Homelessness Service

     1. What Is Homelessness?

A person may be deemed homeless if they do not have any accommodation in England or abroad, which is

-          available to them to occupy,

-            reasonable to continue to occupy,

-            suitable, and

-            affordable.

Those who are at risk of losing accommodation within the next 56 days may be deemed as At Risk of Homelessness.

             2. Worried About Your Housing Situation?

If you're concerned about staying where you are, it's important to plan ahead. We encourage you to look for a settled, suitable, and affordable home before leaving your current accommodation.

Explore Your Housing Options

• Use our free online advice tool, AdviceAid, for tailored guidance.
• Find contact details for local landlords, letting agents, and housing associations on our website. You can apply directly, arrange viewings, and secure a property that meets your needs.

Help With Moving Costs

You do not need to have made a homeless application to apply for help with moving costs, especially if you're already receiving support from the council.

If you need financial support to  move to, secure or furnish a new home, you may be eligible for:

• Discretionary Housing Payments
• Local Assistance Scheme

Important: If you're already working with the Home Options service and seeking help with upfront costs, do not sign any tenancy agreements until we confirm our support. We cannot cover or reimburse costs for tenancies arranged without our suitability and affordability checks and explicit agreement.

Get In Touch

If you need help due to facing homelessness or being at risk of homelessness, contact the Home Options Team via

• Phone: 01302 736 000
• Email: housingoptionsteam@doncaster.gov.uk
• Visit: Civic Office One Stop Shop (opening hours 8:30-15:30 Mon-Fri)

For Professionals: To refer a consenting customer under the Duty to Refer, email dutytorefer@doncaster.gov.uk or use the Housing Jigsaw portal. Learn more on our website under Homelessness is Everyone’s Business – Duty to Refer.

     3. What Happens When You First Contact Us

When you first contact St Leger Homes, we’ll ask for some basic information to open a record and understand your situation. This includes:

• Names, dates of birth, and ethnic origin of all household members
• Your current address, type of accommodation, and how long you’ve been staying there
• Your contact details (phone number and/or email)

If you contact us via the Customer Access Team or another St Leger team about homelessness, your details will be passed to the Home Options Team, or you’ll be redirected to us. If your query is not about homelessness, even if you happen to be homeless or already working with our service, please make this known so your query can be referred to the correct department, team or person.

     4. What We’ll Ask You

Once you're in contact with the Home Options Team, we’ll speak with you in more detail about your housing circumstances. Every case is different, but here are some common questions:

Why are you contacting us?
Tell us what’s happened—e.g. eviction notice, family asking you to leave, fleeing domestic abuse.

Where are you staying now?
We’ll ask when you moved in, who you’re staying with, and whether it was meant to be temporary or permanent.
Example: “I’m staying with my parents at 12 Example Street, DN1 4ES with my 3-year-old son. We’ve been here for a month.”

Where were you living before this?
We’ll ask for previous addresses, dates you lived there, and who your landlord or letting agent was.
Example: “I rented 25 Private Avenue, DN1 5PR from Jan 2022 to June 2025. My landlord was Mr Adam Example, managed by 123 ExampleLettings.”

Do you have somewhere to stay tonight?

This could be your current home (if you’ve not yet left), or with friends or family.

For more on emergency housing, please see our Temporary Accommodation FAQ.

1. Can I Get Temporary Accommodation?

Not all homeless customers are eligible for temporary accommodation under homelessness legislation. When you contact us, we will triage your case to determine what advice or support we can offer, including whether we owe you a duty to provide temporary accommodation.

If you have friends or family who may be able to support you short-term, we encourage you to explore those options while we work with you on a longer-term solution.

If you are eligible and in need, we will make you an offer of temporary accommodation. However, if you then refuse the offer or lose the accommodation duty, we may not be able to offer further accommodation. Please let us know if you make your own arrangements so we can update your case and support others in urgent need.

2. How to Expect from a Temporary Stay in a Hotel

Temporary accommodation is a last resort. If you can safely stay with friends or family, even short-term, please do so while we work with you to secure a more permanent home.

Hotel rooms used for temporary accommodation are similar to standard hotel rooms and have some limitations:

• No cooking, food storage, or laundry facilities
• No use of personal appliances (e.g. microwaves, toasters, mini-fridges)
• No pets (except registered service animals)
• Children must be supervised at all times and should not be left alone in the room

3. What Support is Available While in Temporary Accommodation?

If you need help with cooking or laundry, we may be able to refer you to services such as Family Hubs or the Wellbeing Team.

If you need storage for belongings, we can help arrange external storage (you would cover the cost). Please provide:

• A list of items with measurements
• Photos of the items (if possible)

If friends or family can’t accommodate you but are willing to help in other ways (e.g. storing items, allowing access to a kitchen or laundry), we can support you in having those conversations.

4. What Happens When My Hotel Booking Ends?

If you're staying in hotel accommodation, you’ll be told the end date of your booking when it begins. On that day, you can expect a call from our Accommodation Support Officers (ASOs) to discuss next steps.

• Please do not call us before 2pm to check on rebooking status. This may block our ability to reach you.
• Keep your phone nearby and the line free. The call may come from a withheld or private number.
• If you have safety concerns about answering withheld numbers, let us know in advance so we can make alternative arrangements.

During the call, we’ll confirm whether your stay can be extended or if a new placement is needed. We may also need to complete a Housing Benefit or Change of Circumstances application with you—please have your National Insurance Number ready and allow 30–45 minutes for the call.

If there have been any breaches of hotel rules, we’ll discuss your options during the call.

5. Rules in Temporary Hotel Accommodation

When you are placed in hotel accommodation, our Accommodation Support Officers will explain the rules. These include (but are not limited to):

• No smoking in rooms
• No unauthorised visitors or pets
• You must stay in the hotel every night of your booking

If you make your own arrangements and no longer need the hotel room, please notify us immediately:

• Email: housingoptionsteam@doncaster.gov.uk
• CC: accommodationteam@doncaster.gov.uk

You will not be penalised for making your own arrangements, as long as you inform us. This allows us to support another household in urgent need while continuing to work with you on your housing situation.

1. Are Home Choice and Home Options the Same?

No. While both teams are part of St Leger Homes, they have different roles:

• Home Options (also known as Housing Options or Housing Solutions) deliver the statutory homelessness service.
• Home Choice manage the Housing Register, Mutual Exchange Scheme, and the allocation of social housing.

To avoid delays, please send any requested information directly to the team that asked for it.

Contact details:

• Home Options:
  📧 housingoptionsteam@doncaster.gov.uk
  📞 01302 736 000
  🏢 Civic Office One Stop Shop
  💡 Try our 24/7 digital advice tool: AdviceAid
• Home Choice:
  📧 info@doncasterhomechoice.co.uk
  📞 01302 862 862
  🌐 Visit the HomeChoice website

2. Can I Get Higher Priority on the Housing Register if I’m Homeless?

If you're working with Home Options, you will be expected to actively search for homes in the Private Rented Sector, which is often the quickest route to settled housing. 

Under Doncaster’s Allocations Policy, customers who are homeless or at risk of homelessness may be eligible for a higher priority band—if they meet the criteria to join the Housing Register and actively engage with their homeless application and Personal Housing Plan (PHP)

3. What Do I Need to Provide?

Your Home Options Officer may request a banding increase on your behalf, but only after receiving the necessary information from you as outlined in your Personal Housing Plan (PHP).

Please allow up to 6 weeks for any banding change to be processed by the Home Choice Team. To avoid delays, please send any requested information directly to the team that asked for it

⚠️ Neither Home Options nor Home Choice can reserve properties or guarantee allocations. Homes are offered based on the queue position after each bidding cycle closes. .

4. Do I Need to Stay Up to Bid When the Cycle Opens?

No. The bidding system is not first come, first served.

The bidding cycle opens every Thursday at midnight and closes the following Sunday at midnight. You can place bids at any time during this window.

5. Do I Need to Bid?

Yes. Think of bidding as putting your name on up to three property lists each week.

To improve your chances of securing a home:

• Use all 3 bids every week
• Bid on a wide range of areas, this will ensure you the quickest route into long term settled accommodation. 
• If you’ve been awarded Platinum priority, you must bid weekly. If you don’t place any bids for 4 consecutive weeks, we may begin enforced bidding on your behalf for suitable and affordable properties. Although we take all circumstances into account, sourcing a suitable property may mean you are offered accommodation outside of the area in Doncaster that you currently reside.

6. I Applied to the Housing Register but Was Rejected – Why?

Not everyone is eligible to join the Housing Register. If your application is rejected, the Home Choice Team will explain why.

Common reasons for ineligibility include:

• Rent arrears
• Poor landlord references
• Lack of local connection to Doncaster

7. I’ve Been Offered a Council or Housing Association Property – Do I Have to Accept It?

If you’ve been offered a property through the Housing Register, it has likely already been assessed for suitability and affordability.  If you are not happy with the offer, you are entitled to request a review of the offer within 21 days of it being made.

We strongly recommend that you accept the offer, even if you intend to request a review. If the review confirms the property is suitable, you’ll have a secure, settled home—and can still plan a move later if you wish. 

⚠️ If you reject the offer, your housing duties may end.
You can still request a review, but if the outcome confirms the property was suitable and affordable, no further offers will be made. You would then need to make your own housing arrangements without further support from the council.

1. Do You Offer Help With Securing a Privately Rented Property?

If you are homeless or at risk of homelessness and actively working with our service, we can support you in planning a move into the Private Rented Sector (PRS), which is often the quickest route to settled housing.

• Use our free 24/7 digital advice tool, AdviceAid, to learn more about your rights and responsibilities as a tenant

In some cases, we may be able to offer financial assistance with a bond and/or rent in advance—but only after we’ve completed checks to ensure the property is suitable, affordable, and in good condition.

2. What Should I Do If I Found a Private Rented Property But Struggling to Afford the Upfront Costs?

If you find a property you’re interested in:

1. Arrange a viewing and follow the letting agent’s application process.
2. Do not sign any tenancy agreement or hand over money if you need our financial help.
3. If the landlord is happy to proceed, provide their contact details and the property information to your Home Options Officer.
4. We’ll carry out the necessary checks and, if approved, arrange part- or full payment directly with the landlord or agent.

3. How Many Offers of Settled Housing Will I Receive?

You will receive one offer of suitable and affordable settled housing.

This may be:

• A private rented property (most likely, due to high demand for social housing)
• A council or housing association property
• Supported accommodation, or other accommodation, depending on your needs

The offer may be based on a property you find or one we identify. It may be located anywhere within Doncaster, unless there’s a specific reason (e.g. medical treatment) that limits location suitability. In some cases, it may be outside of the Doncaster borough.

4. I'm Not Happy with the Property I've Been Offered - What Are my Options?

You have the right to request a review of any offer within 21 days, whether you accept or reject it, if you believe the property may be unsuitable for you. However we strongly recommend that you accept the offer first, then request a review. This way, if the review confirms the property is suitable, you still have a secure home.

If you reject the offer and the review upholds its suitability, no further offers will be made, and you will need to secure housing independently.

⚠️ If you refuse a suitable offer under the Prevention Duty, and later become homeless, the same property may be re-offered as a final offer to discharge all housing duties.

5. How Long Do I Have to Respond to an Offer?

You usually have 24 hours to respond.

We will notify you of the offer by email, and phone. If we don’t hear from you within 24 hours, we may treat this as a refusal due to the high demand for housing.

To avoid missing the offer:

• Keep your phone and email monitored
• Let us know if your contact details change