These activities may be:
- Seminars, conferences, workshops
- Booklet and guides
- Webinars and videos
- Research
Some of this activity may be undertaken directly by the Foundation whilst other aspects may be delivered by others through a grant funded programme.
The TDS Charitable Foundation is supporting the following projects:
Manchester CAB: £25,000 [Ongoing]
The funding will be used for the continuation of the Chatbot project, increasing availability of the product as well as creating a self contained initial advice chatbot that can easily be ported to any website.
The Chatbot has been successfully added to the central TDS website to assist Agents, Landlords and tenants with queries they may have outside of deposit protection. The TDS chatbot can be accessed via the TDS Information lounge here
Centre for Sustainable Energy: £9,985
The funding was used for the ‘Support with MEES’ project which aims to build upon the successes of the previously funded ‘Get Ready for MEES’ project. The project included the delivery of online accessible, interactive and engaging MEES events.
More information on the TDS Charitable Foundation funded MEES project can be found here: Advice for landlords on new minimum energy efficiency standards | Centre for Sustainable Energy (cse.org.uk)
Information for landlords on the MEES regulations can be found here: Guidance for landlords on Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) | Centre for Sustainable Energy (cse.org.uk)
Exeter Private Rental Forum: £9,943.29 [Ongoing]
The funding will be used to tackle how tenancies are managed, both in terms of day-to-day physical management throughout the stages of a tenancy, but also to ensure that the paperwork and safeguards of good tenancy management are in place. Building on training existing letting agents who have attended training on physical defects (in SR4E I), as well as “under the radar” landlords. Using iSpring Solutions software as a platform to create and deliver online learning courses and content.
The Eye FM: £2,000 [Ongoing]
To produce information and advisory bulletins under the title Responsible Renting for tenants and landlords and broadcast these on air up to six times times a day at set times within normal programming
People, Potential, Possibilities: £7,900 [Ongoing]
To create bite-size videos using plain English, infographics, photography, film and animation. These will be presented by real people with first hand knowledge about the subjects. The videos created can be accessed here
CaCHE: £197,014
The UK Collaborative Centre for Housing Evidence [CaCHE] has been funded by the TDS Charitable Foundation and the SafeDeposits Scotland Charitable Trust to undertake a broad and diverse
programme of research on issues relating to developments in, and operation of, the UK private rented sector.
The broad objective of the programme is to contribute to improving standards in the sector. This aligns with the key charitable objective of both the TDS Charitable Foundation and SafeDeposits Scotland Charitable Trust to raise standards in the private rented sector by advancing education on housing rights and obligations.
The published reports can be found here
Ulster University Students Union: £5,146 [Ongoing]
Funding is being used to train and equip seven Students’ Union Officers, Advice Coordinator, Advice Caseworker and a member of Student Support with the OCN accredited Level 3 Housing Advice Training Programme (HATP). It will also cover annual membership of the Housing Rights Network as well as Rent Right videos.
Shropshire Housing Alliance: £5,000
Funding used to host a specific area on the existing website for a bespoke YouTube channel enhancing information in an existing tenant handbook as well as allowing updates to be publicised in real time.
South Hams Citizens Advice Bureau: £5,000
Funding used to continue the previously funded project of an Adviser providing a range of energy efficiency information and advice, including offering free energy efficiency assessments, to low income households living in private rented properties.
Oxford CAB: £5,000
Funding used to provide tenancy rights information in five languages (Spanish, Portuguese, Polish and Italian, plus English) to be disseminated on direct website as well as partner platforms as part of a dedicated week long campaign to raise awareness of tenants’ rights.
Citizens Advice Manchester: £21,000
Utilising the Facebook messenger platform to build an Advicebot; machine learning to provide advice 24 hours a day, provide early access and deliver in the way that users are now requesting.
Law For Life: £19,805
Produce 3 practical guides for private tenants who are threatened with homelessness; complemented with 4 regional workshops for intermediaries to ensure maximum take up and reach of the information.
Bristol Citizens Advice Bureau: £10,258
Student focussed campaign with social media, radio, a presence at Freshers week, information stalls in common areas of Bristol University, newsletter and student focussed event at the West of Englands Landlord Expo
Bromley by Bow Centre: £25,000
Recruit a part-time Community Development Officer who will promote the ‘Tower Hamlets rental charter’ throughout the borough, raising awarenessand ensuring that the charter is implemented more consistently and effectively.
Refugee Council: £10,000
Contribution towards the London based ‘refugee private rented scheme.’ Providing advice sessions and group pre-tenancy support to prepare newly recognised refugees for searching, securing and maintaining tenancies
Sutton Borough Citizens Advice Bureau: £22,181
Training package to give trainee volunteers the necessary skills for the provision of information and advice and an understanding of how to obtain and then provide accurate, relevant and up to date information
Fair Housing For Frome: £9,700
Six interrelated areas of work achieved through a range of promotional materials, services and events
Brent Private Tenant’s Rights Group t/a Advice for Renters: £18,650
A dedicated worker to address gatherings or migrant and refugee renters
Stride Partnership: £10,640
12 month training program of training workshops
Propertymark Qualifications: £50,000
The Development of centre based programmes
Easton and Lawrence Hill Neighbourhood Management: £7,299.50
Creating and publicising a special housing edition of Up Our Street magazine which is delivered to 13,000 residences in Easton and Lawrence Hill.
Community Links Bromley: £8,870
Creating an online toolkit for new tenants entering into the PRS in the Borough of Bromley. The toolkit can be found here http://www.tenantandlandlordtoolkit.co.uk/
South Hams Citizens Advice Bureau: £9,918
Enabling personalised advice appointments for landlords and tenants through the project ‘Sustainable Tenancies’, designed to raise awareness of housing rights & responsibilities with a focus on recent and forthcoming changes in energy regulations.
Father Hudson’s Care: £9,994
Developing the ‘Safe & Sound’ project – Improving understanding and sustaining tenancies for new migrants’ project which supports refugees and EU migrants to secure and sustain tenancies.
Centre for Sustainable Energy: £14,050
Supporting landlords in the South West to better understand their obligations around new Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES).
Firvale Community Hub: £9,984.16
An information worker will work directly with Working with Slovak Roma families to explain the tenancy agreement and responsibilities of a tenant as well as providing resources.
Living Options Devon: £11,143.28
Creating easy to understand information about Housing Rights and Responsibilities using British Sign Language video clips. http://www.livingoptions.org/deaf-tenants-rights-and-responsibilities
Newcastle City Council (Private Rented Service): £12,000
Developing a series of short educational films for tenants to help them understand their rights and responsibilities.
Avon and Bristol Law Centre (ABLC): £7,184.00
Offering weekly, bookable, free, tenancy information sessions supported by volunteer law students.
Ealing Equality Council: £3612
Extending successfully delivered and TDS supported tenancy advice and guidance surgeries; twenty four free walk in tenancy guidance and support surgeries from a ‘Pop Up’ location on Haven Green, Ealing Broadway.
Arch (North Staffs) Ltd: £15,008
A training programme to equip young people for independent living in the private rented sector.
Law for Life: £11,560
A project to develop training and guidance materials/film on guarantor issues in housing
https://www.advicenow.org.uk/help-private-renters
Enfield Citizens Advice Bureau: £1,500
A small grant to establish the Enfield Housing Alliance Forum.
Open Doors Housing; £8,250
A grant to fund the development of training materials and video clips for tenants.
Leeds University Students Union: £11,989
An innovative project providing advice and support for students moving into the private rented sector; including a buddying scheme.
Brent Private Tenants’ Group: £18,650
A grant to develop training and advice services for migrant and refugee renters.
Stride Partnership: £10,640
Funding for a 12 month series of tenants training and workshops.
Cardiff Tenants and Residents Association: £10,000
This is a grant to establish a dedicated website providing advice to tenants in Wales.
EFA London: £12,396
This is a programme to provided training for tenants in East London on their rights and responsibilities.
Law for Life: £20,000
A follow on project developing advice and training materials for tenants.
4 The Community: £12,550
This is a project based in Rhyl to provide advice and support to tenants living in HMOs on their rights and responsibilities.
Ealing Equality Council: £3,612
This project has funded a series of 24 free walk in surgeries on tenants rights in Ealing.
Young Enterprise and Personal Finance Education Group (PFEG): £20,000
This project helps young people in their transition into independent living by providing a new financial education teaching resource for 14-19 year olds. The resource provide young people with information on the housing market, the options available to young people when they leave home, and the costs they will need to prepare for.
https://www.pfeg.org/resources/details/practical-guide-housing-through-financial-education
Warrington Youth Club: £2,374
Warrington Youth Club’s ‘Positive Life Skills’ programme helped young care leavers in their transition from carers to an independent lives. The TDS Charitable Foundation grant helped this hard to reach group as they prepared for their transition from carers to independent living, providing workshops on their rights and responsibilities as tenants.
Unipol Student Homes: £10,112
Unipol provided a new website for Accreditation Network UK (ANUK). ANUK promotes landlord accreditation programmes across the UK and the improved website, managed by Unipol, includes a directory of landlord accreditation schemes and downloadable accreditation handbooks. It also contributes towards one of their core aims, in the promotion of proper complaints processes to be transparent, rapid, and known to tenants. The ANUK website can be found here: http://www.anuk.org.uk/
NUS Ready to Rent: £17,295
The funding was used to extend the Ready to Rent programme to Further Education Student Unions and to parents and teachers. Ready to Rent was originally launched with the support from the Foundation, and has become well established as a resource and training provider.
Advice4Renters: £6,460
Selective licensing of landlords was due to be introduced in Brent in January 2015, and the grant was used to fund a leaflet and education for tenants in Willesden Green explaining the selective licensing scheme. AdviceforRenters Guide Feb 22 2015 compressed
KIC FM: £6,000
Awareness campaign by a youth community radio station, creating social media and other online resources on tenants’ rights and responsibilities, and ‘on the ground’ activity in the Wolverhampton area.
Keyhouse: £6,000
Funding for open door events in Keighley and Bradford with talks, information, and educational materials for private landlords, to advance knowledge around housing rights and their obligations.
National Union of Students: £20,000
The grant was for the delivery of a tenant training programme for students, rolled out through students’ unions across the UK. The training equips students with the knowledge and understanding they need to make a success of their time in the private rented sector, both during their student careers and beyond; develop a cohort of ‘pathfinders’ in the sector whose knowledge and understanding will spread to others they live and have contact with; improve communication between landlords and tenants; and improve the confidence of student tenants in advocating their rights. http://readytorent.nus.org.uk/
Chartered Institute of Housing: £6,300
The funding supported a complete revamp of the CIH online information service http://www.housing-rights.info/ to fully cover the private rented sector aimed at both existing and prospective tenants and their advisers. It is of particular benefit to recent migrants who are often forced into poorer parts of the sector and are unaware of their rights and find it difficult to access advice services.
Caerphilly County Borough Council – Equalities and Welsh Language Team: £5,000
The project produced equalities/discrimination guidance for private landlord groups, the National Landlords Association, housing associations, Welsh local government and Citizens Advice Bureaux, which can be adapted to local circumstances. The Guidance document covers the Common Housing Register and equality laws, landlord and tenant case law examples, a ‘know your tenant’ guide, a list of contact details for local and national equalities organisations that landlords and tenants can access for further advice and support. caerfilly county council landlord guide
Generation Rent: £2,500
The grant paid for the production and distribution of an engaging “Know Your Rights & Responsibilities” poster and a guide to renters’ rights and responsibilities. The information communicates current rights and responsibilities under the law and list resources for further help, with space for each local area to list local resources.
Law for Life: £3,800
Funding for a needs assessment of the information needs of landlords and tenants. The study is available here: Tenants-in-the-Private-Rented-Sector-October-2015
Designs on Property: £14,939
Funding for a series of research papers. These will be published as produced.
Report 1: Who are the landlords? TDSCF Report 1 who are our landlords final
Report 2: Accidental landlords. TDSCF report 2 The impact of accidental Landlords on the PRS final Aug 1
Report 3: Enforcement of Rules and Regulations. TDSCF report 3 Enforcement
Report 4: How do we stamp out damp, condensation and mould? TDSCF Report 4 – Damp, Mould and Condensation
Report 5: Reducing conflicts between tenants, landlords and letting agents. TDSCF Report 5 – How can conflicts between tenants, landlords and letting agents be reduced?
Report 6: What tenants need to do to rent TDS Report 6 – What tenants need to do to rent
Report 7: What are the real legal requirements and costs of letting a property, and how can we communicate them better to landlords and tenants? TDSCF Report 7 – What are the real legal requirements and costs of letting a property
Report 8: What levels of return do buy to let investors expect and need their property investment to deliver, when and how? Report 8: What levels of return do buy to let investors expect and need their property investment to deliver, when and how?
Report 9: Has the private rented sector grown because people want to rent, or because they cannot afford to buy? Has the private rented sector grown because people want to rent, or because they cannot afford to buy?
Report 10: Motivating landlords and tenants on their rights and responsibilities. Motivating landlords and tenants on their rights and responsibilities
Report 11: What do parents buying a property for their children’s student accommodation need to know? Would
they be better off using bespoke student accommodation instead? What do parents buying a property for their children’s student accommodation need to know? Would they be better off using bespoke student accommodation instead?
Report 12: Communicating new EPC rules to landlords and tenants Communicating new EPC rules to landlords and tenants
City College Norwich: £20,000
Training and qualifications for school leavers to encourage employment in the letting agency sector.
Residential Landlord Association: £7,500
The grant funded the creation of landlord and tenant training pack, based on an updated version of the ANUK handbook.
Ealing Equality Council: £3,612
Funding for the delivery of 24 walk in tenancy support surgeries from a pop up shop.