Building Briefs – August 30th

• Glasgow City Council makes steady progress on regeneration of derelict land

The data provided by the Scottish Vacant and Derelict Land Survey (SVDLS) revealed that the equivalent of 90 full-sized football pitches have been brought back to use within one year in the latest 2018 figures.

The study found that between 2017 and 2018, Glasgow saw a 64-hectare reduction in vacant and derelict lands, this is a 6.4% decrease from 1069 to 1005 hectares. There was also a reduction in the number of vacant and derelict sites, from 761 to 721. The reduction between 2016 and 2017 was 3.9% or 42 hectares.

A proportion of the land has also been regenerated for uses including transport, recreation and leisure.

Glasgow has consistently had the highest concentration of vacant and derelict land of any Scottish city, and it is recognised that this has arisen as a result of fragmented ownership, poor ground conditions, and inadequate infrastructure on many sites. Together these factors combine to act as a brake on the economic potential of Glasgow, and very often these sites are found in the areas affected most by deprivation.

Most of the remaining vacant and derelict land can be found in the north and east of the city, and 349 of the sites are owned by the council. Earlier in 2019, the council presented it’s draft Vacant and Derelict Land Assets Plan as it gears up to make use of these sites in future years.

Just over £3.5 million has been provided by the Scottish Government to help deal with long-term vacant and derelict land in Glasgow. In doing this, economic growth and employment will be stimulated alongside the development of a diverse and sustainable environment. This will further help communities flourish and reduce inequalities. This funding will also go towards the potential treatment and/or investigation of over 37 hectares of vacant and derelict land.

The council will spend a further £3.5m provided by the Scottish Government to tackle this issue in the current financial year.

The council’s focus in tackling this issue will include remediating former brownfield/industrial sites, assist the delivery of sites and infrastructure to support job creation, and put greenspace on sites where there is no potential for development in the short to medium term.

It is proposed that the funding allocation will be spent across the city at sites in the Broomielaw, Cadder, the canal corridor, Dalmarnock, Dawsholm, Govan, Laurieston, Shettleston and Toryglen.

• Two housing associations to initiate transfer proceedings

Pentland Housing Association has decided to transfer to Cairn Housing Association following a strategic review.

Tenants, staff and board members were all involved in the review which was set up to plan for the future of the Association and how it provides homes and services to tenants and other customers.

Following an open tender exercise where potential partner housing associations were invited to submit proposals, Pentland’s board concluded that it is in the best interests of tenants and other customers to transfer to Cairn Housing Association.

The move will combine the strengths of Pentland and Cairn into one organisation.

Pentland Housing Association tenants and other customers will be invited to a series of consultation events to develop the detail of the proposed transfer. A full transfer of engagements of Pentland’s homes and services to Cairn Housing Association will only go ahead if a majority of tenants voting in a formal ballot agree to the proposal, and shareholding members vote in favour of it at a subsequent Special General Meeting.

• Steps taken to increase electric vehicle infrastructure

A £7.5 million project between the public and private sectors has been established to deliver more electric vehicle charging points and ensure the infrastructure needed to support these is put in place.

The new strategic partnership will include Transport Scotland, SP Energy Networks and Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN).

As part of the project, SSEN will examine what electricity network infrastructure will be required to support the increasing number of people travelling to the north of Scotland by electric vehicles. Infrastructure needs for new charging points along the route of the Electric A9 will be also be identified and mapped.

In central and southern Scotland, SP Energy Networks will deliver additional public electric vehicle chargers integrated with the electricity network. The pilot project will develop a model to increase the pace, accessibility and efficiency of the deployment of public chargers.

The partnership includes Scottish Government funding of £5m and at least an additional £2.5m from the network companies. It will deliver trial projects to take place in 20-21.

• Eyemouth Community Campus plans on show

Community groups and members of the public are being invited to view plans for the new Eyemouth Community Campus for the first time as part of a Fit for 2024 property event next month.

Scottish Borders Council hosts the community drop-in event at Eyemouth Primary School on Thursday 26 September from 4pm to 7.30pm.

It will give the public the chance to find out more about the investment proposals for the new Community Campus, and for the local authority to listen to the community’s views.

The council and partners have come up with an ambitious strategy on the site of Eyemouth Primary for a new Campus as part of a wider masterplan.

It would see new educational facilities, local services and extra care housing located on a single campus, alongside complimentary affordable housing.

The event will also be a starting point for discussions around a number of other buildings and sites in the town, including the library, community centre and education provision in east Berwickshire.

• Social landlords maintain strong Charter performance

Scottish social landlords continue to perform well in the service areas that matter most to tenants, according to the Scottish Housing Regulator.

The headline findings of the Regulator’s sixth national analysis of landlords’ performance against the Scottish Social Housing Charter revealed a continued strong performance across the majority of the Charter standards and outcomes.

Tenant satisfaction remains high, with nine out of ten social housing tenants satisfied with their landlord’s overall service, today’s report revealed.

The publication comes alongside a suite of performance information from the Regulator which includes a summary report on each landlord’s Charter performance, an online comparison tool, live data tables, and all of the information landlords provided under the Charter.

The landlord reports and comparison tool let tenants find out about their landlord’s performance in the areas tenants said matter most: homes and rents, quality and maintenance, neighbourhoods, tenant satisfaction, and value for money.

The Regulator’s data tables show how landlords performed against each Charter standard and outcome. Landlords can use them to benchmark their performance.

• Travellers raise concerns about site conditions

Members of the Gypsy/Traveller community living on social landlord’s sites across Scotland are concerned about the condition standards, a report by the Scottish Housing Regulator has found.

The research is the last in a series carried out by the Regulator’s National Panel of Tenants and Service Users. The resulting report gives some indication of the experiences and concerns of the Gypsy/Traveller community in Scotland. It revealed that most who participated in the study expressed concerns about their site.

The most commonly expressed concerns were centred around the overall condition and cleanliness of sites. Many participants said they felt that their sites suffered from a lack of investment. This view was most pronounced for those sites which have failed to meet the Scottish Government’s minimum site standards.

The data also suggests that travellers have limited awareness of the minimum site standards. The standards cover physical facilities and services. Just over one in ten of all those interviewed had heard of the standards. The majority of travellers believed they would benefit from access to information about them.

Some participants said that site location, the mix of residents, a community spirit, and on-site wardens were the predominant positives for current site provision.

The report arrives as the Regulator publishes updated engagement plans showing that more sites now comply with minimum standards. It has been revealed that sites run by Argyll Community Housing Association, Highland Council and West Dunbartonshire Council now meet the standards. Consequently, currently, 23 out of 28 sites run by social landlords now meet the standards.

However, five sites run by four social landlords continue to fail to meet the standards. The Regulator is continuing to engage with all four landlords.

The Regulator has also written to all landlords with sites to get further assurance around their compliance with fire safety requirements.

The research was carried out by Engage Scotland, which runs the National Panel on the Regulator’s behalf. Engage interviewed 55 travellers across ten sites.