How To Contact Us By Telephone (8.30am to 5pm, Monday to Friday) Freephone 0800 587 3595, For out-of-hours emergency repairs, Switchboard 020 7288 8310 please phone 0800 195 5255 or fax Minicom 020 7354 9121 01444 446458 In Person (8.30am to 5pm, Monday to Friday) 4-6 Colebrooke Place, or Omnibus Business Centre, London, N1 8HZ North Road, London, N7 9DP By Email [email protected] Through Our Website www.partnersislington.net By Post Please send all letters to our Colebrooke Place Office TRANSLATION AVAILABLE If you would like this document in another language or format, or if you require the services of an interpreter, please contact us on our freephone number 0800 587 3595. PARTNERS FOR IMPROVEMENT IN ISLINGTON YOUR TENANCY hr‚rxU spxoxg Aredrk AscKrk Bengali Η μίσθωσή σας Greek O seu arrendamento Portuguese Heshiiskaaga Kireysiga Somali Su arrendamiento Spanish Kiracılığınız Turkish Tenancy Management Services Even though your property is managed by Partners you are still a tenant of the Council, and you have a secure tenancy. Your secure tenancy gives you a number of legal rights. The services connected to these are provided by Partners Tenancy Officers. For further information about any of these services you can refer to your Tenants Handbook, visit our website at: www.partnersislington.net or contact your Tenancy Officer by calling: 0800 587 3595 Succession If you are a secure tenant, the law gives certain people the right to succeed to (take over) your tenancy when you die. These people are: • Joint Tenants • Spouse of civil partners • Partner or another family member such as a son or daughter Assignment If you need to leave your property to live elsewhere, the law gives you the right to assign (hand over) your tenancy to someone else in some circumstances. You can assign the tenancy only to those people who would have the right to succeed (see the section above on succession). If you have succeeded to the tenancy (taken it over from someone who died), you don’t have the right to assign it. Assignment of a tenancy is a complex legal process. If you are considering it, you should seek independent legal advice. The person applying to succeed to or be assigned a tenancy must give proof of their identity, where they live and their relationship with you, when we ask them to. If the property is too big for the successor, we will ask them to move to a smaller one. By law, a tenancy can only be succeeded to, or assigned once. Sole and joint tenancies If you have a sole tenancy and later want to change to a joint tenancy, you must contact us. We will agree to change from a sole to a joint tenancy in certain circumstances. But you don’t have the right to insist on a joint tenancy. One person in a joint tenancy can end it at any time even if the other person doesn’t agree. Lodgers A lodger is someone living with you in your property and paying you rent. You have the right to take in lodgers as long as we, as the landlord, think this is reasonable. If you wish to take in a lodger, you must ask us for permission. You cannot sublet the whole of your property. Moving Home The Council has produced ‘Your Guide to Housing’ to explain to Islington residents the housing options available to them. The booklet includes detailed information on schemes such as private renting, shared ownership and other housing schemes. You can find the booklet on the Islington Council’s website (www.islington.gov.uk), or get a copy from either of our offices or any of the Council’s area housing offices (run by Homes for Islington). Mutual Exchange You can swap homes (do a ‘mutual exchange’) with another tenant of a Council or housing association, but you must first get permission from both landlords. Right to Buy You have the right to buy your home at a discount when you have lived in the property for at least two or five years, depending whether your tenancy started before or after 18 January 2005. Home Improvements You have the right to improve your home as long as we, as your landlord, think this is reasonable and you must ask for our permission first. The Right to Manage A tenants’ or residents’ organisation has the right to set up a Tenant Management Organisation, which may be able to take on responsibility for the day-to-day management of your homes. If you would like more information about this right, please contact us. Keeping a pet Your conditions of tenancy allow you to keep up to two cats, one dog or a small caged animal or fish in an aquarium, but you mustn’t let any of your pets annoy anyone else. If you want to have a dog, it mustn’t be a listed dangerous breed.