If you are a secure lifetime council tenant you have the right to improve your home, but for some improvements it is a condition of your tenancy that you obtain written permission from us before you start work. We will not refuse permission unless we have a good reason. If we refuse permission we will inform you of the reasons why, and if you think this is unreasonable you can challenge the decision by appealing to the housing appeals sub-committee or by taking us to the county court.
If you are a secure flexible council tenant you do not have a right to make alterations or improvements to your home. However, if you do wish to make improvements we may consider an application for permission, you must, however, obtain any necessary planning permissions or building consents. This includes obtaining consent before the installation of a satellite dish or a television aerial on any part of the exterior of the property or any other property belonging to us. However, you will not be entitled to any compensation for improvements made to the property when your tenancy comes to an end.
As a council tenant you must not do anything which is likely to damage the structure of the building or cause damage to shared services, such as plumbing, water supply pipes, electricity, or gas supplies, or sewerage.
You may also need to obtain planning permission and building regulations consent before starting work. We do not need to know about minor work such as internal decorating, but we do need to know about any alterations which affect walls, windows, doorframes, plumbing, heating, gas and electrical services.
If you are not sure if you need permission you should check with your area housing office.
Email: housing.services@eastriding.gov.uk
Telephone: (01482) 393939
The kind of things that you will need permission for are:
Any addition or change to the structure or services in your home, including fixtures and fittings such as heating, plumbing and kitchen units, including:
- aerials and satellite dishes
- external decoration
- installation of new windows/doors
- loft conversion
- erection of shed/greenhouse
- installation of patio or driveway/hardstanding.
A lot of repairs are our responsibility and you do not need to do them. These repairs are specified in your tenancy agreement.
The following pdf explains how you can apply for permission to carry out work to your council property.
Council tenants request for permission to carry out works form (pdf 89kb)