General Needs FAQs

Our general needs properties are allocated by local councils as Rosebery do not have a direct waiting list for properties. When a general needs property becomes available to rent, we’ll receive a nomination from your local council. If you wish to live in one of our general needs properties, please contact one of the following local councils:

• Epsom and Ewell Borough Council
• Crawley Borough Council
• Guildford Borough Council
• Reigate and Banstead Borough Council
• Mole Valley District Council
• Tandridge District Council

At Rosebery, we have several ways you can pay your rent.

You can pay your rent online via the Allpay website or visit our My Rent section to find out alternative ways to pay.

To pay your rent online via the Allpay site, you will need your 19 digit rent card number and a debit/credit card to pay.

You can also pay by Direct Debit, Standing Order and more. Please visit our My Rent section for all of the options.

You will need to contact Rosebery and state what improvements you are proposing to make to your home. If any of the changes make your home unsafe, reduce the standard or value of your home or affect your neighbours or community, your request will be denied.

Please message us through your My Rosebery account or call us to discuss these changes.

Rosebery can offer assistance in helping make your home more suitable for your needs. This can range from minor adaptations such as handrails to major works to the property (i.e. wet-room installation, ramps).

For more minor adaptations (i.e. installing hand-rails in your home), we can arrange for a trusted assessor to visit your home and discuss if a minor adaptation can be agreed for your property.

For major adaptations, you will need to visit your GP to get a occupational therapist referral. They will make an initial assessments and any recommendations will be referred to Rosebery.

We encourage our residents to take out contents insurance in order to protect your belongings from theft, fire, flood or damage. Please note that Rosebery do not offer compensation for items in your home that have been damaged which have been covered by contents insurance.

Contents insurance is designed to help protect your possessions. No matter how careful you are, there’s always a risk that your belongings could be broken, damaged or stolen so home contents insurance can help provide peace of mind.

To help you decide whether home contents insurance is right for you, Rosebery Housing has teamed up with Thistle Tenant Risks, and Great Lakes Insurance UK Limited who provide the Crystal Insurance Scheme, a specialist Tenants Contents Insurance policy.

The Crystal Insurance Scheme can offer you insurance for the contents of your home including cover for items such as furniture, carpets, curtains, clothes, bedding, electrical items, jewellery, pictures and ornaments.

How do I get further information?

• Call 01372 814000 or email customerexperience@rosebery.org.uk for an application pack.
• Call Thistle Tenant Risks on 0345 450 7286

Alternatively, please visit their website for more information or to request a call back.

The Crystal Insurance Scheme is a product name arranged and administered by Thistle Tenant Risks a trading style of Thistle Insurance Services Limited. Thistle Insurance Services Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority FRN 310419. Registered in England under No. 00338645. Registered office: Rossington’s Business Park, West Carr Road, Retford, Nottinghamshire, DN22 7SW. Thistle Insurance Services Limited is part of the PIB Group.

For information about what Thistle Insurance Services Limited does with personal data, please see their Privacy Policy.

Most of our flats have a shared digital TV aerial and some of the newer ones also have a Sky TV connection. You won’t be allowed to put up any additional aerials or satellite dishes if you live in a flat or maisonette.

If you live in a house, it’s important that you get our written permission first before putting up any TV aerials. Some of our properties are listed buildings and may need planning permission first. You’ll be responsible for looking after any aerials that you choose to put up.

You will need to write to us if you wish to keep a pet in your property. If you have your own garden and private entrance we’ll usually let you keep a pet but you’ll need to ask us first. We’ll only let you keep smaller pets like fish or birds if you live in a flat. You must make sure your pets don’t cause a nuisance or disturb your neighbours. Please send us a message through your My Rosebery account or call us.

If you decide to work from home, you’ll need to get in touch with us first. We’ll need to check that the job you want to do doesn’t break any conditions of your tenancy or cause problems with your neighbours. Depending on the type of job you want to do, you may need permission from the local authority or similar organisations. Please send us a message through your My Rosebery account or call us.

If there are pests in the communal areas of your building, please report this to Rosebery. Message us through your My Rosebery account or call us to discuss the issue.

If there are pests inside your property, then it is a resident’s responsibility. If you have a pest problem, you can contact your local councils Environment Health Officer for advice and they may be able to assist households on low incomes with treatment options.

• Epsom and Ewell Borough Council
• Crawley Borough Council
• Guildford Borough Council
• Reigate and Banstead Borough Council
• Mole Valley District Council
• Tandridge District Council

Please visit our Anti-Social Behaviour page in My Neighbourhood to read our advice on ASB.

If you are a general needs resident, you can move house via mutual exchange or internal transfer.

The quickest way to move is through mutual exchange. We work with two mutual exchange sites including Homeswapper and Movemaker. You can sign up for FREE on both sites, add your property requirements and swap homes with someone else.

For an internal transfer, you will be assessed by Rosebery if you wish to be placed on our transfer list and will be assigned on a points-based system.

If you are already in a Rosebery property and would like to move to one of our Housing for Older people schemes, you will need to speak to your Neighbourhood Officer who can talk through your options. If you are not living in a Rosebery property, you will need to apply directly through Epsom and Ewell Borough council.

Rosebery have three Housing for Older people schemes situated in Epsom and Ewell – John Gale Court, Norman Colyer Court and Tomlin Court.

Please visit our Housing for Older people FAQs page for more details.

You must give us 28 days notice in writing if you wish to end your tenancy, and it must end on a Sunday (the closest Sunday following your notice). Rosebery will arrange for a new resident to move into the property and may wish to arrange a viewing.

Your Neighbourhood Officer will inspect your property to make sure it is in a good condition. All of your furniture, carpets and belongings must be removed unless we’ve agreed otherwise and the property must be left clean and tidy once you leave the property.

If you are in rent arrears and cannot clear your rent account, you must speak to your Neighbourhood Officer.

If one of our residents passes away, we’ll offer as much advice as we can to their next of kin. Please let us know straight away if someone close to you has died. We understand that this is a difficult time, and we’re here to help. We’ll be able to deal with any questions you might have about their tenancy and home.

If you are a spouse, partner or close family member, you may be able to take over the tenancy if you have been living with them for 12 months or longer. If there is no next of kin, we will contact the public trustee.

You are allowed to have a lodger in your home as long as your home does not become overcrowded. You must let us know in writing the name of your lodger, age, gender and how much you are charging to rent a room as the amount cannot be more than the rent we charge you.

You can only sub-let your home if you are a shared owner or a leaseholder.

If you have a sole tenancy and you want to add another adult, you will need to send us their details in writing. You’ll need to include proof that they have been living at your address for at least one year and that it has been their main home. We won’t be able to make this change if:

• You’ve missed rent payments
• You’ve broken the rules of your tenancy agreement
• The property isn’t big enough
• The person you want to add to your tenancy already owns their own home or has another tenancy
• They owe money to us or another social landlord or have been evicted in the past

If you would like to add a partner to your tenancy, please send us a message through your My Rosebery account or call us.

If joint tenants decide they don’t want to live together, they need to agree who stays in the property and becomes the sole tenant. If you can’t agree, you’ll need to apply to court for a decision to be made. The type of tenancy you have may also affect whether you can add someone. Rosebery will only change a joint tenancy to a sole tenancy if:

• Both residents have agreed to the change
• The person leaving their home tells us in writing that they are giving up the tenancy. They’ll need to get legal advice to help them with this and send a formal ‘notice to quit’.
• There is a court order

The type of tenancy you have can affect how you how you change from a joint to sole tenancy. If you would like to remove a person from a joint tenancy, please send us a message through your My Rosebery account or call us.

Please visit our Owning Your Own Home page for further details on Right to Buy or Right to Acquire.

Yes – we do have garages to rent in the Epsom and Ewell area. If you are a resident, you can rent a garage from us at a discounted rate. However, if you are in rent arrears, you cannot rent a garage until your debts have been cleared. To rent a garage, please send us a message through your My Rosebery account or call us.. If we have no garages available to rent, you will be placed in a waiting list.

If you are going away for more than 28 days, you must inform Rosebery to let us know where you are going, how long you expect to be away and if someone will be in your property whilst you are away.

Please note you must continue to pay your rent whilst you are away.

You can find out who your Neighbourhood Officer is on the ‘Housing Officer’ page in your My Rosebery account.

You can also message them directly through your account.

If you became a resident of Epsom and Ewell Borough Council before their housing was transferred to us in 1994, you may have the right to buy your home. To find out whether you qualify for this right, please get in touch with us and we will let you know.

If you’re a housing association resident currently not eligible for Right to Buy, you can get updates on changes that might affect you by signing up here to the official Right to Buy Housing Association Register.

There is strict criteria about who is eligible for this. We can tell you if your home meets this criteria, so if you would like to request further information, please get in touch with our Neighbourhood Team via your My Rosebery account or talk to us via live chat.