Frequently asked questions

How do I apply for a Livin home or bungalow?

We advertise all of our available homes on our Find A Home page, simply visit this page for more information.

Before you can place a bid on one of our homes, you must first have an active account with the relevant Choice Based Lettings Scheme. Almost all our homes are located in County Durham and therefore are allocated through the Durham Key Options scheme. Durham Key Options (DKO) is a partnership between Durham County Council and landlords across County Durham.

We have a small number of homes which are located outside Durham, these are all advertised through Tees Valley HomeFinder, Hartlepool HomeSearch and Darlington HomeSearch; They are similar to Durham Key Options but we do not process applications registered for these schemes. If you wish to register an application for homes advertised in this area, please apply directly.

Once your application is approved, you will then be able to bid on homes that meet your needs. You can access the application form directly by visiting the relevant Choice Based Lettings system.

How long will it take for my application to be processed?

We aim to start processing your application within 10 working days. If we require any further information after this point, we will contact you to ask for this. Once we have received all the required information we will notify you of our decision within 20 days, and if accepted we will activate your account. You can also check your application status online by logging into the DKO portal.

How can I get involved with Livin and help to shape services?

To find out more about the different ways you can get involved, please visit our getting involved section.

Can I apply to buy my home under Right to Buy?

Tenants who have been with Livin since before the transfer from Sedgefield Council in 2009 may have the “Preserved Right to Buy” their property. Full details of the scheme are available on the Government Right to Buy website. If you are thinking of applying, please contact us.

Can I apply to buy my home under Right to Acquire?

If you have been a tenant for 3 or more years you may have the right to buy your property under the Right to Acquire scheme. Full details of the scheme are available on the Government Right to Acquire website. If you are thinking of applying, please contact us.

More FAQ's

Greener Places Grant

Apply for a grant to help develop a project that could improve greener spaces, develop greener skills, and to support greener energy or a greener life in our communities.

Before you apply

We like to start by discussing your project with you to make sure we have all the details. This also helps us offer you the best grant.

You can contact our Community Investment Manager before applying to discuss your application.

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How much can I apply for?

Our Community Grants programme allows a maximum of £10,000. However, most projects that we support are usually between £2,000 and £5,000.

Social value

This places a financial value on how different interventions affect people's lives. It’s a way of measuring the positive benefits your work has on both individuals and communities. We can discuss this with you to see if your project can deliver social value and if so, we will support you to gather the required information.

Match funding

Where possible, all projects should have secured or should be seeking match funding – we can support and discuss this with you prior to applying to ensure you capture the full project cost as this could include volunteer time, which you can be costed.

Our area of operation

We only support applications that deliver their projects or services in Spennymoor, Middlestone Moor, Kirk Merrington, Aycliffe Village, West Cornforth, Dean Bank, Ferryhill, Newton Aycliffe, Middridge, Fishburn, Sedgefield, Trimdons, Bishop Middleham, Byers Green and Shildon.

How to apply

To apply for one of our grants, you will need to fill out our application form. Your project should fit one of our themes. Get in touch guidance for further information about applying, eligibility and timescales.

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Examples of projects that have used our Greener Places Grant:

Great Aycliffe Gardeners Guild

Clarence Chare Allotment holders and local residents from Newton Aycliffe come together with a dream of reinstating a Guild on the original site of the One Shop.

Together with support from Great Aycliffe Town Council, Durham County Council, and volunteers of the group they have secured planning permission and become a constituted group.
Funding from ourselves, Brightwater, Towns and Villages will enable them to purchase a range of huts and containers to kick-start the Guild.

They will sell a range of sustainable products to Guild members and the wider community whilst offering a depth of gardening knowledge to customers. They also plan to increase awareness of gardening and allotment skills through their program of activities aimed at children and young people.

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Western Partnership

Working alongside Western Partnership we developed local offers after consulting residents on the estate. One of the main issues people reported was the amount of litter destroying the beautiful open spaces on the estate.
Since our first Litter Pick, held in March 2023, where local residents, partner agencies, and elected members came together, we have held 20 more hour-long litter picks on the Estate with an average of 15 bags per pick. This equates to 300 bags of litter collected in the 20-month period.

You can find out more information about our litter-picking dates on our Facebook page.

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