Tag: Housing Strategy

Government announces increased funding for affordable homes

Scotland’s councils are to share more than £3.2 billion in grant funding over five years to deliver more affordable homes. 

Local authorities will benefit from an increase of more than £541 million on the previous five year allocation – an uplift of more than 20%.

Housing Secretary Shona Robison said: “We have already delivered more than 102,000 affordable homes since 2007. Building on this, our aim is to deliver 100,000 affordable homes by 2032, with at least 70% of these for social rent.

“Meeting this ambition will require continued collaboration across the private and public sectors. I’m pleased to be increasing significantly the available affordable housing grant funding for council areas to help with this important work.

“The five-year allocations will provide the certainty and assurance the housing sector needs to deliver the ambitious affordable homes target set out in our Housing to 2040 strategy.”

COSLA Resources spokesperson Councillor Gail Macgregor said: “We welcome the Scottish Government’s commitment to contributing to the cost of affordable housing in Scotland. The priority for councils, and housing associations, is ensuring rent affordability and warm, safe, comfortable homes for current and future tenants.

“As we look to recover from the impacts of the pandemic, councils are working side by side with their communities.  We maintain a focus on our shared ambitions around tackling child poverty and climate change, alongside building more houses.”

The City of Edinburgh Council also welcomes the announcement from Scottish Government on a five-year funding package for local authorities and housing associations in Scotland to deliver new affordable homes.

Over the next five years Edinburgh will receive £233.8m grant funding from a pot of more than £3.2 billion announced today which will be shared across all Scottish council areas.

Edinburgh is one of the most pressured housing markets in the country and needs more affordable homes to meet the needs of its growing population.  

City of Edinburgh Council’s Convener for Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work, Councillor Kate Campbell said: “This announcement of £233.8m funding for housing in Edinburgh from the Scottish Government over the next five years is hugely welcome. Having certainty over future funding puts us in a strong position to continue building that pipeline of social and affordable homes that we so desperately need.

“This will allow us to plan ahead and acquire sites, design and develop new homes and appoint contractors. And not only do we have certainty, we also have an increase of almost £44m from our baseline allocation over the last five years.

“Having recently met with the Cabinet Secretary to set out the challenges in Edinburgh, and the further investment we need, this is a positive response.

“We’ve also consistently received in-year allocations of extra funding when other local authorities have had underspends in their grant. Over the last five years this has amounted to about £40m. Our aim is to continue making the case for any future underspends to come to Edinburgh by making sure that we continue our strong track record on delivery of homes.

“And, because the need for permanent, secure and affordable housing in our city is so great, we’ll also continue to make the case for additional funding for Edinburgh from the national housing budget. But having certainty for the next five years, and an increase in funding, puts us in a fantastic position just now, and gives us a really strong platform to build from.”

Vice Convener for Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work, Councillor Mandy Watt, said: “We have ambitious plans to grow the number of homes we own, which we’ll do by purchasing homes and by building homes through our own housing development programme.

“Alongside this, we’ve got to find ways to deliver more affordable housing through our planning policies. Currently, the minimum amount of land for affordable homes is 25% of any major development. We are proposing that the minimum allocation is increased to 35%.

“As a Council, we’re committed to ending poverty and becoming more sustainable. Our house building programme will make a major contribution towards achieving that.”

Scottish Government announces plans to deliver 100,000 affordable homes over next ten years

Scotland’s 20-year vision for housing

The Scottish Government’s plans to deliver 100,000 affordable homes over the next decade are set out today in a 20-year housing strategy.

Recognising the importance of everyone having a safe and affordable home that meets their needs, Housing to 2040 – Scotland’s first long-term housing strategy – outlines what the Scottish Government wants housing and communities to look and feel like for the people of Scotland, with actions on how to get there.

Key priorities in the strategy, which will be taken forward subject to the outcome of the election, include:

  • delivering 100,000 more affordable homes by 2032, with at least 70% of these being for social rent. This target would support about £16 billion in total investment and up to 14,000 jobs a year
  • setting a single set of standards for housing quality and accessibility, no matter whether a home is owned or rented
  • tackling high rents in the private sector and supporting fair, accessible private and social rental sectors through a Rented Sector Strategy and Housing Bill
  • decarbonising heating in all homes in line with Scotland’s climate ambitions, ensuring this is done in a fair and just way, including by adapting and retrofitting existing homes
  • aiming for all new homes delivered by Registered Social Landlords and local authorities to be zero emissions by 2026
  • establishing a new fund to help local authorities bring empty homes back into residential use
  • supporting housing development in rural and island areas, helping to prevent depopulation and enabling communities to thrive
  • continuing with our updated plan to end homelessness and rough sleeping once and for all
  • undertaking a comprehensive audit of our current housing and homelessness legislation to understand how best to realise the right to adequate housing.

Communities Secretary Aileen Campbell said: “Homes are not simply bricks and mortar. They support people’s health, wellbeing and life chances, can help to tackle poverty and climate change, and are a major investment in the economy. Housing policy is essential in helping us achieve our ambitions for a fairer, more equal Scotland.

“Housing to 2040 sets out a vision for what we want homes and communities to look and feel like for people regardless of their stage in life or where they live. It is a vision where homes are affordable for everyone, where standards are the same across all tenures, where homes have easy access to green space and essential services, and where homelessness, child poverty and fuel poverty have all been eradicated.

“We have already delivered almost 100,000 affordable homes since 2007, and before the pandemic we were on track to meet our target of 50,000 during this parliament.  The pandemic interrupted the housing sector’s ability to hit this target, but we are committed to meeting it as soon as it is safe to do so. From there, we will start our new ambition to deliver a further 100,000 affordable homes by 2032.

“Our strategy shows how we will take this forward while tackling empty homes and poor housing, increasing energy efficiency and working to eradicate fuel poverty.

“In developing Housing to 2040 we have engaged with more than 2,000 people, including at 22 events across Scotland and through nationwide consultation. They told us what a good home and a vibrant community looks and feels like, and I’d like to thank them for their input.

“After a year when we have all seen the value of having a warm, safe place to live, this new long-term strategy will ensure every person in Scotland has a home that meets their needs.”

Sally Thomas, Chief Executive of the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA), said: “This is an ambitious 20-year housing strategy, and there is much to commend. It is SFHA’s ambition that everyone in Scotland has a safe, warm, energy efficient, affordable home, now and in the future, and the Scottish Government’s strategy could help to realise this.

“SFHA has long campaigned for an Affordable Housing Supply Programme commitment beyond one parliamentary term in order to tackle housing need and to maintain progress, so we really welcome the priority to deliver 100,000 more affordable homes by 2032.

“It is vital that our members can also invest in their existing stock, and we are pleased to see the commitment to supporting social landlords to do so, particularly important if all homes are to meet the same quality standards in the future. We welcome the proposal to mainstream standards of accessibility in order to deliver homes that are future proof and adapt to people’s changing needs.

“We look forward to seeing further detail of the strategy’s proposals and to working with the next government to support our members to deliver great quality homes that meets people’s needs and aspirations in the decades ahead.”

Tenants to help shape future of city housing

Council tenants are being given the opportunity to shape the future of Edinburgh’s housing services. The Tenant  Participation  Strategy 2012-2015 was launched at the City Chambers last night (14 June).

The aim of the strategy is to improve the  ways tenants can participate in decisions on housing and related services in  their communities. It builds on previous tenant participation  events organised by the City of Edinburgh Council and the Edinburgh Tenants Federation such  as the annual Tenants’ Conference.

Councillor Cammy Day, Housing Leader for the  City of Edinburgh Council (pictured above), said: “This strategy is an open invitation to tenants  to give us their views on what really matters to them. They have an important  role to play in how the Council provides housing and other related  services. It’s important that tenants have a voice  and this strategy gives them the opportunity. By taking part in the  decision-making process they can help contribute to the development of quality  housing in this city. There are undoubtedly some huge challenges  ahead and we are always looking at creative and innovative ways to deliver more  social and affordable housing in the city. With the help and support of our tenants we  can be confident that future challenges will be tackled together.”

Betty Stevenson, Convenor, Edinburgh Tenants  Federation, said: “Volunteers from Edinburgh Tenants Federation have worked  tirelessly with the Council to agree the content of the strategy and this is the  culmination of a lot of hard work. We look forward to working with the  Council to ensure there are better housing conditions  and services by involving tenants in decision making.”