Uniform Private Sector Housing

"Enabling smarter private sector housing services."

Uniform for Private Sector Housing is designed to simplify the role of housing officers. From helping manage processes for grant allocation and inspections to providing a central repository of housing information for analysis and monitoring, as well as enabling modelling of future property needs, Uniform for Private Sector Housing reduces the administrative burden.

What's more the software is regularly updated to ensure that it is always in line with the latest government legislation. Whether in terms of managing the financial aspects of private sector housing or amending strategic plans in line with new directives, Uniform is a hugely valuable tool.

Uniform Private Sector Housing modules

The Uniform Private Sector Housing System comprises two key component modules:

Residential Premises module

Clearly, any Private Sector Housing team needs to maintain a comprehensive record of all properties within its area.

Uniform Private Sector Housing simplifies this process by:

Property details – all information about premises, such as owner and agent details, tenant information and addresses is entered using standard forms created within Uniform. The data is logged in a central database.
Inspections – Uniform provides an excellent means of managing workflow. Inspection dates are automatically scheduled and reminders provided. Standard forms are included in the software to record and manage enforcement actions.
Risk assessments – to ensure a consistent approach to risk assessments, Uniform offers a standard risk assessment form and processing tool.
Spatial – spatial functionality enables officers to view private sector housing geographically, helping allocate resources and gain a greater insight into under-provisioned/over-provisioned areas.

Multiple occupancy

Many premises today are used for multiple occupancy, with a number of constituent flats. Uniform helps manage these multiple occupancy buildings, through features such as:

Flat sizes – information on the size of each flat is recorded in a central repository, helping determine maximum residency and combating overcrowding.
Flat facilities – Uniform> enables officers to store information about facilities provided in flats including heating, plumbing and power to ensure that standards are adhered to.
Tenancy details – to help in arbitration and maintain accurate records of tenants, Uniform provides standard forms for noting details of tenants and leases and letting arrangements.
Spatial – officers can view multiple occupancy information on a map, enabling them to better understand the geographic spread of multiple occupancy buildings.

Housing surveys

Uniform can help meet the government requirement that detailed housing surveys are conducted regularly. It provides such key features as:

Questionnaire creation – to help devise questionnaires and other input forms and ensure all data fields are covered, Uniform includes a standard system for questionnaire creation.
Data entry – using any browser-compatible device, Uniform enables simple data entry into the central system, providing an accurate, constantly updated database for analysis.
Spatial analysis – by giving officers the ability to visualise housing survey data, Uniform empowers greater analysis of the housing stock, helping identify under provisioned areas, failing landlords and other important trends.

Renewal assessments

A powerful but underused feature of Uniform, renewal assessments helps Private Sector Housing teams make better decisions about renewal – and be better equipped to justify such decisions at public inquiry or arbitration – through such features as:

Net present value calculation – by incorporating a variety of datasets, Uniform enables authorities to gain an accurate understanding of the net present value of a property.
Renovation – to help make a decision on whether a property is worthy of renovation, Uniform calculates the costs and potential value of the renovated property.
Demolition – by conducting a number of analyses, Uniform can help officers decide on whether a property should be condemned to demolition.
Re-build – as well as enabling officers to project the value and cost of renovation, Uniform also offers a means of assessing the cost and value of re-building the property.
Spatial – a crucial part of the analytical process is to understand the consequences of a decision for properties in the immediate proximity. Uniform Spatial helps officers gain a greater understanding of what properties would be affected by decisions and how.

Renovation Grants module

One of the biggest tasks of Private Sector Housing teams is to manage the award and processing of renovation grants.

Uniform helps officers perform these tasks through such features as:

Enquiry – Uniform provides a standard set of forms for logging initial grant enquiries. These are linked into a workflow system, ensuring that enquiries are dealt with effectively.
Assessment – as part of the workflow, Uniform includes a solution for scheduling assessment dates.
Inspections – all grant applications must be assessed using standard processes and inspections carried out in a consistent way. Uniform provides a platform for achieving this.
Schedule of works – once the need for work is established, Uniform provides a standard printed form to establish prices for the works from different contractors. All details about prices, deadlines and other key factors are recorded, ensuring the decision making process is transparent.
Payment – as a security feature, Uniform only allows authorised users to sign off payments.
Reports – standard reports can be easily generated through templates within the Uniform solution.

Test of resources

A key determinant in the award of all grants is a test of resources. Uniform includes standard tools for assessing tenants and owner occupiers including:

Income (employed) – all details including employer contacts are recorded in a central, consistent way.
Income (self-employed) – relevant financial information is stored and managed.
Benefits – details of any benefits received are recorded.
Capital and Land – details on any other income, savings, or property is also stored.
Calculation – using built-in calculations based on the latest government figures, Uniform enables instant calculation of grants, subject to applicable amounts and premiums. The software is updated whenever government legislation changes.

Information about landlords is also recorded using the following screen:

Rent income – to assess the rights to grants of landlords, income from rent is recorded alongside projected income from rent if the proposed work is completed.

Integration of other modules and functions

Uniform Private Sector Housing integrates closely with several other Uniform modules, especially Environmental Health and Planning. Because all modules can work from the same central database and common information, integration between these areas is facilitated, leading to improved services for the citizen.

Further details about Uniform Private Sector Housing can be found in our brochure which is available for download.