Community Housing Fund: user guide for milestone payments - phase 1 capital grant claims, accessible version
Updated 3 March 2021
Applies to England
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/community-housing-fund-user-guide-for-online-milestone-payments/community-housing-fund-user-guide-for-milestone-payments-phase-1-capital-grant-claims-accessible-version
Homes England Online Milestone Payment Request Guidance
Version: 1
Date issued: September 2019
Details: Homes England guidance for providers to request milestone payments.
Chapter 1 - Introduction
Purpose of this guidance
The purpose of this document is to provide guidance for providers on how to request a milestone payment for approved Community Housing Fund (CHF) Phase One allocations. All requests are to be submitted using the Homes England online portal.
User Support
For help accessing the online portal or to report a problem, please contact the helpdesk on 01908 353604.
For allocation specific queries, please contact the appropriate Homes England Operating Area Leads for the Community Housing Fund.
| Homes England Operating Area | Contact name | Email address | Telephone number |
|---|---|---|---|
| Midlands | John Mather | John.Mather@homesengland.gov.uk | 0115 852 6903 |
| North East, Yorkshire and the Humber | Graham Brookfield | Graham.Brookfield@homesengland.gov.uk | 0113 394 9369 |
| North West | Craig Bradley | Craig.Bradley@homesengland.gov.uk | 0192 564 4819 |
| South East | Francine Peck | Francine.Peck@homesengland.gov.uk | 0122 337 4002 |
| South West | Helen Bone | Helen.Bone@homesengland.gov.uk | 0117 937 7224 |
Before you begin
You will need to login in to the portal using the same account details you used to input your bid. If you have forgotten your password, click ‘Forgotten Password?’ and follow the instructions to retrieve your details.
Chapter 2 - View & Request Milestone Payments
Once a bid has been approved by Homes England and due diligence and contracts completed, you will be able to access the payment milestones via the ‘menu’ option on the far right for each bid.
Select ‘View or request milestone payments’ to access the payment milestones screen for each individual bid.
Allocation Types
Allocations under Phase One of the Community Housing Fund are broken down into 3 types, as set out in the Prospectus. Please refer to the relevant section of this document for guidance on requesting a milestone payment for each allocation type.
- Revenue funding for capacity building and pre-development costs for community organisations, go to Chapter 3.
- Local Authority revenue grant to support community-led housing development, go to Chapter 4.
- Local Authority capital grant for infrastructure to support community-led housing development, go to Chapter 5.
Chapter 3 - Revenue funding for community groups
You will be taken to the Revenue Payment Summary screen which will show the total amount awarded and balance to be paid.
The four payment milestones will appear in order; only one payment milestone can be submitted at a time and they must be submitted in order.
Revenue Milestone One – Body Corporate Established
Once you click ‘Request Payment’, you will be able to enter the date the milestone was achieved and details regarding the organisation type, as well as provide an update on your community led housing proposal & community engagement so far. There is a drop box at the bottom of the page to attach any supporting documents.
You will be able to claim up to 25% of your total allocation.
Clicking ‘Request Payment’ will send the payment request to Homes England where the request will be assessed and either approved or declined.
We recommend that you either take a screenshot of your submission or otherwise save your text prior to submission, as if your payment request is declined your submission will be cleared & you will need to make a new request.
Once the first milestone request has been approved, you will be able to request payment for milestone two.
Revenue Milestone Two – Initial Community Housing Proposals Developed
You will be asked to provide an update on your community housing proposals to support your grant claim request.
Your claim at milestone two must not be more than 50% of your total allocation, inclusive of previous milestone payments.
Clicking ‘Request Payment’ will send the payment request to Homes England where the request will be assessed & either approved or declined.
We recommend that you either take a screenshot of your submission or otherwise save your text prior to submission, as if your payment request is declined your submission will be cleared & you will need to make a new request.
Once the second milestone request has been approved, you will be able to request payment for milestone three.
Revenue Milestone Three – Progress on Developing Community-led Housing Proposals
You will be asked to provide an update on your community housing proposals to support your grant claim request.
Your claim at milestone three must not be more than 90% of your total allocation, inclusive of previous milestone payments.
Clicking ‘Request Payment’ will send the payment request to Homes England where the request will be assessed & either approved or declined.
We recommend that you either take a screenshot of your submission or otherwise save your text prior to submission, as if your payment request is declined your submission will be cleared & you will need to make a new request.
Once the third milestone request has been approved, you will be able to request payment for milestone four.
Revenue Milestone Four – Detailed Housing Proposals Developed
You will be asked to provide an update on your community housing proposals to support your grant claim request.
Your claim at milestone four should be for the remaining balance of your allocation that you wish to claim for.
Clicking ‘Request Payment’ will send the payment request to Homes England where the request will be assessed & either approved or declined.
We recommend that you either take a screenshot of your submission or otherwise save your text prior to submission, as if your payment request is declined your submission will be cleared & you will need to make a new request.
Revenue Milestone Payment Request Declined
Upon reviewing a milestone payment request, Homes England may decide that the necessary requirements have not been met and so will decline the payment request. If this is the case, your request will show in orange with the option to ‘View Decision’.
Viewing the decision will enable you to see your original request, and explanatory comments from Homes England. Once you are in a position to resubmit the claim, click ‘Raise new payment request’ at the bottom of the page.
Chapter 4 - Revenue funding for local authorities
You will be taken to the LA Grant Payment Summary screen which will show the total amount awarded and balance to be paid.
Payments should be claimed quarterly in arrears. Select ‘Request payment’ when you are ready to make your first claim.
You will be able to enter the amount of funding that you wish to claim for each activity. Where a claim amount is entered against an activity, you will be asked to include a summary. The activities you claim for should match your original bid.
Clicking ‘Request Payment’ will send the payment request to Homes England where the request will be assessed & either approved or declined.
We recommend that you either take a screenshot of your submission or otherwise save your text prior to submission, as if your payment request is declined your submission will be cleared & you will need to make a new request.
The payment request will then appear at the bottom of the LA Grant Payment Summary screen. The ‘Request payment’ button will not be available again until the payment has been either approved or declined.
Once approved, the ‘Request payment’ button will be available at the bottom of the page for a new claim to be submitted. Only one claim can be made for each quarter.
LA Grant Payment Request Declined
Upon reviewing a payment request, Homes England may decide that the necessary requirements have not been met and so will decline the payment request. If this is the case, your request will show in orange with the option to ‘View Decision’.
Viewing the decision will enable you to see your original request, and explanatory comments from Homes England. Once you are in a position to resubmit the claim, click ‘Raise new payment request’ at the bottom of the page.
Chapter 5 - Local Authorities Capital Grant for Infrastructure
You will be taken to the LA Capital Grant for Infrastructure Payment Summary screen which will show the total amount awarded and balance to be paid.
The two payment milestones will appear in order; only one payment milestone can be submitted at a time & they must be submitted in order.
Infrastructure Milestone One – Start on Site
Once you click ‘Request Payment’, you will be able to enter the date the milestone was achieved and details regarding the activity that’s being funded & site location, as well as provide an update on the community-led housing development that is being supported.
You will be able to claim up to 90% of your total allocation.
Clicking ‘Request Payment’ will send the payment request to Homes England where the request will be assessed & either approved or declined.
We recommend that you either take a screenshot of your submission or otherwise save your text prior to submission, as if your payment request is declined your submission will be cleared & you will need to make a new request.
Once the first milestone request has been approved, you will be able to request payment for milestone two.
Infrastructure Milestone Two – Practical Completion
You will be asked to enter the date the milestone was achieved and details regarding the activity that’s being funded & site location, as well as provide an update on the community-led housing development that is being supported.
You will be able to claim the remainder of your allocation.
Clicking ‘Request Payment’ will send the payment request to Homes England where the request will be assessed & either approved or declined.
We recommend that you either take a screenshot of your submission or otherwise save your text prior to submission, as if your payment request is declined your submission will be cleared & you will need to make a new request.
Infrastructure Payment Request Declined
Upon reviewing a payment request, Homes England may decide that the necessary requirements have not been met and so will decline the payment request. If this is the case, your request will show in orange with the option to ‘View Decision’.
Viewing the decision will enable you to see your original request, and explanatory comments from Homes England. Once you are in a position to resubmit the claim, click ‘Raise new payment request’ at the bottom of the page.