A PROJECT to renovate empty private properties in exchange for them to be used for the homeless has been launched in Hertsmere.

The first homeless family has moved into an unused home in Bushey as part of the new scheme, but similar plans are underway for properties in Elstree and Borehamwood.

Hertsmere Borough Council successfully bid for £800,000 from the Government under the the Private Lease Agreements Converting Empties (PLACE) scheme, in November.

The council aims to renovate up to ten properties this year to act as a safety net for the homeless.

Owners of the first property to be converted declined to talk to the Borehamwood & Elstree Times, but the council said it had been empty for five years and needed major renovation work.

Cash from the scheme paid for a new kitchen and bathroom, windows and wiring, central heating and interior decorating.

Councillor Seamus Quilty (Con/Bushey Heath), housing portfolio holder, said: "I think it is a good project — it puts back into use valuable empty houses and provides a good resource for families on the council's waiting list.

"I am hoping we can have these properties spread across the borough, so if someone is made homeless there will be a property for them. It will act as a safety net for people across the borough."

The scheme is also expected to ease the financial burden of housing homeless people in temporary but expensive bed and breakfast establishments or hotels.

There are currently about 300 empty homes in Hertsmere, with 91 in Bushey and 46 in Radlett.

Owners often fail to rent out properties because they cannot afford repairs, or do not want to sell following the death of a relative.

Housing operational manager at Hertsmere Borough Council Kim Harwood said the scheme should provide a solution to some of the hundreds of homeless people within the borough.

She said: “We had 163 people approach us for housing last year and we have a statutory duty to provide many of them with accommodation. There is a real shortage of suitable homes and we often have to put families up in bed and breakfasts — a solution that is both expensive and disruptive to them and their children.”

There are legal criteria to determine whether applicants are homeless and to qualify for the scheme, people must live or work in the borough, or have close family residing there in the past five years.

Those chosen to occupy the empty properties must arrange a tenancy with the owner in the same way a private contract would work, and they have the option to live there for three years.

After that time, the landlord can either extend the contract or find another tenant.