Tenancy Service Standards

These are the level of service standards our residents and partners can expect from Islington Tenancy Services and the timescales for dealing with a query.

Our mission statement

We will work in partnership with other teams in the council and a range of external organisations to deliver excellent tenancy-related services that enable our diverse community of residents to live well and thrive.

Equality and diversity

Islington is proud of its diverse community and we promise to treat everyone fairly and with respect. We will not discriminate against characteristics such as age, sex, sexual orientation, disability, race, religion or belief, marriage/civil partnership, gender reassignment or pregnancy/maternity status. We oppose - and will challenge - discrimination, harassment or victimisation if we come across it. Find out more about our commitments to making Islington a fairer place.

Our service standards

When you make any contact with any of our Tenancy Services teams, we will:

Be friendly, professional, efficient and always deliver excellent customer service
Listen carefully to you and check we have understood what you have told us
Give you clear and relevant advice and information
Always remain polite, respectful and patient when dealing with your query
Follow through on any confirmed actions in the timescales we have agreed
Endeavour to get it right the first time

Getting in touch with us

Our Tenancy Services team can be contacted via email or phone 020 7527 5300. This service operates from 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday. There is a 24-hour service (outside of office hours) available for any person or household who is homeless. This can be accessed out of hours by calling 020 7527 2000.

We can provide documents in translation, Braille, Easy Read formats etc. and can verbally explain what these important documents mean. If you need an interpreter, please let us know.

When you call our Tenancy Services team, we will:

Follow the guidelines set out in Islington’s Customer Care Standard
Arrange for someone to call you back by the end of the next working day if the officer answering your call cannot deal with your query directly
Leave a message where possible if you are unavailable stating the name, where we are calling from, date and time of the call. (When we make calls, the caller identification on mobiles will show as ‘Private number’)

When you email us, we will:

Aim to acknowledge your email within two working days
Provide a full response as soon as possible, and within ten working days maximum. If there is any reason why this is not possible, we will write to you with an update and confirm when we expect to reply in full
If your enquiry is very urgent, we will aim to get back to you within 24 hours

What to do if:

You are experiencing anti-social behaviour (ASB), harassment or hate crimes

Our commitment to you

For urgent cases where there have been assaults/threats of violence, where it appears a hate crime has been committed or where the reporter is particularly vulnerable, we will:

Complete a full risk assessment to gain a clear picture of the risks and possible remedies
Report matter to police where appropriate
With your permission, refer you to supportive services to help you through this difficult time
Help you access repairs etc. where any damage has been caused
Consider available legal remedies/enforcement action

For lower risk cases, include noise complaints, littering and graffiti:

Recommend you speak directly to the person causing the nuisance
Our main offer around lower risk cases is referral to mediation services provided by Victim Support
Require all tenants above the ground floor to use carpets and not laminate/wooden flooring (except in kitchens/bathrooms)
Give you access to noise recording tools if noise problems persist
Send warning letters or speak directly to the alleged offender

The timescales for risk assessment is two working days if your case is urgent (high risk) or ten working days if it is less urgent.

Contact

Report ASB using our online form or by calling the ASB reporting line on 020 7527 7272 if you are being disturbed now. You can find out more about how we deal with reports of this type on our Report anti-social behaviour webpage.

Always dial 999 if there is an immediate threat to life/property or call 101 to report criminal activity such as drug dealing. You can also call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

You are experiencing domestic violence and abuse (DVA)

Islington’s Tenancy Team provides specialist help to tenants experiencing Domestic Violence and Abuse (DVA). Our Service Standards regarding DVA are outlined in the Safety planning for Islington Council tenants experiencing domestic violence and abuse leaflet.

Domestic violence is ‘any incident or pattern of controlling, coercive, threatening behaviour, violence or abuse between those aged 16 or over who are, or have been, intimate partners or family members regardless of gender or sexuality’.

You want to know more about how we store and use the information you give us

Our commitment to you

All information about you will be stored securely on our council IT systems
When you call us, write to us, speak to us in person or send us documents, we will make a record of these contacts on our IT systems
We only provide information about you to third parties when this is necessary for the fulfilment of statutory duties, such as complying with our safeguarding responsibilities or checking your benefit entitlements with the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP)
We will always inform you of any data sharing that is taken place and seek consent where we feel onward referrals and signposting may be of assistance to you

Relevant information

Further information about the Housing department’s privacy notice can be found by on our Data Protection policy webpage.
Our Data Protection policy can be found here on the council’s website.

There is a property related emergency in your home such as a flood, leak, power outage

Our commitment to you

During office hours:

Staff in Tenancy Services will make contact with every home affected via phone/in person on the day to check on their wellbeing, prioritising vulnerable tenants such as older or disabled residents
Work with our Property Services colleagues to obtain and share information about how long the situation is likely to last and actions to resolve the matter
Ensure that bottled water, torches, blankets, portable heaters etc. have been offered to those that need them
If necessary, work with our Emergency Planning team to establish a rest centre for residents who cannot remain within their homes e.g., if a block is evacuated for several hours
Arrange suitable temporary accommodation for those that need it

Outside of office hours:

Our Housing Incident Manager will work with the Emergency Planning team as needed
We will work with our Local Authority Liaison Officers (LALOs) and emergency services to assess and support all those affected
Open a rest centre when required, so people are safe and warm and have access to refreshments
Check people have somewhere safe to go overnight if they cannot return home e.g., friends/family etc.
Take down your contact details in order to keep you informed

Contact

You can report a repair by calling the Repairs Team on 0800 694 3344 or 020 7527 5400

Relevant information

Where safe to do so, we can facilitate access to your home to obtain important documents, medicines and overnight requirements.

We ask you to keep communal areas free of items that could block exits in the event of a fire. This includes bikes, prams, shelving or cupboards and general rubbish. If we find such items in the communal areas, we will ask you to move them or we will remove them directly. We hope that you understand this important request, which is there to keep you and your family safe.

You have concerns about the safety and welfare of your neighbours

Our commitment to you

We will treat what you tell us in confidence and will not tell your neighbour you contacted us unless you are happy for us to do so
Make enquiries to investigate what you have told us and where necessary make a plan to resolve the problem
This could include making a referral to social services or to another supportive service to get your neighbour the help they need, reporting crimes to the police or helping in other ways, such as around clearing and managing hoarded items and cleaning

Relevant information

If you have concerns around hoarding, infestation, have heard worrying sounds like abuse, seen lots of strangers coming/going, or maybe you haven’t seen your neighbour in a while or they seem unwell, please do let us know.

Data protection

It may not be possible to provide you with updates on your neighbour’s situation because of data protection.

You need temporary accommodation

Our commitment to you

If we have confirmed that you need a temporary move, we will liaise with our Temporary Accommodation team to find a suitable place.

Once you have been booked into temporary accommodation, we will discuss your situation in more detail including helping you plan your finances and how you are going to cover the costs of temporary accommodation.

Make a plan to move you out of temporary accommodation as soon as possible. We will provide you with a written copy of this plan and may ask you to undertake certain actions as part of this.

Relevant information

Sometimes things happen which mean it is not safe or appropriate for you to stay in your home. This could be because of a repair issue or because you are facing other risks such as domestic violence and abuse.

Timescales

When you first call us, we will undertake a quick assessment of your needs. We will have a full discussion within seven working days of you being booked into temporary accommodation and will check in with you once a month thereafter.

You want to make a complaint

Our commitment to you

More information about the council’s complaints procedure can be found on our complaints process webpage.

The council uses the following definition ‘A complaint is an expression of dissatisfaction, however made, about the standard of service, action or lack of action by Islington Council’s tenancy Services team, in connection with any services it has responsibility for, which affects an individual customer or group of customers’.

Complaints to Islington Council’s Housing Needs and Strategy service can be submitted by email or via our online complaints webform. You can expect a response within 15 working days. If this is not possible, we will inform you within 10 working days of the reasons for the delay and when you can expect a full response

You want information about your responsibility as a tenant

Our commitment to you

We expect you to provide us with all documents we ask for to help us manage your case.

Please note that if you are asking us to support you to move home or take legal action against another person, we will need to gather evidence as part of this. Please give us consent to seek additional information from other professionals, as needed.

Relevant information

As an Islington Council tenant, we expect you to read and cooperate with the conditions of tenancy as set out in your tenancy agreement. We expect you to pay your rent and service charges, report repairs and look after your home.

It is a requirement of your Tenancy Agreement to notify us of changes to your household composition including when requesting to pass on a tenancy or when a tenant dies. If you are seeking permission to keep a dog or to make alterations to the property, you must have our permission before proceeding.

We expect you to keep to the rules of any temporary accommodation that we may arrange for you.

You want information about your tenancy

Our commitment to you

It is important that you start your tenancy with us well and have all the information and support you need to make it a success.

Viewing

At the viewing of the property we will provide you with information about the home including the rent level/other charges, a description of the physical layout and the local area. We will send you a short video showing what the property is like from the inside and outside

Offer

If you are offered the property, we will:

Request copies of your ID and take a photo of you for our files. This is to prevent tenancy fraud
Give you a copy of your signed Tenancy Agreement and other useful information
Explain how to pay your rent and service charges, the importance of paying and the consequences of not paying
Offer you advice/assistance in arranging gas/electricity providers and notifying Thames Water
In most cases, arrange for your new tenancy to start on the Monday following you signing the tenancy. We will expect you to be packed, with any removals arranged etc. and ready to leave your previous home on this date

Mutual Exchange

If you apply for a Mutual Exchange, we will complete all necessary checks within the statutory 42-day period.

Death of the main tenant

In the sad event of the main tenant passing away, we will:

Treat the bereaved family with sensitivity and respect while the necessary arrangements are made
We will offer timely and sensitive support to any relatives remaining in the home following the bereavement; this will include establishing as quickly as possible whether there is a legal right to succeed (take on) the tenancy directly
We will set up a ‘Use and Occupation’ account for any such relatives to pay for the accommodation while the tenancy is being regularised
If the person does not have a right to take on the tenancy, we will ensure they get the help they need from our Housing Needs team to plan their next steps. This may include offering alternative accommodation of a smaller size

Timescales

When arranging a viewing in person we will give you 24 hours’ notice of the viewing and request that you confirm (within 24 hours) if you would like to be offered the home. If not, we will record the reasons why. Then, we will arrange for you to sign the tenancy within 48 hours of accepting the offer. A check in will be arranged within 8 weeks of your new tenancy starting to go through the things you need to do to comply with the conditions set out in your tenancy agreement.

Relevant information

Temporary accommodation - if you are in temporary accommodation, we will end your booking on the day your new tenancy is due to start. You will need to leave the temporary accommodation as you found it.

If you are an existing Islington Council tenant who is transferring to another home we will check that you have cleared your previous home of all rubbish and belongings – it is your responsible for doing this and will be charged the costs of clearing any items left behind.

If you are moving out of your Islington Council tenancy, we expect you to give us 4 weeks' notice of this (unless you are transferring to another Islington Council tenancy via our allocations processes). You must complete a Tenancy Termination Notice and send it to us. We will then get in touch to talk you through the tenancy vacation process.