Thanet District Council’s Housing Options team has been awarded £175,000 which will be used to help private rented sector tenants and homeowners who may be struggling to pay their rent and mortgages as a result of COVID-19
The grant is from Kent Housing Group (KHG) which secured £2.5m in a recent Contain Outbreak Management Fund (COMF) bid to Kent County Council.
Thanet’s criteria stipulates that households who have been adversely financially affected as a result of the pandemic are prioritised.
The funding will be used to:
boost support for private rented sector tenants to financially recover from impact of the pandemic and prevent them losing their homes
Support landlords in recovering from the loss of rental payments received where the tenants have fallen into rent arrears
Support the containment of COVID-19 outbreaks by helping households to remain in their existing homes and prevent people from becoming street
homeless or ending up in insecure and transient housing arrangements
Provide support to homeowners who may be at risk of having their homes repossessed as a result of COVID-19
Councillor Jill Bayford, Cabinet Member for Housing at Thanet District Council, said: “Many local families continue to suffer financially as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic and have fallen into rent and mortgage arrears.
“This funding will help us to support vulnerable families to stay in their own homes, providing stability and preventing them from becoming homeless. This is particularly important as winter approaches and COVID-19 is still very much present in the district.”
If you are a landlord and believe that your tenant might require assistance or if you are a homeowner and are struggling to pay your mortgage, please contact the Housing Options team on 01843 577377 or email [email protected]
The funding is time limited and should be spent by 31 March 2022.
