If you are considering buying your own home there are a number of different options available to best suit your current circumstances, for more information please visit our help with finding a home section.