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Residents will receive wider access to affordable housing with a new Choice Based Lettings service delivered in partnerships across the region by Chester & District Housing Trust (CDHT).

CDHT is working with Weaver Vale Housing Trust, Ellesmere Port & Neston Borough Council, Vale Royal Borough Council and Chester City Council to deliver the unified 'Choice Based Lettings’ service called Trust HomeChoice for residents across the new Cheshire West and Chester region.

The new service recognises the success of Chester HomeChoice over the last two years and the expansion will offer wider choice and access to affordable housing. A partnership group has been formed and actions are in place to ensure the new service is made available in the coming 12 months in line with the new authority Cheshire West & Chester (CWAC). Further information and consultation exercises are planned to start shortly.

Dave Shaw, Assistant Director Customer & Housing Access and chair of the Trust HomeChoice group, said:
"Trust HomeChoice will deliver happier communities with a wider area of choice than has been previously available. CDHT is the lead partner for Trust HomeChoice. Our experience has seen a significant decrease in evictions, less tenancy failures, increased customer satisfaction and a more positive effect on communities and sustainability by introducing choice based letting in 2006. We are excited about expanding this concept across the whole region under the new authority and by working together with key partners we believe we can deliver this."

Charlie Seward, Director of Regeneration and Culture at CWAC, added:
"Trust HomeChoice is a great example of different groups working together in the new local authority. The new, larger local authority will provide residents with greater choice across a wider area."

Helen Hughes, Property Options Manager for CDHT, said:
"Choice based letting has supported our commitment to create better communities. In the past, if anyone was offered a property and refused it, they lost their place in the queue and if they took it up they resented the fact that they had to take it. A lack of choice sometimes led people into areas where they didn't want to be. With choice based lettings, evictions are down and tenant satisfaction increased within homes and communities."