Hounslow Expand Key Worker Initiative

Extended scheme will enable more workers to own their own homes in the Borough

People who live or work in Hounslow and who are struggling with ever increasing property prices in London can now get help from Hounslow Council to rent or buy a home. The council has expanded the definition of a key worker for their own housing initiatives so that anyone who works or lives in the borough, and earns under £35,000 per year, can access these schemes.

Current initiatives which target key workers such as firemen, teachers and nurses, have been hugely successful, including more than 300 shared ownership purchases in the last 5 years. In some of the new affordable housing schemes being developed in the Borough in the next few years Hounslow Council will widen the criteria of workers who can benefit.

Bernadette O'Shea, Head of Housing Strategy and Services, said, “Current house prices mean that many people who work or rent in the borough can't afford to live in the Borough in the longer term. Our new definition of   key workers means that more people who provide a service in the borough, from bus drivers to shop workers to office staff, can now live near to where they work. ”

There are a number of different initiatives which will become available through the Council in the next few years, including rented schemes with rents below market levels as well as lower cost homeownership schemes where people part buy and part rent.

March 3, 2004