PLANS to reshape the way in which council homes are allocated have been approved.

Responding to priority housing needs in Harrow is a particularly daunting task, with just 10 per cent of the boroughs housing being social housing compared to the London average at 24 per cent, and the national average of 17 per cent.

Harrow Council approved the bold plans at a cabinet meeting on Thursday last week. The changes will mean new tenants will no longer have security of tenure for life and after a 12-month probationary period, the council will assess a candidates’ suitability for a five-year tenancy.

By the end of that tenancy, the council will reconsider whether the tenant remains an appropriate candidate for social housing.

There are 4,000 people currently on the waiting list for only 5,000 houses.

Harrow Council’s portfolio holder for housing, councillor Bob Currie said: “It is vital we make the best use of the limited supply we have.”

Divisional director for housing at the council, Lynne Pennington said the changes are ‘some of the biggest changes the housing commission has ever seen’.