PERTH AND KINROSS LOCAL HOUSING STRATEGY 2016 - 2021 - PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018 AND REVISED ACTION PLAN 2018/2019
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Appendix 1
PERTH AND KINROSS
LOCAL HOUSING STRATEGY
2016 - 2021
PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018
AND
REVISED ACTION PLAN 2018/2019
CONTENTS
Page
Introduction 3
Strategic Context 4
Progress Report 2017/18 6
Revised Action Plan 2018/19 22
2|PageINTRODUCTION
The Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 places a statutory requirement on local authorities to
produce a Local Housing Strategy (LHS) which sets out its strategy, priorities and plans for
the delivery of housing and related services over a five year period as well as a requirement
for this strategy to be regularly reviewed.
The LHS 2016-2021 was approved by Housing and Health Committee on 25 May 2016
(Report 16/234). Since its approval the Council has been working with partners to deliver its
outcomes, regularly engaging with stakeholders to raise awareness and provide
opportunities to revise and shape the plans to ensure wider ownership in its delivery.
This is the second annual update of the strategy. The first update was provided to Housing
and Communities Committee on 1 November 2017 (Report 17/363).
We continue to work collaboratively with a range of partners and stakeholders and we have
had a number of successes in 2017/18.
We exceeded our target for publicly built properties; this together with buy backs and
property conversions enabled us to create vacancy chains (where an initial vacancy is
offered to a current tenant and the subsequent vacancy offered to a new housing applicant)
and meet the housing needs of multiple households.
We continue to deliver our transformation programme. Home First has been successfully
introduced enabling homeless households to move straight into permanent housing avoiding
the need for temporary accommodation. This success will be built on as we take forward our
Rapid Re-housing Transition Plan. We are also continuing to achieve the aims set out in our
Repairs Transformation Programme, already delivering significant efficiencies and
improvements to the service provided to our tenants.
Although there have been successes we are also faced with challenges.
Demand for housing remains high and we must continue to build more new homes and
increase the supply of affordable and social housing. We must also make the best use of our
existing stock to meet the housing needs of people within Perth and Kinross. Of equal
importance is the regeneration of areas of deprivation, supporting communities to both grow
and develop while taking greater ownership of their local area.
The geography of the area presents some specific challenges. Around half of the population
is spread over a large rural area and there are some challenges in relation to the availability
of land for new housing. This coupled with low stock levels and low turnover of our own
stock means meeting housing demand in rural areas continues to be difficult.
This requires a strong focus on collaboration with a range of partners to develop new
housing and meet housing need through the Common Housing Register.
3|PageSTRATEGIC CONTEXT
The Perth and Kinross Community Planning Partnership (CPP) is responsible for setting the
local priorities for communities within the context of the National Performance Framework
(NPF). The Perth and Kinross Community Plan sets out an overarching vision for Perth and
Kinross and the Community Plan and Corporate Plan both ensure that all Council plans and
strategies are focused on delivering a shared vision for the area.
This vision is reflected in the Council’s five strategic objectives which inform decisions about
policy, direction and budget spending:-
Giving every child the best start in life;
Developing educated, responsible and informed citizens;
Promoting a prosperous, inclusive and sustainable economy;
Supporting people to lead independent, healthy and active lives;
Creating a safe and sustainable place for future generations.
The Local Housing Strategy (LHS) outlines our contribution towards the achievement of the
Council’s objectives and sets out our vision, priorities and plans for housing and housing
related services within Perth and Kinross over a 5 year period. The vision is to:
‘Make Perth and Kinross a place where everyone will have access to
good quality, energy efficient housing which they can afford, that is in a
safe and pleasant environment. People will have access to services that
will enable them to live independently and participate in their
communities’.
The LHS relies on the principles of public sector reform and the recommendations of the
Christie Commission to deliver services into the future.
The LHS 2016-2021 identified four priorities:-
1. Supply of Housing and Sustainable Communities
Create more affordable homes and manage existing stock to create homes in the size,
type and location people want to live with access to suitable services and facilities which
encourage community integration. This priority links with the corporate and community
priorities of giving every child the best start in life; and creating a safe and sustainable
place for future generations.
2. Housing and Homelessness
Promote safe and secure communities for residents of Perth & Kinross with access to
good quality, affordable accommodation with the necessary support in place to sustain
them in their homes and prevent them from becoming homeless. This priority links with
4|Pagethe corporate and community priorities of giving every child the best start in life;
developing educated, responsible and informed citizens, supporting people to lead
independent, healthy and active lives; and creating a safe and sustainable place for
future generations.
3. Independent Living
Support people to live independently at home for as long as possible with help from the
community and local support networks. This priority links with the corporate and
community priorities of supporting people to lead independent, healthy and active lives;
and creating a safe and sustainable place for future generations.
4. House Condition, Fuel Poverty and Climate Change
Support residents of Perth and Kinross to live in warm, dry, energy efficient and low
carbon homes which they can afford to heat. This priority links with the corporate and
community priorities of giving every child the best start in life; promoting a prosperous,
inclusive and sustainable economy; supporting people to lead independent, healthy and
active lives; and creating a safe and sustainable place for future generations.
5|PageSupply of People have access to affordable homes in the size, type and location they
Housing & need.
Sustainable People have access to a range of tenures and mixed tenure developments to
enable more sustainable and mixed communities
Communities
Areas of deprivation are regenerated centres.
What have we achieved:-
Housing Supply
We have exceeded our annual new build target of 550 units by delivering a total of 585
homes.
395 private housing properties
161 social housing properties
29 shared equity opportunities
Of the social housing completions, 42 were additions to the Council stock and 199 were new
Housing Association properties. Of the private new builds, we supported two successful
bids for funding to promote self-build/custom build.
This level of housing completions means that we are making good progress towards the
achievement of our 5 year target of 2,750 with 1,171 completions in the first two years of the
strategy.
Through our Buyback Scheme, we have also purchased 41 ex-Council properties in high
demand areas.
Number of New Homes Built and Household Needs
Addressed through Stock Management during 2017/18
585
600
500 395
400
262
300
161 151
200
41 70
100 29
0
New Build - New Build - New Build - Total New Council Housing Mutual Total Needs
Private Social Housing Shared Equity Completions Buyback Transfers Exchanges Addressed
Housing Scheme through Stock
Management
Through our Allocations policy, we supported 151 social tenants to move to another
property. Our Mutual Exchange scheme enabled 70 households to successfully swap
homes to better meet their housing needs and aspirations.
6|PageAll of this activity creates vacancy chains and an increased turnover of properties
demonstrating that we are making best use of our stock. This supports the Service to
manage and reduce waiting lists, tackle overcrowding, medical need and provide permanent
and temporary housing to homeless households.
It has, however, impacted on the number of void properties. Whilst we are able to turn round
void properties quickly (27.81 days) the number of voids increased by 11% from the previous
year due to additional activity created by new units and resultant vacancy chains.
Housing Access
There are a range of housing options available to residents to meet their needs, preferences
and income. In January 2017 we launched a new Shared Equity Home Ownership Scheme
to assist people onto the housing ladder. A total of 16 households took advantage of this
scheme and a further 13 households purchased through the New Supply Shared Equity
Scheme (NSSE) at Muirton.
Social housing continues to be in high demand. The private rented sector also continues to
play an important role in providing suitable housing solutions. As at 31 March 2018, 12,733
private landlords were registered. Since 2008, there has been a substantial increase in
private renting throughout Scotland and the proportion of households living in private rented
housing increased from 10% to 15% in Scotland as a whole. The proportion of households
in Perth & Kinross living in the private rented sector was 19% in 2016.
It is therefore, important that we have ongoing engagement with private landlords. We
organised and hosted Forums for Private Landlords in November 2017 and May 2018. The
forums included topics such as; how to access support and assistance such as grants;
support for their tenants; the new Private Residential Tenancy; child protection; the Third
Tier Tribunal and Home Fire Safety. Both events were well attended and received positive
feedback from delegates.
Home ownership continues to be the most popular tenure of choice. The Scottish
Household Survey (2016) reported that approximately 63% of households in Perth & Kinross
own their home. In May 2017, a workshop was held with private developers and Registered
Social Landlords to build on partnership working and gain an insight into some of the
challenges faced in progressing new build projects. A range of measures (such as regular
meetings with Scottish Water) were agreed to address these issues.
Regeneration
Empty properties can sometimes attract anti-social or criminal activity and have a negative
impact on environments, as well as potentially devaluing neighbouring properties. At 31
March 2017 there were 1,072 long term empty properties in Perth & Kinross. During the
year, we engaged with 146 of these owners, assisting them to bring their properties back
into use by providing advice, assistance and signposting to appropriate funding sources.
We have also engaged with shop owners who have empty premises to discuss opportunities
for them to convert these units to residential homes and highlighted the availability of
Feasibility Grants and Empty Homes Initiative Grants. As at 31 March 2018 the number of
empty properties had reduced to 980.
To meet the aim to increase the availability of social housing we converted a number of non-
residential properties into residential units. Since 2012/13 we have increased our housing
7|Pagestock by an additional 23 units. We have identified a further 7 possible conversion sites
which will be progressed during 2018/19.
Our garage and lock-up project provided an opportunity to renovate and decommission
some sites to regenerate local communities. The appearance of the refurbished lock ups
and re-surfaced garage sites has transformed the appearance of several areas. 181 garage
sites were improved, 996 lock ups were fully refurbished and 165 defective or redundant
structures were demolished. The space created from the decommissioned sites has
provided much needed housing and car parking for residents. 24 new homes have been built
on the sites of redundant lock ups at Cairns Crescent and Nimmo Avenue in Hillyland, Perth
with a further 24 now being built at Crieff Road, Perth
The last phase of a 15 year regeneration programme of the Muirton area of Perth is on
target for completion by December 2018. The final phase of this project (which started in
2016) provided 203 homes of which 101 were for sale and 102 were affordable homes for
Caledonia Housing Association and Fairfield Housing Co-operative.
Our Private Sector Working Group is looking at other areas which would benefit from further
regeneration such as the Ladeside, areas with the High Street and St Catherine’s Road
within Perth City.
Provide advice and support to prevent homelessness
Provide suitable, good quality temporary and permanent accommodation to
Housing and homeless people when required
Homelessness Offer support to tenants to help them obtain and sustain a home
Promote maintained homes which meet the relevant standards in safe and
secure communities
Encourage tenants and resident so influence decisions
What have we achieved:-
Homelessness
We continue to work with our partners to provide people seeking information about their
housing situation with advice and assistance about the range of housing options available to
them. The Housing Options approach also allows early intervention to prevent
homelessness and identify any support requirements to enable tenants to sustain their
tenancy. Although this is a challenging area, we have delivered some significant
achievements over the past year.
During 2017/18 we:
Carried out 2,438 housing options interviews
Supported 181 households to access accommodation in the private-rented sector
through the Rent Bond Guarantee Scheme.
999 households presented as homeless with 792 (79%) of these progressing to the
final stage of being considered for permanent accommodation. The main reasons for
8|Pagehomeless presentations continue to be as a result of people being asked to leave
their current accommodation (30%) or a breakdown in relationship (24%).
The remainder not being assessed as homeless or resolving their homelessness
either with or without our support in such a way that they did not require an allocation
of permanent housing.
We successfully implemented our Home First Transformation project and significantly
reduced the reliance on temporary accommodation by delivering immediate, permanent and
affordable housing wherever possible. We also:
Reduced the number of homeless households waiting for an offer of settled
accommodation from 550 to 218.
Reduced the average length of time in temporary accommodation from 131 days in
2015/16 to 81 days in 2017/18
Increased the proportion of housing allocations to homeless people from 50% to
56.3%
645 lets allocated to homeless applicants were made through the Common Housing
Register partners.
Following an unannounced inspection of the Housing Support Service by the Care
Inspectorate in January 2018, the service was considered to be “sector leading” and
received excellent grades for both the quality of care and support; and the quality of staffing
and leadership. The Inspector commented: -
“The staff team had a real pride in their work,
were knowledgeable, professional and, above all,
fully committed to supporting people”;
“The management team are extremely
knowledgeable and professional.”
The Homelessness Rough Sleeping Action Group (HRSAG) was established by the Scottish
Government to identify the actions and changes needed to end rough sleeping and
transform the use of temporary accommodation in Scotland. Following a meeting with the
HRSAG, the chair commented on our approach as follows: -
“This is the best example I have seen so far of a
systems-change approach to moving the dial on homelessness
and the use of traditional temporary accommodation models”.
As a result of the work undertaken with our Home First model, we are at an advanced stage
with some of the recommendations made by both the Local Government and Communities
Committee and HRSAG report. Our Home First model has transformed the way we assist
homeless people straight into permanent accommodation in Perth and Kinross. It has also
delivered considerable savings for the Council (£676K), and had a positive impact on the
outcomes for many households by reducing the stigma, duration and experience of
9|Pagehomelessness. This can be demonstrated through the positive feedback received from
people who have benefited from our approach:-
“Getting a permanent house for me and my family was a god
send – I thought I’d have to wait an eternity in temporary
accommodation and uproot my children from their school. It
wasn’t their fault that the Landlord wanted his own property
back”.
Affordability
We are committed to providing tenants with value for money services and maintaining
affordable rents. In partnership with our tenants, our rent restructure projecti provided the
opportunity to create a transparent and fair rent charging system. A rent affordability model
was also developed which demonstrated that our rent levels remained affordable to our
current and future tenants based on local income levels. Nationally, we are the 9th lowest
Local Authority rent in Scotland and continue to be the most affordable option locally as
demonstrated below:-
Size RSL Average PKC Average
(17/18) (18/19)
Bedsit £55.65 £46.34 (-20%) 88.18% of our tenants told
1 bedroom £75.88 £62.99 (-20%) us that they felt their rent
2 bedroom £80.12 £68.27 (-17%) represented good value for
3 bedroom £87.75 £76.37 (-15%) money an increase from
4 bedroom £96.24 £82.46 (-17%) 84.79% the previous year.
Average £80.37 £67.79 (-19%)
Managing rent arrears and collection of rents remains a significant challenge. Our gross rent
arrears at the end of 2017/18 stood at 10.38% and our rent collection rate was 98.73%. This
remains a key focus for us and we have introduced a small test of change to establish if a
dedicated team approach will support improvement.
Other Councils have experienced increased rent arrears following the implementation of
Universal Credit. Within Perth & Kinross, preparatory work has been underway for a
significant period pending the implementation in June 2018. We continue to work in
partnership with colleagues in Welfare Rights and the Citizens’ Advice Bureau to support our
tenants to maximise their income.
Tenancy Sustainment
Along with partners within Tayside, Fife and Central through the Housing Options Hub, we
are developing the “Passport for Housing” package. This is a pre-tenancy training package
designed to prepare housing applicants for taking on a new tenancy. The package clearly
outlines what is expected of a tenant and the landlord. It also includes money management,
budgeting and income maximisation information designed to help mitigate the potential
impact of Universal Credit. The wider aspects of sustaining and maintaining a tenancy and
community involvement are also covered. A pilot to test the e-learning package is expected
to commence in September 2018.
10 | P a g eHousing Stock Condition
The council continues to perform well in terms of maintaining and improving our council
stock. Through our capital programme, we invested over £23 million to deliver further
improvements to our stock through: –
Kitchen and bathroom replacements;
Controlled door entry/secure common access;
Environmental improvements such as footpaths, steps, fencing, soil contamination,
car park resurfacing as well as repairs and reconstruction of perimeter/retaining
walls.
Overall, 96.15% of our stock now meets the Scottish Housing Quality Standard against a
national average of 93.6%. Our recent Tenant Satisfaction Survey evidenced the impact
of these improvements with 95.83% of tenants surveyed indicating that they are satisfied
with the quality of their home. This is an improvement from 84.65% in 2016/17.
We continue to deliver the outcomes identified within our Repairs Transformation
Programme by undertaking a detailed review and analysis of key areas of housing repairs to
progress improvements to efficiency and productivity. We have undertaken approximately
21,000 works orders with 90% of non-specialist works carried out by the Repairs Team,
minimising the use of external contractors and maximising our own internal resources. We
delivered significant efficiency savings in 2017/18 and are on target to achieve the overall
estimated savings in the transformation programme.
The improvements to our Repairs Service can be evidenced through our key performance
indicators:-
National
Indicator 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 2017/18 Average
2016/17
Ave. calendar days to re-let 21.16 25.2 24.05 27.81 31.5
properties (days)
Ave. time to complete emergency 3.29 3.74 3.78 3.57 4.7
repairs (hours)
Ave. time to complete non- 9.11 13.26 13.42 8.59 7.1
emergency repairs (days)
No. of reactive repairs completed 3.35 3.27 2.94 2.78 3.8
per property
% of repairs completed right first 87% 83.53% 82.76% 91.11% 92.4%
time
% of repairs appointments kept 93.03% 94.40% 97.76% 97.94% 95.7%
% of properties with gas safety 99.06% 97.49% 100% 100% 100%
record
% medical adaptations completed 86.84% 84.7% 77.87% 84.53% 86.2%
In terms of our housing repairs performance, one of the key challenges is the availability of
skilled trade operatives. We are addressing this through a range of measures including
11 | P a g eenhancing our Trades apprenticeship programme, working closely with our term
maintenance contractors to ensure availability of key trades and reviewing process and
workforce planning arrangements.
We received very positive feedback from our tenants with regards to repairs to their
properties. They told us:-
Customer Satisfaction Survey 2017/18
Question Satisfied
/ Very
Satisfied
Ease of reporting repairs 98.8%
Being told of when workers would call 96.4%
Time taken before work started 94.6%
Speed of completion of work 95.7%
Attitude of workers 98.6%
Overall quality of work 97%
Keeping dirt and mess to a minimum 98.6%
Tradesperson doing the job you expected 97.5%
A key component of the transformation is to maximise the benefits of technology, in
particular from mobile working initial feedback from staff has been positive.
In embracing the move to online services, we have also developed video tutorials to enable
tenants to undertake simple household repairs. A full review of the Repairs Team service
structure was also carried out and Trades staff moved from a functional to a locality
arrangement, with a new locality supervision structure. Trades are now assigned to one of
four localities dovetailing with existing housing locality teams.
We enhanced our dedicated Gypsy Traveller Engagement and Improvement Plan to reflect
the Scottish Government’s Guidance on Minimum Site Standards and Responsibilities. Our
self-assessment of our two sites has demonstrated that all standards are already being met.
During 2017/18, we supported the gypsy traveller community in Pitlochry with the provision
of accommodation to support a project developed to assist community members to move
their vision of an inter-cultural centre nearer to reality.
Safe and Secure Communities
The external environment is extremely important for health and wellbeing as well as creating
a sense of place and community. During 2017/18 our environmental improvements
programme has delivered improvements to the safety and appearance of many localities.
Works have included the repair and reconstruction of perimeter / retaining walls,
improvements to footpaths and steps, installation of new perimeter fencing, car park re-
surfacing and attending to soil contamination.
Households should be able to live in safe and secure communities which are free from crime
and we have fully integrated “The Hub” as part of the Safer Communities Team at St Martins
House. The Hub is vital to information sharing and tasking in respect of: -
Environmental Risk Assessment
Anti-Social Behaviour
12 | P a g e Management of Offenders
Preventative Measures and Events
Safe Drive Stay Alive
Safetaysiders
Missing and Vulnerable People
The Unpaid Work Team has also been integrated into the Safer Communities Team.
They have been involved in supporting a range of activities to deliver environmental
improvements within communities and worked with a range of partners. For example:
Snow clearing during extreme weather;
Dedicated City Centre Operations Team to maintain and enhance the appearance of
the City Centre;
Ladeside Renovation Project in conjunction with Beautiful Perth and Community
Greenspace;
Graffiti strategy in conjunction with Safer Communities team to tackle graffiti across
Perth and Kinross;
Westbank Project which involves the Westbank site now adopting a Trust-like
approach, whereby it will become a community asset while developing and
supporting vulnerable and disadvantaged people. The Project has attracted ESF
funding in relation to employability services.
Other key community developments have been:-
Home Safety visits are carried out jointly by Scottish Fire and Rescue and
Community Wardens. These visits are undertaken when elderly and other vulnerable
people have been identified and referred. They are essential in helping people stay in
their own homes, while arrangements are put in place to get them access to the
services they need.
The Good Neighbour Agreement is now being used across all four locality teams for
any new build development. This agreement makes tenants aware of their
responsibilities and sets out how the Council will intervene if individuals are not
fulfilling the terms of the agreement.
We have continued to build on our previous successes with our Estate Based
Initiatives (EBI) projects. During 2017/18, through engagement with tenants over 50
environmental improvements projects were completed throughout Perth and Kinross,
with spending of £200k. Our EBI initiative won a silver Securing the Future Award.
In Gilmerton, from the 96 participants who took part in EBI discussions, interest was generated to
form a community group. They successfully applied for Participatory Budgeting funds at an event
whi h was held i Fe ruary 8. The Gil erto Park a d Garde s Group will e worki g alo gside
the Tenant and Resident Participation team, the Crieff office Housing team, and the East Strathearn
Community Council, to develop a joint programme of events, projects and activities for the village
that celebrates
Empowering their
our community.
Communities
Involving and empowering our communities is at the heart of creating safe and sustainable
communities where people want to live. We remain committed to providing our tenants with
13 | P a g ea range of opportunities to become involved to help shape, influence and improve the
services we deliver.
During 2017/18, our tenants led by the Service User Review and Evaluation (SURE) Team
developed and wrote our new Tenant and Resident Participation Strategy (reported to
Housing & Communities Committee in January 2018). This strategy:-
adopted a new menu of tenant opportunities to get involved in shaping their services
focused on shifting delivery of activities to our locality housing teams to address local
issues
outlined the value of greater feedback to tenants and residents about the things that
matter to them.
During 2017/18, our four locality teams organised local events within one or two of their
communities with a focus on increasing the number of tenants interested in becoming
involved in tenant participation through our ‘Menu of Opportunities’. We also introduced our
‘Good Neighbour’ and ‘Great Garden’ Awards which were a great success. Our Locality
Team in Letham organised a ‘Meet Santa’ event with over 100 local residents attending.
The SURE Team also undertook its’ third annual assessment of how well the Housing
Service performed in delivering the Charter outcomes and compared our performance over
the previous year. The results were published in our annual landlord report, a copy of which
was issued to all our tenants.
We have a strong relationship with our tenants and they continue to be actively involved in
shaping our services. We have:
shared information in relation to how their rent money is spent.
agreed our approach to consultation around potential disposal of HRA assets.
agreed that a dedicated HRA Monitoring Group be established agreed tenant
priorities for delivery of housing services and identified the impact of these priorities
on rent levels.
based on their priorities, tenants decided the corresponding rent increase to enable
the service to deliver these priorities.
Activities such as these have resulted in high levels of satisfaction, as detailed below: -
Indicator 2017/18 2016/17
Keeping them informed about services and decisions 96.8% 82.5%
Opportunities to participate in decision making 98.74% 74.4%
Management of their neighbourhood 94.57% 79.12%
14 | P a g e People have access to the right type of housing to
Independent enable them to live as independently as possible at
Living home or in a homely setting
People have access to the right type of support to
sustain their accommodation
What have we achieved:-
Type of Housing
Enabling people to have access to suitable housing and support is key to enabling them to
live independently. This is also a key priority for the Perth and Kinross Health and Social
Care Partnership. Housing’s contribution to supporting this outcome is detailed within the
partnerships strategic plan.
There are a number of factors which allow people to live as independently as possible and
Housing’s contribution to this includes:-
working with developers to build future proof sustainable housing which can be easily
adapted to meet changing household needs.
ensuring residents and tenants have access to services which will allow their current
home to be adapted to meet their medical needs.
provision of sheltered housing accommodation and support.
We recognise the importance good quality housing has on the health and wellbeing of
households. As such we continue to work with the Health and Social Care Partnership to
ensure suitable housing and housing support is available to prevent admissions and
prolonged stays in hospital. We also undertake early engagement with partners to deliver a
seamless service for people discharged from hospital.
During 2017/18, a review was undertaken of special need housing and the final report was
circulated in March 2018. The final report made it very clear that current accommodation
with support options are highly valued by the people who live there. Overall feedback
received as part of the review was very positive:-
people enjoy living in their accommodation
choices available to people living in accommodation with support has increased and
facilitated independent living
accommodation with support has contributed to the recovery and rehabilitation of
people
staff members are supportive in terms of helping people work towards their outcomes
and life goals.
However, the review also highlighted that improvements could be made. Broadly, the
findings and recommendations can be themed into four work streams which will be taken
forward by members of the Independent Living Group.
1. Planning Ahead and Identifying Need: Develop long term and anticipatory
understanding of the requirement for supported housing.
15 | P a g e2. Pathways into Housing: Ensure there are clear and effective processes in place to
facilitate a person’s pathway into appropriate supported housing.
3. Maximising Successful Transitions: Review pathways for people requiring
specialist housing.
4. Appropriate Provision for the Future: Appropriate future supported housing
options for mild, moderate and severe needs, to ensure needs are being
appropriately met and enable best practice.
All 161 new build houses for social rent complied with the “housing for varying needs”
standard.
We are currently reviewing the use of aids and adaptations to ensure that it can meet the
demands of the increasing elderly population, particularly those with care needs.
Support
People are living longer and while many are healthy and independent, there are also people
who experience ill health or have a range of support and care needs, due to mental health,
homelessness, learning disability, age, substance misuse issues etc. These people often
need additional support to live as independently as possible in their own homes and
community.
Care and Repair services were relaunched in July 2017 with Caledonia Care and Repair, as
the sole provider, covering the whole Council area. Caledonia Care and Repair rebranded
the new service and have attended a number of local conferences and promotional events
and produced new information booklets about the services to raise its profile. During
2017/18 there were 253 Major Adaptations, 486 Small Repairs and 16 door entry grants
provided to private home owners through this scheme.
There were 1,605 adaptations for 1,145 different council tenants. 1,061 were minor
adaptations such as the installation of safety rails and 544 of these were major adaptations
such as full alterations to a home to enable greater mobility.
In addition, 15,040 items of equipment were supplied to 6,255 Health and Social Care clients
to facilitate more independent living. These figures are across all tenures and include Care
and Repair provision. Progress with Technology Enabled Care (TEC) has also been strong,
with an increase in the number of clients from 3,260 at March 2017 to 3,833 at March 2018.
Our Sheltered Housing Service provides a valuable service to support older people to live as
independently as possible. Following a recent unannounced inspection by the Care
Inspectorate, our Sheltered Housing Support Service was evaluated under ‘Quality of Care
and Support’ and ‘Quality of Leadership and Management’. We were given a grade of very
good in both of these categories. The Inspector commented that: -
“Staff were very responsive, warm, friendly and approachable”
“There are good intergenerational links”; and “The Care about Physical
Programme Activity (CAPPA) implemented by officers is making a real
difference by improving the health and wellbeing of some tenants”.
16 | P a g eDuring the inspection sheltered housing residents expressed a high level of satisfaction with
the service provided, comments included: -
“Very friendly, caring and professional”.
“Staff always go the extra mile”.
All residents are living in good quality and energy efficient
homes which meet the relevant standards;
House
Residents are living in homes they can afford to heat and
Condition,
are aware of opportunities to maximise their incomes;
Fuel Poverty
People are aware of the assistance available to them to
and Climate
improve the energy efficiency levels of their homes;
Change
People are aware of ways in which they can reduce fuel
consumption and save on energy costs.
What have we achieved:-
Good quality and energy efficient homes
In order to achieve this outcome, we need to ensure that the design of all new build homes,
as well as that of our existing stock, meets the relevant energy efficiency standards. We also
need to ensure that they are built in a way in which they are resilient to the future impacts of
climate change.
New Build Housing
We are currently developing a design guide for new build housing developments which will
address energy efficiency and climate change issues. This is expected to be completed by
the end of 2018. We have also been working closely with the Council’s Structures and
Flooding Team to install automatic flood vents in Aberfeldy and Alyth.
Existing Housing Stock – Social Housing
The Scottish Housing Quality Standard (SHQS) comprises a set of five broad housing
criteria which must all be met if the property is to pass SHQS. As at 31 March 2018, our
compliance rate was 96.15% (an improvement of 0.53% over 2016/17). The largest single
factor preventing compliance is Secure Door Entry, where neighbouring owners are unwilling
to contribute to communal costs. The Tenement Management Scheme (TMS) is being used
where possible to reduce abeyances where neighbouring owners refuse to participate.
In addition the Scottish Government has set new targets for social landlords in relation to
energy efficiency. The Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing (EESSH) sets a
minimum energy efficiency rating for landlords to achieve by December 2020 and the rating
varies depending on the type of dwelling and the fuel type used to heat it. The percentage of
17 | P a g ethe stock now compliant with EESSH has risen to 80.2%. The target date for full compliance
is December 2020. A tenant made the following comment about some of the housing
improvements: -
“The house is much warmer and I use less gas. It’s
fantastic”.
The Council’s Housing Capital Investment Programme improves the condition and energy
efficiency levels of council housing and helps us to work towards achieving the Scottish
Government targets. During 2017/18, the following number of council properties benefitted
through this programme: -
147 homes received kitchen replacements;
294 homes received bathroom replacements;
694 homes received upgraded central heating systems;
526 homes received new triple glazed windows and insulated exterior doors;
75 homes were fitted with externally applied wall insulation;
367 homes had cavity wall insulation extractions and re-fills;
82 homes have been fitted with new gas mains connections; and
28 homes were fitted with renewable energy measures such as air source heat
pumps or solar panels.
Existing Housing Stock – Private Housing
Through our Empty Homes Initiative (EHI), we provide grants to bring properties up to the
Repairing Standard to enable them to be rented out to private tenants through our Rent
Bond Guarantee Scheme. These improvements often include energy efficiency measures
including replacement windows, upgrades to heating systems, etc. During 2017/18, 21 EHI
grants were awarded to enable properties in the Private Rented Sector to meet the
Repairing Standard.
We also continue to support people to improve the energy efficiency of their homes and
have taken opportunities to promote the HEEPS ABS and HEEPS Equity Loan Schemes
through our engagement with private landlords and owner occupiers. During 2017/18, 123
privately owned or privately rented houses were fitted with externally applied wall insulation.
A training session was organised with Energy Savings Trust to provide staff with a more
detailed understanding of the use of Home Analytics and Portfolio Energy Analysis Tool
(PEAT) to build a profile of properties and areas in which energy efficiency improvements
could help reduce fuel poverty levels. This tool will enable us to identify areas of Perth and
Kinross which will benefit from energy efficiency improvements and will allow us to target our
awareness activities into the future.
Fuel Poverty
The three main factors influencing fuel poverty are fuel prices, household incomes and
energy efficiency levels within the housing stock. These three factors are inextricably linked
meaning that households can move in and out of fuel poverty as circumstances change. It
18 | P a g ealso means that a household with a good income could still face fuel poverty if their home is
unaffordable (e.g. if it’s energy inefficient and/or in a location which is not on the gas
network).
Although we do not have control over energy prices or households incomes, we do offer
comprehensive benefits checks to everyone contacting the Welfare Rights Hotline and work
with partners to provide information on income maximisation and fuel advice. Referrals are
made to Home Energy Advice Team (HEAT) for people who may find themselves in fuel
poverty and requiring further assistance.
Our Energy Efficiency Programme and HEAT ensures people are aware of other
opportunities to maximise their incomes by saving on their fuel costs (through private sector
grants and schemes). One Council tenant made the following comment about the Council’s
energy efficiency programme: -
“I’ve just received my quarter electricity bill and it’s saved
me an average of 9% on my bill – fantastic”.
We have received a further funding award for 2018/19 of £1,345,635 through the HEEPS-
ABS programme. 170 private homes are included within this proposal. A Warm Homes
Funding Grant of £1.4M has also been secured. The fund is primarily designed to
encourage the installation of affordable heating solutions in fuel poor households who do not
use mains gas as their primary fuel. Works will be undertaken during 2018/19.
We are also continuing to maximise grant assistance from Scotland’s Gas Network (SGN) to
help pay for new gas connections. More than £1.75M has been saved since 2012 and 1,614
new connections have been installed. Mains gas supplies have been fitted to a further 68
Council houses during 2017/18
A Climate Sensitivity Mapping Exercise was carried out in 2017/18 to establish the areas of
Perth and Kinross which are most prone to fuel poverty based on the climate. This exercise
demonstrated that Blair Atholl, an area close to Killin (but within P&K boundary), Rannoch,
Lochearnhead, and Aberfeldy are the areas most prone to the effects of the climate. Work is
ongoing to establish how this exercise can be linked with other housing data we hold to
organise specific fuel poverty awareness sessions alongside Home Energy Scotland and our
Home Energy Advice Team.
District heating is a way of producing an energy efficient heating system whilst also reducing
carbon emissions at the same time. While no district heating projects have yet been
identified, Perth and Kinross is currently participating in a Local Heat and Energy Efficiency
Strategy (LHEES) Pilot Project. A LHEES which would designate zones for energy
efficiency and heat decarbonisation by assessing heat demand and local conditions,
including existing district and communal heating, local and national energy efficiency, heat
decarbonisation and fuel poverty objectives; and local development planning. The pilot
project is underway and we are currently awaiting a baseline data report before an energy
option appraisal will be undertaken alongside engagement activity with Zero Waste
19 | P a g eScotland/Resource Efficient Scotland to target key commercial operators and potentially
residents.
We also have another project underway to investigate the feasibility of serving a new
significant development site on the edge of Perth at Bertha Park through a biomass district
heating system with possibilities to tie-in with other key anchor loads in the city.
A large part of our fuel poverty and energy efficiency work is trying to raise awareness of the
assistance which is available to residents of Perth and Kinross to improve the energy
efficiency levels of their homes.
Within Perth and Kinross, we have a Home Energy Advice Team (HEAT) service which is
delivered by SCARF. The HEAT service offers free and impartial advice to all Perth and
Kinross residents based specifically on their property and household circumstances. Free
home visits are included to help householders to manage their fuel spend effectively, while
maintaining a warm, dry, and comfortable living environment. HEAT offered 1,164 instances
of advice to residents within the area. However, efforts are ongoing to continue to raise
awareness of HEAT and also the assistance that can be provided by Home Energy
Scotland. When added to advice issued as part of the external wall insulation programme,
HEEPS Loan Scheme and Scheme of Assistance, the total instances of advice issued in
relation to energy efficiency was 1,478, just below our target of 1,500.
Discussions took place during 2017/18 with Scottish Fire and Rescue Service to hold fuel
poverty awareness sessions for the 5 different watches in Perth. The idea behind this is that
Firefighters could use the information to help direct households in Perth and Kinross to our
HEAT service for further help and advice while carrying out 'Safe and Well' Visits.
Climate Change
It is important to ensure people are aware of ways in which they can reduce fuel
consumption and save on energy costs in order to decrease fuel poverty levels and increase
energy efficiency whilst minimising our carbon footprint.
Energy Efficiency Guides were distributed by SCARF and through locality offices and
campuses during 2017/18. The new guide is currently being designed for 2018/19.
The HEAT team also attended a range of events during 2017/18 to raise awareness about
energy efficiency and provide advice and tips on how to reduce our carbon footprint.
Sessions with Housing and Welfare Rights teams were organised to discuss how tenants
could benefit from assistance. Stalls were also organised within Pullar House, Blairgowrie
Area Office and Crieff Area Office to offer advice to customers on energy efficiency. HEAT
also attended a dementia coffee morning to provide advice and had stalls at the Carers
Conference, Financial Capability Week and at the North Church Dementia Cafe Awareness
Day.
20 | P a g eAppendix 2
Priority 1 – Supply of Housing and Sustainable Communities
Outcome 1 - People have access to affordable homes in the size, type and location they need.
No Measures Baseline Target Timescale
(2017/18)
1.1 Number of new affordable housing completions (including shared equity 190 units 150 units March 2019
completions). (161 units - social
rent/ 29 units -
shared equity)
1.2 Number of new private housing completions. 395 units 400 units March 2019
No Actions Start Date Milestone Lead
1.3 Increase the supply of affordable housing in rural areas and prioritise April 2018 March 2019 Planning & Policy / Planning
rural areas through the SHIP. Team/ RSL’s
1.4 Investigate ways to promote Self Build and Custom Build developments April 2018 March 2019 Planning & Policy / Planning
and look to take forward a pilot project on Self Build in partnership with Team
Scottish Government.
Outcome 2 - People have access to a range of tenures and mixed tenure developments to enable more sustainable and mixed communities.
No Actions Start Date Milestone Lead
1.5 Support the development of intermediate tenures such as mid-market April 2018 March 2019 Planning & Policy / Planning
rent (MMR), shared equity and shared ownership. Team/ RSL’s
1.6 Improve engagement with Private Landlords. April 2018 March 2019 Private Sector Team/
Planning & Policy
1.7 Create a 'Design Guide' for new build developments which covers April 2018 December 2018 Housing & Improvements/
aspects such as costs, design, quality standards, impact of climate Planning & Policy
change, access to services, parking, public spaces etc.
Outcome 3 - Areas of deprivation are regenerated and more people are living in the city centres.
No Actions Start Date Milestone Lead
1.9 Support regeneration through development of affordable housing and April 2018 March 2019 Planning & Policy/ Private
other initiatives (including empty homes brought back into use, change Sector Team/ Community
of use to create additional housing). Safety
1.10 Encourage city centre/ town centre living as a housing option. April 2018 March 2019 Planning & PolicyPriority 2 – Housing and Homelessness
Work Area 1 - Housing Options and Access/Homeless Prevention Outcomes:
People looking for housing find it easy to apply for the widest choice of social housing available and get information they need on how the Landlord
allocates homes and their prospects of being housed (Charter 10);
People looking for housing receive information to inform their choices and decisions about the range of housing options available to them (Charter 7);
Tenants and people on housing lists can review their housing options (Charter 8);
People at risk of losing their homes receive advice on preventing homelessness.
No Measures Baseline Target Timescale
(2017/18)
2.1 Number of people presenting as homeless (including young people aged 999 People Target Setting Not March 2019
16-25 years). Appropriate
No Actions Start Date Milestone Lead
2.2 Minimise the duration of homelessness. April 2018 March 2019 Specialist Housing Services
2.3 Produce a Rapid Rehousing Transition Plan (RRTP) by December 2018 April 2018 December 2018 Head of Housing
Work Area 2 - Providing Temporary, Resettled and Permanent Accommodation for Homeless People Outcomes:
Homeless people receive prompt and easy access to help and advice (Charter 9);
Homeless people are provided with suitable, good-quality temporary or emergency accommodation, when this is needed, and are offered support to
help them get and keep the home they are entitled to (Charter 12).
No Measures Baseline Target Timescale
(2017/18)
2.4 Time spent in temporary accommodation. 81.5 days Reduce March 2019
2.5 Percentage of people satisfied with temporary accommodation. 76.6% Increase March 2019
No Actions Start Date Milestone Lead
2.6 Take forward recommendations for the Rapid Rehousing Transition Plan April 2018 March 2019 Specialist Housing Services
22 | P a g eWork Area 3 - Managing and Sustaining Tenancies Outcomes:
Tenants and customers receive the information they need on how to access accommodation, when this is needed, and are offered continuing support
to help them find and sustain a home;
Tenants, owners and other customers receive services that provide continually improving value for the rent and other charges they pay (Charter 13);
A balance is struck between the level of services provided, the cost of the services and how far current and prospective tenants and others can afford
them (Charter 14);
Tenants’ homes meet the Scottish Housing Quality Standard (SHQS) by April 2015 and continue to meet it thereafter, and when they are allocated
are always clean, tidy and in a good state of repair (Charter 4);
Tenants’ homes are well-maintained with repairs and improvements carried out when required and tenants are given reasonable choices about when
work is done (Charter 5);
Our Gypsy Traveller sites are well-maintained and managed (Charter 16).
No Measures Baseline Target Timescale
(2017/18)
2.10 Overall percentage of new tenancies sustained for more than a year. 87.6% 90% March 2019
2.11 Percentage of new tenancies for 16-25 year olds sustained for more 83% 85% March 2019
than a year.
2.12 Percentage of tenants satisfied with overall services provided by their 94.77% 95% May 2019
Landlord.
2.13 Percentage of tenants who feel that the rent for their property represents 88.18% 90% May 2019
good value for money.
No Actions Start Date Milestone Lead
2.14 Enable eligible tenants to access Discretionary Housing Payments April 2018 March 2019 Housing Service Manager
(DHP).
2.15 Continue to monitor and take mitigating actions in relation to Welfare April 2018 March 2019 Housing Service Manger
Reform and Universal Credit, particularly in respect of our tenants and
their ability to maximise their income and reduce rent arrears/
2.16 Continue to maximise rent collection rates to support a reduction in rent April 2018 March 2019 Housing Service Manager
arrears.
2.17 Take forward actions/recommendations identified through the Rapid April 2018 March 2019 Housing Service Manager
Rehousing Transition Plan relating to housing support.
23 | P a g eWork Area 4 - Safe and Secure Communities Outcomes:
Tenants are aware of their responsibilities and clear that the Council will intervene where individuals are not fulfilling the terms of their tenancy
agreement and creating problems for other tenants and residents.
Tenants and residents live in attractive, well-managed neighbourhoods, free from anti-social behaviour and vandalism, where they feel safe (Charter
6).
No Measures Baseline Target Timescale
(2017/18)
2.21 Percentage of anti-social behaviour cases resolved within local target 81.23 90% March 2019
2.22 Percentage of people satisfied with the delivery of service in relation to 41% 75% March 2019
anti-social behaviour (all tenures)
2.23 Percentage of tenants satisfied with the management of the 94.57% 95% March 2019
neighbourhood they live in.
2.24 Percentage of adults rating neighbourhood either ‘very good’ or ‘fairly 95% 95% March 2019
good’ as a place to live (SHS – LA Tables) (2016 data)
2.25 Percentage of adults who feel ‘very safe’ or ‘fairly safe’ when walking 95% 95% March 2019
alone in their neighbourhood (SHS – LA Tables) (2016 data)
2.26 Percentage of adults who feel ‘very safe’ or ‘fairly safe’ at home (SHS – 99% 99% March 2019
LA Tables) (2016 data)
No Actions Start Date Milestone Lead
Work Area 5 - Involving and Empowering Our Communities Outcomes:
Tenants and other customers find it easy to participate in and influence their Landlord’s decisions at a level they feel comfortable with (Charter 3).
Tenants get clear information on how rent and other money is spent including any details of individual items of expenditure above thresholds agreed
between Landlords and tenants (Charter 15).
No Measures Baseline Target Timescale
(2017/18)
2.27 Percentage of tenants who feel their landlord is good at keeping them 96.80% Maintain May 2019
informed about their services and decisions.
2.28 Percentage of tenants satisfied with the opportunities given to them to 98.74% Maintain May 2019
participate in their Landlords decision making process.
24 | P a g ePriority 3 – Independent Living
Outcome 1 - People have access to the right type of housing to enable them to live as independently as possible at home or in a homely setting.
No Measures Baseline Target Timescale
(2017/18)
3.1 Delivery of new houses built to inclusive and universal design standards April 2018 December 2018 March 2019
No Actions Start Date Milestone Lead
3.2 Develop long term and anticipatory understanding of the requirement for April 2018 March 2019 Specialist Housing Services
supported housing.
3.3 Improve current processes in place to facilitate a person’s pathway into April 2018 March 2019 Specialist Housing Services /
appropriate supported housing. Northgate Team
3.4 Further develop planning processes to maximise successful transition April 2018 March 2019 Housing and Partnership
into supported housing. Team Leaders
3.5 Development of a ‘Design Guide’ for new housing to be built to inclusive April 2018 December 2018 Planning & Policy
and universal standards.
Outcome 2 - People have access to the right type of support to sustain their accommodation.
No Measures Baseline Target Timescale
(2017/18)
3.6 Number of people supported by Telecare Packages (including 3,833 people 4,200 people March 2019
community alarms)
25 | P a g ePriority 4 – House Condition, Fuel Poverty and Climate Change
Outcome 1 - All residents are living in good quality and energy efficient homes which meet the relevant standards
No Measures Baseline Target Timescale
(2017/18) (2018/19)
4.1 Number of properties with improvements carried out through Capital C/H – 694 C/H – 350 March 2019
Investment Programme to improve standard and energy efficiency levels W/D– 526 W/D – 300
in council homes (including Central Heating [C/H], Windows and Doors CDE – 455 CDE – 250
[W/D], Controlled Door Entry [CDE], Replacement Kitchens and Kitchens - 147 Kitchens – 45
Replacement Bathrooms). Bathrooms - 294 Bathrooms - 115
4.2 Percentage of council properties achieving Energy Efficiency Standard 80.2% Full compliance by December 2020
for Social Housing (EESSH). December 2020
4.3 Percentage of council stock complying with Scottish Housing Quality 96.15% Full compliance by March 2019 (subject to
Standard (SHQS). April 2015 abeyances and exemptions)
No Actions Start Date Milestone Lead
4.4 Increase awareness of Repairing Standard and examine ways of April 2018 March 2019 Private Sector Team/ EHO
enforcing sub-standard properties within the Private Sector (including
below tolerable standard properties).
4.5 Examine Private Landlord compliance levels with the minimum April 2018 March 2019 Private Landlord Team/
standards within Perth and Kinross. Planning & Policy
4.6 Ensure new build houses are designed with energy efficiency and April 2018 March 2019 Planning & Policy/ Housing
climate change in mind. Improvements
4.7 Explore opportunities across services to fund missing shares. April 2018 March 2019 Private Sector Team/ EHO
4.8 Work with Flood Team to help progress larger flooding agenda. April 2018 March 2019 Housing Improvements
Outcome 2 - Residents are living in homes they can afford to heat and are aware of opportunities to maximise their incomes
No Measures Baseline Target Timescale
(2017/18) (2018/19)
4.9 Number of households benefitting from HEEPS-ABS/ ECO Funding 123 (private) 170 (private) June 2019
through (SSE). 75 (council) 120 (council)
4.10 Number of council properties with new mains gas supplies installed. 68 homes 40 homes March 2019
4.11 Number of council properties with new renewable technology (e.g. solar 28 homes 50 homes March 2019
water heating, air sourced heat pumps, solar photovoltaic panels).
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