Check if you are eligible for Health and Housing points
You are only eligible if your current home impacts your long-term health condition or disability, to the extent you can no longer remain there. For example, if it limits your ability to carry out day-to-day tasks. Temporary conditions such as an injury do not qualify.
We assess your circumstances to understand the risk to your health if you stay in your current home. Points are only given when all three conditions apply:
- A medical condition is caused or made worse by your current housing
- It has been assessed that your current home cannot be improved either for structural reasons, or adapted to meet your needs at a reasonable cost
- Moving to a new property will significantly improve your condition, or your ability to manage it.
If you receive PIP or DLA it does not mean that you will also be eligible for Health and Housing points. This is because they look at your care and mobility needs, rather than how this relates to your housing.
Health and Housing point categories
There are two levels of priority for health and housing needs.
Category 1: 500 points
Your medical condition and housing circumstances are having a serious impact on your health and wellbeing. You are assessed as being in urgent need of rehousing as remaining in your current home poses a significant health risk.
Category 2: 150 points
Your medical condition and housing circumstances are having an impact on your health and wellbeing. You are assessed as needing rehousing. Moving will help to improve your condition, or your ability to manage it.
In 2020/21:
- 5,000 households were assessed for Health and Housing points
- Only 1 in 10 people who completed a Health and Disability Questionnaire were found eligible for health and housing points
- For every 10 people who were eligible for Health and Housing points, 8 received 150 points and 2 received 500 points
How Health and Housing points are assessed
Tell us about a medical condition affected by your housing
You can tell us about any medical condition in your household affected by your housing. You can do this when you apply to join the register or report a change in circumstances.
If a medical condition impacts your housing, we may send you a Health and Disability questionnaire. You must complete and return it within 21 days. You must include all relevant supporting documents as requested in the form.
If you need help to complete the Health and Disability Questionnaire, you can:
- Ask a friend or family member
- Use a computer at a Camden Library
- Call Contact Camden on 020 7974 4444
Supporting documents
You need to provide relevant documents that describe your condition. Make sure that everything you send is clear and easy to read. Documents should be scans or clear, in-focus photos.
All supporting documents should be returned at the same time as the Health Questionnaire. If you choose to email them, they must be sent as separate attachments. Documents embedded within the body of the email are unable to be considered. A Health and Housing Occupational Therapist or medical professional will use these to assess your case.
You should provide at least one of the following:
- Evidence that describes any current medical conditions. This should be a recent and relevant letter or report from a specialist involved in your healthcare.
- Any existing brief medical summaries. For example from a GP, consultant or hospital discharge; occupational therapy or physiotherapy report. We advise against contacting your GP or health professional to obtain additional information about your condition. This can cause delays and often involves a payment. Medical Assessment Officers will contact you if they require additional information.
- If you have had contact with Camden's Adult Social Care or Children’s Social Services then you can give consent for a Health and Housing OT or medical professional to access your digital health record through the Health Information Exchange (HIE). You can do this by providing your NHS number. Your NHS number should be on a hospital letter, NHS card or your GP surgery can tell you. You also need a signed consent form which is on the last page of the questionnaire.
If a Health and Housing OT accesses your digital health record, it will only be for the purpose of assessing your case. Please do not include:
- Letters about appointments with a hospital, doctor, or other health service
- Photos of surgery scars or wounds
- Documents not relevant to a current health condition for you or a member of your household
- Copies of prescriptions
- Confirmation of PIP or DLA
Return your questionnaire and supporting documents
You must return your questionnaire and supporting documents within 21 working days from the date that the questionnaire was sent. The date is written at the top of the cover letter sent with the questionnaire.
Return by post:
Allocations Service
London Borough of Camden
Town Hall
Judd Street
London, WC1H 9JE
Drop into the white post box in the reception of our office:
London Borough of Camden
5 Pancras Square
London, N1C 4AG
What happens next
Assessment by the Health and Housing Occupational Therapist (OT) or medical professional
Once we have received your completed questionnaire the Health and Housing OT or medical professional will assess your case. They will consider all information and supporting documentation that you have provided. They will assess it fairly against Camden's housing allocations scheme (PDF). You may be contacted for further information as part of this.
Once we make a decision, we'll send you a letter telling you the outcome of the assessment.
How long it takes for a decision
We carry out around 5,000 assessments each year. This means that we cannot assess your case as fast we would like to. We know this can be difficult for you while you wait.
We are working on ways to improve this. Our ambition is 21 working days, but we currently have delays of 10 to 12 weeks. We ask that you bear with us during this period.
Bidding during an assessment
If you are already on Camden's Housing Register you can submit a change in circumstances. You can use this to tell us about a medical condition that is impacted by your housing. If you meet certain criteria you may be asked to fill in a Health and Disability Questionnaire.
You will not be able to bid for a property while we assess your Health and Disability Questionnaire. We will let you know the outcome of our assessment and you will then be able to bid again.
Explore your housing options
It's a good idea to explore all your housing options. Unfortunately, you may wait a long time to get a council or housing association home.
Applicants have told us that they would have considered other housing options if they'd known how long the wait for housing would be.