A CORNWALL councillor is calling for the Duchy’s social housing register to be reconsidered, with modifications including a dashboard that will enable applicants to see how and why houses are allocated and whether they stand a realistic chance of getting one.

Cllr Steven Webb (Lib Dem, Truro Moresk and Trehaverne) will also ask Cornwall Council to give more weight to family needs including privacy when doing the maths on resident numbers.

His motion to council, entitled “A Fairer, Clearer Housing List for Cornwall” and seconded by Cllr Mike Thomas, is due to be heard on Tuesday, September 15 and asks for changes to be implemented as part of the annual review of the Homechoice Allocations Scheme in March 2027.

Describing the current system as “opaque and difficult to navigate”, Cllr Webb was moved to act after being contacted by a resident sharing a one-bedroom property with children. “It seemed factors such privacy and intimacy were not being taken into account when calculating the number of bedrooms needed,” he said, “and yet those elements are important for a healthy and stable relationship.”

Cllr Webb claimed Cornwall’s housing register figures currently sit at around 25,000.

He said. “No one really knows the criteria behind it, and many people are added to the register with no hope of getting a house.

“It’s time we published a dashboard about why people are getting certain houses. It’s not about identifying individuals, just that we need to be realistic and honest with people - the single worst thing is having no hope whatsoever but not being told.”

Cllr Webb added the dashboard could also help builders and developers ascertain what needs to be built. “Housing lists should inform us, rather than being cumbersome things of no use to anyone, which I feel is what we’ve got at the moment.

“It might even stop some of the social media comments about people getting housing they don’t qualify for, or outsiders having connections.

In the meantime, Cllr Webb urged housing applicants to make sure they divulged all entitlements and priority measures to enable the council to make a fully-informed decision. He added: “If you don’t qualify for social housing or have no chance of getting one within a reasonable timeframe, we should be look at other ways of renting or purchasing a house, and stop wasting your time. People would rather take a little bit of bad news with honesty than be given false hope.”