Lighthouse Mortgage and Protection Solutions | UNISON Member Benefits

Independent mortgage advice at preferential rates. UNISON Living’s trusted partner can help you save on the most important thing you’re ever likely to buy.

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Have you ever said, what as UNISON ever done for me?

#ItsOkNotToBeOk #mentalhealthawareness

Did you know that if you text 07725 909090 when you are feeling really depressed, a crisis counsellor will text with you? Many people don't like talking on the phone & find it difficult to open up to friends and family. Some people would be more comfortable texting. It's a service run by Samaritans. Please copy, paste & pass on (rather than sharing). You never know who might be needing it. #ItsOkNotToBeOk #mentalhealthawareness

World suicide prevention day

We need to hear your voice

Do you work in the public sector, and would like to own your own home but feel that you’re being priced out of the housing market? If this is the case and you’d be prepared to talk to the media about your experience, please get in touch with the UNISON press office: press@unison.co.uk

Message from Nigel Kennedy, Head of Financial Services, Oxford City Council

Message from Nigel Kennedy, Head of Financial Services, Oxford City Council

Colleagues may have seen news reports that Oxfordshire County Council announced plans for significant changes yesterday. The Leader of the County Council, Councillor Ian Hudspeth, said they wanted to introduce a new operating model to improve efficiency and increase the provision of services online. The County Council says it is seeking savings of £34-£58 million a year by streamlining services. It acknowledges this is likely to involve a reduction in staff numbers over time by up to 890 people, though it said it expected, with staff turnover of about 650 a year, that most of the jobs lost would be taken out of that pool, with a smaller level of compulsory redundancies. The proposals will go before the full County Council meeting on 11 September.

These savings were identified as part of last year’s budget setting process, and the County Council has been working on a plan with consultants for the last 12 months. The City Council set a balanced budget last year, over the four-year budget plan, with savings of around £7m already identified. We are in the process of reviewing the budget for the next four-year planning period, and whilst it’s safe to say we will have financial challenges we are not in the same financial position as the County Council.

Have your say on private tenancies

Members urged to join UNISON in responding to government consultation on proposals for longer private rent tenancies in England, by 26 August

Do you have any views on how to make longer tenancies easier in England’s privately rented housing sector? Well UNISON is asking you to share them with the government.

Westminster’s department of housing, communities and local government is in the middle of a consultation over proposals on “overcoming the barriers to longer tenancies in the private rented sector”.  As housing is a devolved matter in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, the proposals and consultation only cover England.

UNISON has produced a briefing on the consultation – which ends on 26 August – and the issues, which union activists or anyone else responding to the proposals should find useful.

The union will also be submitting a full national response to the proposals. These cover making tenancies longer, for a minimum of three years, and whether to implement a new tenancy framework by legislation, by introducing financial incentives to encourage landlords or by using education to raise awareness and bring about behavioural change.

We are also encouraging members, especially those who are private tenants, to respond to the consultation and make their voices heard in the debate on housing policy

UNISON welcomes the proposals, while arguing that they deed to go further in providing private tenants with greater security and stability. The union’s full response to the consultation will can for a new tenancy framework based on the Scottish “private residential tenancy”, introduced by the Private Housing (Tenancies) (Scotland) Act which came into force last year.

This is open-ended and provides tenants with greater security, stability and more predictability in their rent increases.

Click here to find out more and download the consultation paper