Help with your tenancy

If you're struggling to manage your home, money, or tenancy we have teams that can help you or we can refer you to specialist agencies that can help.

Housing Plus

The Housing Plus team are part of our Tenancy Management team and are a pro-active service that offers additional help to Darlington Borough Council tenants to successfully manage their home and tenancy.

They can help you with:

• Understanding the terms and responsibilities as a tenant and how to keep to your Tenancy Agreement
• Advise you on how to make rent and Council Tax payments
• Advise you on how to look after your property
• Advise you on how to be a good neighbour
• Agree achievable action plans to resolve any issues around your tenancy and property
• Refer you onto specialist agencies for additional support
• Help you to keep your rent account up to date
• Help you maximise your income
• Advise you on how you can access additional employment training to help you get back into work

You can access the service by contacting us and a Housing Plus Officer will visit you in your home, give you more information about the service and complete an assessment with you based on your needs.

There is a weekly charge for this service which may be covered by welfare benefits and can be added to your rent account.

For more information see our Housing Plus leaflet [pdf document].

Tenancy Sustainment

The Tenancy Sustainment team are based in our Housing Income Management team and can provide additional help and support to Darlington Borough Council tenants around their finances.

This is a free service to Council tenants, and they can support you at any point in your tenancy. They can help you with:

• Managing rent payments
• Welfare benefits
• Universal Credit and housing benefit
• Applications to help with water charges through Northumbrian Water
• Discretionary housing payment applications
• Better budgeting and managing your money
• Saving money on bills such as gas, electricity and home phone
• Bank and credit union accounts
• Loan sharks

For more information see our Tenancy Sustainment leaflet[pdf document].