Untitled - Now Then

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NOMAD is an essential housing
service in Sheffield that offers
friendly advice to people, who
often find the bureaucratic
strains of social housing to
much to bear.
Azita Aurie, a 26 year-old single
mother from Burngreave said that
she had reached breaking-point,
and had wanted to call Social
Services to intervene and take her
baby away.
“Nomad gave me back my
confidence and made me realise
that I am not a bad mother and
that this is not my fault,” she said.
Azita had suffered with serious
damp problems in her council
property for over 4 years. After her
daughter began to suffer severe
chest infections, she contacted
Nomad who put her in contact
with a Solicitor to tackle the
council over the unresolved issue.
She said: “Since I’ve seen a
solicitor, the council have started to
take me seriously, they used to just
tell me I wasn’t opening the
windows or something stupid and
they wouldn’t do anything.”
Nomad is a registered charity,
which aims to promote independent
living and provides the support
needed to achieve this. Nomad’s
Tenancy Support Scheme provides
a vital service to some of the more
vulnerable sectors of society,
offering practical support and advice
to tenants.
Not everybody who accesses Nomad’s
services is unhappy with the
council. Peter Foster, 44, a council
tenant in Burngreave is generally
happy with the service he recieves
from the council.
“Nomad help me a lot because of
the way I sometimes get isolated,
they visit and check I’m ok. I don’t
have any problems with the council,”
he said.
Tenants are offered advice from
moving into a property, to making
benefit claims, understanding the
tenancy agreements, budgeting,
accessing other agencies, dealing
with personal day-to-day problems
and finding education,
employment and training
opportunities.
Andrew Reardon, 46, Temporary
Project Manager at Nomad’s Burngreave
Tenancy Support Scheme
said:
“The council housing system can
be very confusing and our work
involves pointing people in the right
direction.
“The main idea with housing support
is not just doing things for
people, it is supporting them
through it.”
There has been a major overhaul in
the way the council house system
is run. Sheffield Homes was created
as a separate branch of Sheffield
City Council, so that the council
could manage the council housing
stock at arms-length.
In the past, prospective council tenants
would join the housing register,
and when they reached the top of
the list they would be allocated a
property. But all this has changed
and council properties are now allocated
using a bidding system.
Applicants who are waiting for a
council house on the housing
register, must make a bid for a
property. The tenant is then
selected using a priority system.
Families with children, pregnant
women and people with mental
health problems or disabilities are
given the highest priority as are
those who have been waiting on
the register for the longest.
The bidding system, which is very
unpopular with council tenants,
has also highlighted the shortage
of council housing. In 2007, 18,500
bids were made for just 3,900 council
houses.
The massive increase of house
prices across Sheffield has placed
much more pressure on Sheffield
Homes, as more people turn to the
council for affordable homes. Prices
have sky-rocketed to the point that,
even in the cheapest neighbourhoods,
the average price of a
home has reached £75,000.
Sheffield Homes has not only been
criticized for the failure to provide
adequate council housing in Sheffield,
but also for the poor conditions
of some properties.
In November last year, Sheffield
Homes revealed the Decent Homes
programme to council residents in
Firshill, Pitsmoor, Burngreave and
Darnall. They showcased planned
improvements of 40,000 council
houses paid for by £669 million of
government funding.
The event was hailed a success but
five months on many residents are
upset at what little progress has
taken place. Andrew Reardon, said
that in some cases there has been
poor communication between
contractors and council surveyers
and he has had numerous
complaints from dissatisfied
council tenants.
Nomad believes that everybody
has a right to a decent, safe,
affordable home. It was formed in
1989 by two people who had
experienced homelessness
themselves, and who recognised
that there was a gap in the
provision of services for homeless
people in Sheffield and Rotherham.
It is part-funded by Sheffield City
Council, by donations and
fund-raising.
There are various volunteering
opportunities available at Nomad.
For more information
CALL
0114 2755441
volunteers@nomadsheffield.co.uk
Some names have been changed
to protect anonymity.
JESSICA BELL.
GEORGE OLIVER.
COUNCIL HOUSING.
too many homeless. not enough houses.
PAGE ten.