Housing

You can get housing advice free of charge by seeing a Housing Options Officer at the Gateway where a drop in service is in operation every week day between 9.00 am and 4.00 pm or on a Saturday between 10.00 am and 2.00 pm.

The Gateway is at 14 Park Mall, Ashford, Kent TN24 8RY and the telephone number for the Gateway is 0845 824 7247.

What do I do if I am homeless?

If you are asked to leave home, you should first of all call in to the Gateway to see a Housing Options Officer who will talk to you about your Housing Options.

The Officer may talk to you about the Mediation which is a service that helps you to work with your parents or guardians to resolve tensions at home and to work with your family towards resolving any problems you may have with your housing.

What do I do if I am asked to leave home immediately and the Gateway is closed?

If you are asked to leave home and are unable to find a friend or family’s home to stay at that evening you should telephone 01233 331111 where you will be given an out of hours telephone number to call.

I have my own accommodation but I am struggling to manage, what should I do?

If you are finding it difficult to manage in your tenancy or you foresee difficulties you may qualify for floating support. You can either make a self-referral by telephoning 01622 69453 or 01622 694825 in the first instance or email the Supporting People Team. Alternatively a Housing Options Officer can fill out a referral form on your behalf, which would be sent to Supporting People.

Supporting People would place your application in a band according to your need and you would then be contacted at a later stage by one of the agencies that provide support. An initial visit will be made to you to discuss your needs in more detail.

How do I apply to Ashford Borough Council for housing with them or with a Housing Association?

If you are aged 18 or over you may wish to apply to Ashford Borough Council to go on to our housing register. You can either download an application form (923Kb PDF) or telephone 01233 330688 and ask for a form to be sent out to you. You will then need to attend a drop in session at the Civic Centre, bringing with you the form and proof of id, address and any other information as requested on the form. At the session you will see a Lettings Officer who will provide you with further information about the housing register. The drop in sessions are between 10am and 12 noon on a Tuesday and Friday.

We need your help!

The Council want to update the service provided to young people aged 16 – 18 years who are threatened with homelessness. Some under 16s also find themselves in this situation and don’t know what to do. The Council would like to help this younger age group by working with them to prevent this situation happening. They want your help to do this.

The Council want to know what you think are the most important things young people would want to know if they found themselves in a possible homelessness situation.

What would you like to see available?

A confidential phone number.
A qualified person to help sort out things at home.
Some short stay accommodation while things are being sorted out at home.
Shared housing with some support and advice.
What others things do you think need to be in place.

Who do you think young people would feel more at ease with discussing their homelessness and housing problems?

A person from the Council specially trained for teenage queries.
A specialist organisation that deals with young people like the YMCA or Connexions.
Is there someone else you would recommend?

These are just a few suggestions. Please let us know what you think should be put in place by emailling Carol Morton. Your emails will be in strict confidence.

Ashford Borough Council, Civic Centre, Tannery Lane, Ashford TN23 1PL
Call: 01233 330290 Email: info@whatmattersashford.co.uk Text: 07765 897208