Local Housing Strategy 2023–2028

The Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 places a statutory duty on local authorities to prepare a Local Housing Strategy (LHS) supported by an assessment of housing need, demand and housing provision.

Scottish Government Guidance was published in 2019 to assist local authorities with the preparation of Local Housing Strategies.

The Local Housing Strategy sets out the strategic direction, policies and plans that will enable East Dunbartonshire Council and partners to deliver high quality housing and housing services to meet the needs of local people across all housing tenures.The LHS also sets out the important contribution that housing makes to improving health and wellbeing, creating connected and sustainable places, tackling climate change, supporting economic growth and reducing poverty across East Dunbartonshire.

This LHS builds on the progress of the 2017-22 strategy and sits at the heart of all housing planning arrangements and partnership activities in East Dunbartonshire. Progress made during the lifetime of the previous strategy is set out below alongside challenges that need to be carried forward and tackled over the next five years. The updated priorities for East Dunbartonshire Council during 2023-28 aim to ensure that a culture of improvement is imbedded into all actions to be taken forward, with a clear focus on performance and assuring our customers that the Council places quality and value for money at the centre of service delivery.

Local Housing Strategy outcomes:

Progress 2017 - 2022

• Providing 10% of amenity housing and wheelchair housing in all tenures including every new build development as part of SHIP
• Liaising with SG, RSLs and developers to put together an effective SHIP in line with LDP2
• Implemented a non-subsidised affordable housing planning guidance policy negotiating directly with developers
• Research undertaken into the housing needs of older people in Aug 2020
• Review of Allocations Policy (pending IHMS)
• Completed an independent stock condition survey
• Identify the housing needs of young people.

Challenges for 2023 - 2028

• Locating suitable sites and encouraging market-based provision
• Identifying a sustainable land supply
• Narrowly focused housing market on particular house types
• Allocation Policy review commenced March 2023 to be implemented in line with new IHMS
• Develop a new Asset Management Strategy in this LHS lifetime to tackle mixed tenure and shortage of stock in high demand areas
• Engage with harder to reach communities.

Progress 2017 - 2022

• Successful delivery of a dual housing options/homelessness approach
• Housing Options Toolkit rolled out to all EDC staff
• Partnership working in accordance with SHORE standards
• HMP Low Moss
• Multi-agency meetings to assist delivery of a range of protocols as preventative action
• Provision of advice and assistance, specialist financial advice via funded post in CAB.

Challenges for 2023 - 2028

• Funding for RRTP is not ring-fenced. Cost of living crisis reducing available options placing greater pressure on stock in all tenures
• Ensure Toolkit remains relevant in EDC
• Working protocol with HMP Low Moss
• Continue to deliver a multi agency approach to support the Home Project, Integrated Discharge protocol, Homelessness & Mental Health protocol, MAPPA
• Partnership with Job Centre Plus and the Council’s Rents Team to prevent rent arrears and maximise tenant’s income.

Progress 2017 - 2022

• Effective working relationship with HSCP
• Delivery of EDC Care & Repair service
• Housing representation on the HSCP Strategic Commissioning Plan group & Housing contribution (Dec 2021) is now integrated into Commissioning Plan.

Challenges for 2023 - 2028

• Interpret the findings of the older persons research into an action that effects the way in which houses are designed and adapted
• Deliver adaptations to customers within agreed timescales
• Continue to deliver on objectives of HCS3.

Progress 2017 - 2022

• Continued investment in components to maintain SHQS and lift remaining properties to EESSH
• Mixed tenure roofing framework established.

Challenges for 2023 - 2028

• Specific programmes to be developed and implemented through life of new LHS
• Reduction in lengthy procurement process
• Continue to utilise a Missing Shares Policy to tackle lack of investment by private owners.

Progress 2017 - 2022

• Continued investment
• Tenant Satisfaction Survey
• Monitor Annual Assurance Action Plan
• Continue to involve tenants and customers in a range of was to inform and influence decisions relating to Housing & PM services.

Challenges for 2023 - 2028

• To complete a full survey of all Council tenants as per SSHC proposed date to commence in early 2025
• Carry out an annual self-assessment of Housing & Property maintenance services to inform improved service delivery and provide assurance on compliance
• Recruit a new tenant scrutiny group, The Scrutineers’ to review poorly performing areas resulting from ARC
• Continue to support the TPWG and wider tenant participation.

The LHS is an ambitious strategy, setting out what homes and communities should look and feel like in East Dunbartonshire over the next five years and beyond. Its vision includes improving better access to suitable, affordable and energy efficient housing across East Dunbartonshire, in homes that meet the individual needs of each household and which are well connected to local services, jobs and communities.

The LHS has been developed with the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, the UK exit from the European Union and the war in Ukraine; all of which have had significant impacts on East Dunbartonshire’s economy and communities. The Local Housing Strategy, therefore, comes at a crucial time and by aiming to support inclusive growth and tackle inequalities, will be instrumental in improving outcomes for everyone across East Dunbartonshire.

The LHS sets out the vision of East Dunbartonshire Council and partners for the future of housing across all tenures and types of housing provision.The strategy aligns to the national housing strategy (Housing to 2040), maximising investment opportunities for East Dunbartonshire and taking into account East Dunbartonshire’s housing system context.The main purpose of the strategy is to:

• Set out a shared understanding of need and demand for all types of housing, and for housing services now and in future
• Provide clear strategic direction for housing investment including the development of new homes and investment in existing housing
• Create a framework for placemaking, ensuring housing connects people to local services, jobs, the natural environment and community
• Set out actions and targets to improve the quality, condition and energy efficiency of homes in East Dunbartonshire
• Provide a strong contribution to the integration of housing, health and social care services, which enable independent living and improve wellbeing
• Set the framework to prevent homelessness wherever possible and to resolve homelessness quickly and effectively when it occurs
• Focus on the priorities and outcomes required to achieve the LHS vision.

In meeting the requirements of the Guidance, the LHS must be:

• Evidence based & informed by the latest housing system insight
• Developed in collaboration with partners, stakeholders & residents
• Forward looking and delivery focused
• Based on public service reform principles: prevention, collaboration, people development & innovation
• Informed by extensive and inclusive consultation
• Clear, concise and easy to read
• Clear on the links to previous LHS priorities.

The Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 requires that local authorities consult on their LHS, and the statutory Equality Duty on public bodies requires the involvement, consultation and engagement of as wide a range of local residents, tenants and communities of interest as possible.

A range of consultation opportunities have been provided throughout the course of developing this LHS, with opportunities for early engagement to help ensure local people, communities and wider stakeholders could share views on the most pressing housing challenges facing East Dunbartonshire, as well as generating ideas for change and improvement. As housing system research and analysis developed during LHS production, the views of partners and stakeholders were sought on the main housing issues that should be prioritised for action.

A diverse range of partners, stakeholders and subject matter experts participated in developing the East Dunbartonshire LHS 2023-2028. An extensive consultation and engagement programme has been undertaken to collect a range of views and enable this feedback to inform the development of LHS Outcomes and Priorities. These include:  

• LHS early engagement survey: A survey to inform the new Local Housing Strategy was made available to communities and residents across East Dunbartonshire, enabling them to express their views on which local housing issues ‘matter most’. The survey was open for a 6-week period from October to November 2021.The early engagement survey was heavily promoted on social media, via the local press and through a QR Code poster campaign in local meeting points. The survey was made available in a range of formats including online, via telephone and freepost options. 173 residents responded to the early engagement survey.
• Stakeholder conference: To encourage and enable widespread participation, the conference was held digitally via Microsoft Teams. Over 80 partners and stakeholders attended the event, including representatives from public, private, third and community sectors. The purpose of the conference was to co-produce an LHS vision, agree the main housing issues that form the basis of LHS priorities and generate ideas and innovation as a basis for LHS actions
• Options identification workshops: Four half-day workshop sessions were held, to inform the definition of key LHS priorities together with a range of viable options for addressing them. Workshop participants were specialist stakeholders and subject matter experts from across the Council and partner organisations.
• Option appraisal workshops: Four half-day workshop sessions were held to systematically appraise each shortlist of LHS options. The outputs from these sessions form the basis of the LHS Action Plan and Outcome Framework.
• Strategic engagement: Mechanisms were put in place, as part of the LHS consultation plan to ensure the LHS is fully aligned with local strategies, policies, and plans. These include partnership working around the Housing Contribution Statement, the new Local Development Plan and the East Dunbartonshire Climate Action Plan.
• Strategic governance: The LHS development process has been commissioned by the LHS Steering Group which provides a multi-agency governance framework for the development and implementation of the LHS. Representatives include partners from Housing Services, Planning, Police Scotland, Third Sector agencies, Health and Social Care Partners and Glasgow City Region Strategic Development Plan Team.

The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the development and delivery of the LHS Consultation Plan. A creative approach was deployed to ensure that a range of alternative engagement and consultation opportunities were available in the absence of face-to-face opportunities. The advancement of virtual consultation methods has been effective in providing new ways to engage with people not able to attend in-person events, and to expand the digital audience of the LHS. The extent and nature of the LHS Consultation Plan can be summarised as follows:

The vision for housing in Scotland places housing firmly at the centre of other national objectives including tackling poverty and inequality, creating and supporting jobs, meeting energy efficiency and fuel poverty targets, tackling the climate emergency, and creating connected, successful communities.

The LHS vision also places housing at the centre of major ambitions for East Dunbartonshire including:

• improving housing access and reducing inequality
• providing homes in sustainable places where connectivity to jobs and local services is easy
• helping more people find it easy and affordable to heat their home
• supporting people to live independently and well at home

Coproduced with LHS delivery partners, stakeholders and local residents, the Local Housing Strategy vision for East Dunbartonshire is that: "Everyone in East Dunbartonshire will have access to a climate friendly, affordable, good quality home which connects to communities and promotes health and wellbeing".

To achieve this vision and realise the wider ambitions set out in the East Dunbartonshire Local Outcomes Improvement Plan 2017-2027, the following four LHS priorities have been defined:

• Priority 1 - Delivering more homes at the heart of great places and communities
• Priority 2 - Achieving housing quality. affordable warmth and net zero homes
• Priority 3 - Supporting people to live independently and well at home
• Priority 4 - Improving housing options. choice and affordability

The evidence, key issues and actions for each LHS priority are set out in Sections 4 to 7 of this Local Housing Strategy document.

Guiding the delivery of the LHS are the principles set out by the Christie Commission on the Delivery of Public Services in Scotland.These include commitments to collaboration, efficiency and innovation, prevention, and tackling inequality.

The LHS Steering Group will build on the strong partnerships already in place, recognising that achieving LHS priorities will require a collective effort from delivery partners, stakeholders, communities, and the people of East Dunbartonshire.

It is important that the LHS supports and helps deliver national housing outcomes and targets, whilst also reflecting the needs and priorities of local people through the East Dunbartonshire’s Local Outcomes Improvement Plan.

The LHS is therefore set within the wider Community Planning framework for the Council and its partners. On this basis, the LHS defines the housing contribution to local strategic priorities and provides a framework for meeting the targets set out in Scotland’s Housing Strategy:‘Housing to 2040’.The national and local strategic framework that will support and enable LHS delivery is set out in more detail below.

Housing to 2040 is Scotland’s first ever long-term national housing strategy providing a vision for what housing should look like and how it will be provided to the people of Scotland, no matter where they live and what point in their life they are in.The strategy is developed around four key themes:

1. More homes at the heart of great places
2. Affordability and choice
3. Affordable warmth and zero emissions
4. Improving the quality of all homes

Housing to 2040 makes a commitment to increasing housing supply by setting an ambition to deliver 100,000 affordable homes over the next ten years up to 2031/32, with at least 70% of these homes for social rent.The strategy sets out a specific vision for ensuring:

• A well-functioning housing system
• High quality, sustainable homes
• Sustainable communities
• Homes that meet people’s needs

Places a duty on local authorities to prepare and publish annual Local Child Poverty Action Reports (LCPAR).These reports evidence how local actions support national priorities contained in the ‘Best Start, Bright Futures: tackling child poverty delivery plan (2022 to 2026). Part B of the Plan is of particular relevance to Housing having a focus on access to warm and affordable homes which is a key factor in tackling child poverty.

The Scottish Government is committed to invest in the Affordable Housing Supply Programme (AHSP), in line with the Council’s commitment to deliver 110,000 more affordable energy efficient homes by 2032.The prioritisation of tackling child poverty is at the heart of the AHSP, further strengthening housing planning processes to ensure larger family homes are delivered where they are needed.Actions in the LCPAR include:

• Continue to provide supports around maintaining tenancies:The House project, Canal project, Project 101.
• During 2022/23, Project 101 will focus upon healthy eating, fitness, cooking lessons, mediation, suicide prevention and positive mental health.
• The Council has agreed an additional fund for Homeless Tenants of £100,000 for 2022/23.
• For 2022/23, an additional £100,000 has been awarded to the Homelessness and Prevention Team to assist households living in temporary accommodation.
• The Homelessness and Prevention Team has a service level agreement in place and fund a Housing Rights Officer in the Citizen’s Advice Bureau (CAB) Using Rapid Rehousing money from the Scottish Government the Homelessness Team will continue to fund a Welfare Rights Officer during 2022/23.
• The Council’s Landlord Registration Officer will continue to monitor and check notices served by landlords.
• Utilising a Rent Affordability Tool as part of the annual rent setting consultation process for 2023/24.

The Scottish Government’s National Performance Framework provides a vision for ‘A Scotland that is ‘wealthier and fairer, smarter, healthier, safer and stronger and greener’. It provides a framework which includes seven high level targets for public services to work towards including:

1. Growth
2. Productivity
3. Participation
4. Population
5. Solidarity
6. Cohesion
7. Sustainability

LHS outcomes in East Dunbartonshire align well to the National Performance Framework Vision and make strong contributions to the targets set under the growth, participation, population, cohesion and sustainability elements of the framework.

The Scottish Government is currently preparing a new spatial plan for Scotland that will look ahead to 2050.The fourth National Planning Framework (NPF4) will set out a vision for what Scotland, as a place, could and should look like in 2050.This will include national planning policies and provide a plan for future development in Scotland. Driven by the overarching goal of addressing climate change, this long-term strategy is expected to focus on achieving four key outcomes:

1. Net zero emissions
2. A wellbeing economy
3. Resilient communities
4. Better, greener places.

The LHS has been informed by the concepts and aims set out in NPF4. Concepts such as the 20-minute neighbourhood, use of the Place Principle, prioritising brownfield development and a fabric first approach to decarbonising homes and communities; all feature within the action plans to deliver East Dunbartonshire LHS priorities.

Furthermore, informed by evidence from the third Glasgow City Region Housing Need and Demand Assessment (HNDA) that is due publication late 2023, East Dunbartonshire Council set a ‘minimum all tenure housing land requirement’ (MATHLR) following Scottish Government consultation with local authorities on the spatial strategy for NPF4.The MATHLR took into consideration:

• Housing Need & Demand Assessment evidence including cross tenure housing estimates
• Housing delivery targets arising from East Dunbartonshire’s Strategic Housing Investment Plan
• Local strategic drivers for housing delivery, as well as historic evidence of the rate of housing completions in East Dunbartonshire.

MATHLR targets set a minimum threshold for housing land allocations within the Local Development Plan.

The proposed Minimum All Tenure Housing Land Requirement set for East Dunbartonshire for the next 10 years is 2,500 units.

Setting the MATLHR does not impact on the requirement for setting Housing Supply Targets within the Local Housing Strategy based on the housing estimates produced within the HNDA. In preparing this Local Housing Strategy there has been close partnership working between housing and planning services to ensure that housing delivery and land use planning principles are informed and well aligned.

It is important that the LHS should be closely aligned with the East Dunbartonshire Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (2017-27), as well as supporting a range of other local plans and strategies which set out ambitions for the people of East Dunbartonshire.

The Plan is the shared plan for the East Dunbartonshire Community Planning Partnership, outlining why and how partners will work together to organise and provide services in a way that tackles known inequalities. It includes a set of 10-year goals for the local area which demonstrate a clear, evidence-based understanding of local needs, circumstances and aspirations of different geographic, or communities of people, who share a common interest.This is translated into a set of priorities which are supported by actions over a 10-year implementation plan.

The Local Outcomes Improvement Plan sets clear ambitions with time-bound improvement actions and measures of success.These are supported by local Place Plans which outline the specific goals set out for four East Dunbartonshire communities:Auchinairn; Hillhead and Harestanes; Lennoxtown; and Twechar. The goals reflect the particular needs and aspirations of people local to these communities in areas such as health and wellbeing, local economy and environment.The LHS vision supports the Local Outcomes Improvement Plan Vision to ‘Work together to achieve the best with the people of East Dunbartonshire.’

The Housing Contribution Statement (HCS) sets out the role of housing services in meeting health and social care outcomes and is a key element of the Health and Social Care Partnership Strategic Plan (2018- 2021). It serves as a key link between the Strategic Plan and the Local Housing Strategy.The current Strategic Plan spans 2018-2021 and sets out a number of actions and priorities which support the better integration of housing, health and care services, including:

A Climate Action Plan (CAP) is currently being prepared to set out the steps needed to support the Scottish Government’s ambitious targets to secure a 75% reduction in carbon emissions in East Dunbartonshire by 2030, and to achieve net zero emissions by 2045 at the latest.The CAP will set a net- zero target for East Dunbartonshire, along with ‘milestone’ targets towards its achievement; it will also set out the steps necessary to ensure that both the Council and our communities are resilient to climate change.

To maintain the momentum until the CAP is introduced in 2023, an Interim Carbon Management Plan 2021-23 has been produced, with work also under way to deliver actions within the Sustainability & Climate Change Framework (SCCF) Action Plan.These documents highlight the importance of housing as a context for mitigating and adapting to climate change.

A key element of the CAP will be the development of a Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy (LHEES), setting out how emissions arising from the use of buildings (including homes across East Dunbartonshire) can be reduced. In preparation for the production of the LHEES in 2023, the Council commissioned analysis in 2021 to examine opportunities and implications for achieving net zero in local homes and buildings. In the domestic sector, it is estimated that the average cost of decarbonisation homes, ranges from £15,000 to £24,000 per property, depending on the extent of insulation installed and whether solar PV panels are included. Scaling these estimates up to cover East Dunbartonshire’s 50,000 homes leads to a total cost of approximately £1 billion.

The LHEES Pilot Project provided a number of recommendations that are being carried forward in the development of the statutory LHEES, the draft of which is due to be presented to Council by the end of 2023.The LHEES will set the statutory framework to decarbonise buildings and address fuel poverty and, other key plans and strategies including the LHS, LDP etc. are required to align with the LHEES Delivery Plan.

The Delivery Plan will be prepared by Planning colleagues in consultation with Housing and Assets & Facilities services.Targets to improve energy efficiency, reduce carbon emissions and address fuel poverty have been set and approved by the Council in June 2021 and action to support their delivery will be taken forward through the full LHEES, which is currently in preparation. Details of actions to meet each target will be monitored and reviewed via the LHS Action Plan as well as through the LHEES itself to ensure cognisance between the strategies.

Technology options are currently being assessed through the building-level pathway assessment for the LHEES and the Draft LHEES will recommend a specific approach in terms of balancing fabric interventions and the deployment of renewable technology including heat pumps and PVs.

The Local Housing Strategy will provide an important delivery framework for the LHEES, setting out a range of actions, investment and partnership priorities associated with improving energy efficiency, tackling fuel poverty and reducing domestic carbon emissions.

The Council adopted the East Dunbartonshire Local Development Plan (LDP) in 2017 and work is now well underway to develop a new LDP by 2022.As well as monitoring the impact of the existing Plan, the Council has also conducted a call for sites – the process through which developers and landowners submit potential future development sites for consideration.The Council has carried out extensive consultation and engagement on a Main Issues Report, which outlines the main land use planning issues arising in East Dunbartonshire now and in the future.

In preparation for the Local Housing Strategy, East Dunbartonshire has worked closely with other Glasgow City Region authorities to develop a Housing Need & Demand Assessment, providing analysis of how the housing system across the Glasgow City Region is operating, and a range of housing estimates which set out need and demand for housing across the Glasgow City Region over the next 10-20 years.The Local Housing Strategy will utilise these estimates to set Housing Supply Targets as the basis for allocating land for housing in East Dunbartonshire within the new Local Development Plan.

The LHS is also instrumental in delivering a number of key LDP priorities aligned to the new National Planning Framework, including tackling climate change, promoting placemaking and supporting the delivery of a wellbeing economy.

Glasgow City Region’s £1 Billion City Deal was the first City Deal in Scotland and is one of the largest and the most advanced in the UK.

The Glasgow City Region brings together eight local authorities;East Dunbartonshire Council,East Renfrewshire Council, Glasgow City Council, Inverclyde Council, North Lanarkshire Council, Renfrewshire Council, South Lanarkshire Council and West Dunbartonshire Council.The City Deal takes a long-term, regional view of economic development projects and targets (up to 2035).The strategy is accompanied by an intensive short term three-year action plan to achieve progress against the 2035 vision of:“A strong, inclusive, competitive and outward-looking economy, sustaining growth and prosperity with every person and business reaching their full potential”.

The vision reflects the region’s strong starting point as a powerhouse of the Scottish Economy, accounting for roughly one third of Scotland’s Gross Value Added (GVA), population, jobs and businesses.

The Council has a statutory obligation to ensure that all its functions and activities are exercised in full compliance with the requirements of the Equalities Act 2010 and the Fairer Scotland Duty (2018).

Equality is at the heart of the East Dunbartonshire Local Housing Strategy, with a commitment to understanding diversity central to the achievement of LHS priorities and outcomes. The Council aims to ensure that strategies and services deliver positive outcomes for everyone in East Dunbartonshire, through prioritising preventive approaches and tackling persistent inequalities where they exist.

The LHS vision sets an ambition that “Everyone in East Dunbartonshire will have access to a climate friendly, affordable, good quality home which connects to communities and promotes health and wellbeing” so that improving equality of housing opportunity, inherently runs as a golden thread through every LHS action point.

The LHS Equalities Impact Assessment sets out how the Council has addressed and seeks to mainstream issues of equality in delivering the LHS. This assessment confirms that the LHS creates no possible adverse impacts on any specific population or misses opportunities to promote equality. It acknowledges the crucial role of housing and Housing Services in the delivery of improved outcomes to all people and communities in East Dunbartonshire.

The LHS Delivery Group will monitor and report on the equalities impact of the LHS over the next five years, with a focus on the nine protected characteristics of the Equality Act. If any negative impact on a particular population of the East Dunbartonshire community is identified, appropriate action will be implemented to redress this within the LHS Outcome Action Plan.

A Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) has been completed to assess how the delivery of the Local Housing Strategy will affect the privacy of individuals including, staff, partner organisations, residents or community representatives.The DPIA screening process has confirmed that the LHS does not require the collection, provision or disclosure of information that would have a significant impact on any single individual or their privacy.

A strategy Risk Assessment has been completed to determine that the implementation of the Local Housing Strategy is viable for East Dunbartonshire Council. This assessment includes analysis of the likelihood of resource, funding, implementation and monitoring risks, as well as the mitigations put in place to ensure the successful implementation and evaluation of the LHS over the next five years.
The Risk Impact Assessment for the 2023-28 LHS sets out assurance against delivery risks.

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) sets out 54 articles that cover all aspects of a child’s life and set out the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights that all children everywhere are entitled to. A Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment (CRWIA) sets out a framework to assess the extent to which public policy and strategy uphold the principles of the Convention. The LHS has been assessed against the principles of the UNCRC.

The CRWIA concludes that the development of the new Local Housing Strategy is likely to have a positive impact on all children and young people in East Dunbartonshire irrespective of any protected characteristic.

The assessment acknowledges the key role of housing in safeguarding, supporting and promoting the wellbeing of children through the delivery of:

• A range of housing options and choices for young people and families with children
• Safe homes and neighbourhoods
• Affordable and suitable homes
• Warm and energy efficient homes
• Connected places with support services.

It is widely understood that housing is intricately linked to health and wellbeing alongside other health determinants. The development of the Local Housing Strategy has involved strong engagement with Health and Social Care professionals to identify and target housing-led interventions that will improve the health and wellbeing of people living in East Dunbartonshire.

Furthermore, a Health Inequalities and Impact Assessment (HIIA) has been carried out to assess the impact of LHS priorities on health inequalities.

The HIIA concludes that the LHS aligns well with Housing to 2040 and to the National Performance Framework Vision for ‘A Scotland that is wealthier and fairer, smarter, healthier, safer, stronger and greener’. The Council’s Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP), Local Development Plan (LDP) and other Strategies have close synergy to LHS priorities, which provide a framework to improve health and wellbeing outcomes across East Dunbartonshire.

The LHS is a broad policy document which sits within the framework of the East Dunbartonshire Local Development Plan (2017).The Local Development Plan defines the spatial strategy for East Dunbartonshire and allocates specific sites to meet identified demand. Strategic Environmental Assessment has been carried out in respect of the Local Development Plan, which covers the land use aspects of the Local Housing Strategy.

A complex mix of factors and issues influence the operation of the housing system in East Dunbartonshire. Informed by evidence and analysis of housing system operation, the LHS develops a framework for improving housing outcomes for everyone in East Dunbartonshire by tackling areas where the system is imbalanced or not working well for local people. Key drivers which influence how the housing system is operating such as population change, household projections and the performance of East Dunbartonshire’s economy, are set out below.

The population in East Dunbartonshire has remained static over the last 20 years, compared to a population increase of over 7% in Scotland. Between 2000 and 2010, there was a sustained decline in the East Dunbartonshire population, from 108,620 in 2000 to 104,920 in 2010. Since 2010, this decline has reversed and in the recent decade has restored the population loss back to 2000 levels.

In 2020, the population of East Dunbartonshire was estimated at 108,750 people.

Between 2018 and 2028, the population of East Dunbartonshire is projected to increase by 3.8% from 108,330 to 112,399 people.This increase of 3.8% compares to a 1.8% growth in Scotland’s population. In 2020, there were an estimated 46,563 households living in East Dunbartonshire, an increase of 10% since 2001.This growth is slightly lower than the national pattern with households in Scotland increasing by almost 13% over the same period. So, despite static population growth in the last 20 years, a growing number of households are projected to be living in East Dunbartonshire.

In September 2020, the NRS published household projections for every local authority in Scotland, based on the 2018 population estimates. The projections include a principal scenario and variants based on alternative assumptions about migration trends (both high and low).

Both the principal and high migration projections show an increase in households of between 12.3% and 13.5% in East Dunbartonshire between 2018-2043.

Over the life of the next LHS (2023-2028) and under the principal scenario, the number of households in East Dunbartonshire is projected to increase by 2% from 46,917 to 47,952. Over the next decade (2022- 2032) the figure will increase by over 5% to 49,129 households.

Despite a projected increase in overall population of 3.8% between 2018-2028, the older population is expected to substantially increase by 25.9% over the same period in East Dunbartonshire.

East Dunbartonshire already benefits from higher life expectancy than the rest of Scotland and this trend is projected to continue.A rapid movement from ‘Third Age’ into a frail cohort is on the horizon for service planners, commissioners and providers.The ageing population has already resulted in increased demand for health and social care services which, set against a backdrop of continued financial constraints, which has led to significant pressures on service delivery.A rapidly ageing population in East Dunbartonshire could exacerbate this.

All sub areas in East Dunbartonshire are projected to have significant growth in the older population (65+) over the period 2018-2030.This is particularly acute in the 85+ age cohort, where increases range from 29% in Milngavie to a substantial 78% in the Bearsden North sub-area.

Innovative solutions will be required to enable older households to ‘Age in Place’.

The report “Housing and Ageing: Linking Strategy to future delivery for Scotland,Wales and England 2030”, recommends that housing should play a central role in the provision of services for older people. It also calls for new adaptable and affordable housing to be built; investment in early intervention; and meaningful consultation with older people. It makes the point that by 2030 there will be over 600,000 people aged 75 or over in Scotland.As a result, we will need to ensure there is suitable housing and services for individuals to continue living independently at home, maintaining their connections with people and place.

There is increasing recognition that planning for housing in later life is about ageing in place and staying in the home of your choice for as long as possible. Increasing the supply of accessible housing is a fundamental part of promoting independence, flexibility and social inclusion. This can only be achieved by building accessible dwellings or by adapting the existing housing stock to meet the needs of East Dunbartonshire’s older people as they age.

East Dunbartonshire has an affluent, educated and highly skilled population. However, East Dunbartonshire has a reputation as being a commuter location, with only 25% of residents actually working locally.

East Dunbartonshire has the second lowest job density in Scotland behind East Renfrewshire. In East Dunbartonshire the job density is currently 0.45, which means for every 100 people aged between 16 and 64, there are 45 available jobs in the area.Although there is a strong network of existing businesses, the business base does not fully match the skills base in East Dunbartonshire.

East Dunbartonshire is characterised by high employment rates across the working age population. 76% of East Dunbartonshire's working age population are in employment. However, the number of people in East Dunbartonshire who are economically inactive has been rising at a faster rate (5% ) between 2010-20 than Scotland (2%).

Local employment in East Dunbartonshire relies on public sector jobs and on self-employment. Small and medium enterprises represent over 98% of local businesses and only 1.2% of local businesses have more than 50 employees. Whilst East Dunbartonshire's economy is characterised by high earnings and low unemployment levels, income inequalities are stark, particularly for those in poorly paid local employment. Residents earn £94.70 a week more than the Scottish average, but those that work here earn £164.70 a week less than those that live here. However those who work locally earn £68.40 less than the average Scot. The unemployment rate is 3.2%, compared to Scotland state of 4.3%. This suggests that residents do not work in the area, and that there are lower paid jobs within the local economy.

Despite a relatively strong economic base, both Brexit and COVID-19 are exerting unprecedented challenges on the East Dunbartonshire economy. It is important that housing investment is maximised as part of East Dunbartonshire’s economic strategy. Housing and economic growth are fundamentally linked, and a lack of suitable housing can be a barrier to key sectors of the economy being able to recruit and retain staff to grow their businesses and in turn grow the local economy.

The East Dunbartonshire housing market has shown positive growth over the last five years, with house prices increasing by 18% over this period.

Analysis of the housing market in East Dunbartonshire reveals that local households must spend significantly more than the typical 3.9 X’s mortgage multiplier to afford the average house price. Instead, local households need to devote over five times their income to meet the costs of the average property.

More significantly, households with lower quartile incomes need to devote over 6.5 times their income level to purchase a home at market entry level. This evidence suggests that home ownership is out of reach for many local households on low to moderate incomes.

There are approximately 47,500 dwellings in East Dunbartonshire to meet the needs of the local population. 84% homes in East Dunbartonshire are in the owner- occupied sector, which is significantly higher than the proportion in Scotland (62%).The social housing sector accommodates just under 10% of households living in East Dunbartonshire, significantly less than the national profile at 26%.

The dwelling profile in East Dunbartonshire is characterised by properties that are younger, low rise and bigger in size than is the case across Scotland.

East Dunbartonshire has fewer smaller homes when compared to the national profile.A third of homes in East Dunbartonshire have 2 bedrooms or less compared to 50% in Scotland.The projected growth in smaller households in East Dunbartonshire creates an increasing mismatch between households and homes, fuelling a need to develop smaller properties in well-connected places and sustainable communities.

East Dunbartonshire’s private rented sector accounts for only 7% of the total housing stock, much lower than the Scottish average at 13%.The PRS is an important transitional housing tenure which offers flexible housing options to those in need. Growing the private rented sector and offering a wider range of tenure options is an important consideration for the Local Housing Strategy.Alternative housing tenures could include low-cost home ownership, shared equity, shared ownership and mid-market rent options. Creating a more accessible and flexible range of housing options could also be instrumental in attracting and retaining essential workers, supporting the delivery of East Dunbartonshire’s economic ambitions via the Glasgow Region Growth Deal.

The LHS is an all-tenure strategy which considers current and future housing need, setting a strategic vision for housing across both public and private sectors. Providing the right size, type and tenure of housing, in sustainable, well-connected places is a fundamental aspect of Local Housing Strategy delivery, and crucial
to the delivery of the East Dunbartonshire Local Outcomes Improvement Plan and Glasgow City Region Growth Deal.

Aligned to increasing housing supply and placemaking, the LHS is required to provide evidence and policy direction in relation to:

• The extent and nature of housing need and demand across East Dunbartonshire
• Delivering a generous supply of housing land aligned to the Local Development Plan and Housing Supply Targets
• The strategic direction for housing investment in East Dunbartonshire, including the Strategic Housing Investment Plan (for affordable housing) and the delivery of intermediate housing through the Glasgow City Growth Deal
• Powers and mechanisms to help households and landlords make best use of existing homes
• Efficient and innovative ways of building and financing the development of new homes.

Informed by analysis of the main issues and housing system drivers, LHS Priority 1 focuses on ‘Delivering more homes in great places and communities’ in East Dunbartonshire by:

• Investing in social housing
• Developing a more diverse range of affordable housing options
• Developing housing options for older people
• Assembling land for housing development
• Partnership and development planning approaches.

Chapter 5 sets out the evidence base and outlines what East Dunbartonshire Council and partners will do to address the main challenges to increasing housing supply and promoting placemaking. It concludes with LHS priority actions for partnership, investment and delivery activity.

Watch: A detailed briefing, which sets out the housing system evidence underpinning LHS Priority 1.

LHS analysis suggests that the key issues which drive the need for action, investment and partnership to increase housing supply and promote placemaking in East Dunbartonshire are as follows:

There are 5,354 units of affordable housing across East Dunbartonshire, with around 6% becoming available for letting each year. Demand for affordable housing in East Dunbartonshire clearly outstrips supply with roughly 10 applicants for every social tenancy that becomes available. The number of waiting list applicants to available homes, shows major pressures for 1 and 3-bedroom homes in Bearsden, Bishopbriggs and Kirkintilloch.

If it is assumed that local housing requirements will be based on a principal population projections scenario, with East Dunbartonshire requiring additional housing in the region of 2,000 units over the next 10 years. Over 40% of this additional housing requirement is for affordable housing.

During the period 2010-2019, the total number of housing completions across East Dunbartonshire totalled 302 comprising of 208 market completions and 94 affordable homes. The Housing Supply Target 2012-24 has an annual all tenure target of 308 homes per annum. There has been a slight shortfall in the overall and affordable housing target.

The Strategic Housing Investment Plan (2021-26) is the delivery plan for meeting affordable housing supply targets across East Dunbartonshire. The Strategic Housing Investment Programme in East Dunbartonshire aims to deliver 1,154 affordable homes, supported by over £45.8M of funding from the Scottish Government.

All but 64 homes will be delivered with subsidy from the Affordable Housing Supply Programme. It is also anticipated that up to 100 homes will be purchased through the Council’s Open Market Purchase Scheme with subsidy being provided via the Scottish Government’s Rental Off the Shelf Scheme.

The current 5-year Housing Supply Target (informed by HNDA2) for East Dunbartonshire was 3,700 homes. Analysis of total housing completions in East Dunbartonshire over the past 5 years, shows a slight shortfall in meeting affordable Housing Supply Targets.

A key consideration in setting Housing Supply Targets within the new LHS should therefore focus on, removing constraints and building capacity to increase the delivery of housing supply across all tenures in East Dunbartonshire. A Self-Build Register will be set up by Planning colleagues in line with reforms to the planning system in Scotland and related Guidance. The Council encourages this type of housing development and will support those with this aspiration. Furthermore, whilst current effective land supply largely supports the delivery of Housing Supply Targets for private sector housing, effective land for affordable housing is more limited and below the delivery levels set out in the SHIP. Ensuring an effective land supply for affordable housing will be a crucial element of increasing the supply of affordable housing in East Dunbartonshire over the life of the new LHS.

It is equally essential that the new LHS is closely aligned to the East Dunbartonshire Place Approach. East Dunbartonshire’s Community Planning Partnership is committed to reducing inequality and to targeting resources where they are needed the most. As a result, the ‘place approach’ is being used to work with areas which experience the most inequality. Place Plans have been developed for four geographic communities in East Dunbartonshire; Auchinairn, Hillhead and Harestanes, Lennoxtown and Twechar. Whilst Place Plans provide tailored approaches which meet the needs and specific priorities of each community, all share common themes, with housing access, improvement, affordability and community all central to the Place based approach in each area.

Informed by resident feedback and housing system analysis, partners and stakeholders came together to define the major barriers that should be overcome in the East Dunbartonshire LHS to increase housing supply and promote place making. Key local challenges which drive the need for future partnership, investment and delivery activity include the following:

• Key issue: Whilst recent social housing developments have provided welcome increases in supply, land availability and development constraints leads to high density sites with a high % of flats
• Key Issue: The LHS should encourage delivery of a more diverse range of affordable housing options including shared equity and MMR homes
• Key Issue: There is a need to diversity the range of property typos and sizes delivered by the market, including homes for cider people who want to downsize and younger people trying to got on the ladder
• Key Issue: The economics of development in East Dunbartonshire will always make the delivery of smaller, more affordable market products very challenging
• Key Issue: Sales in public ownership for affordable housing are being exhausted, which means that social housing developers will require to compete in the commercial market for land
• Key issue: Now partnership and master planning approaches will be essential in assembling land locally

Partners and stakeholders co-produced a range of options and ideas to proactively address the challenges associated with increasing housing supply and promoting placemaking in East Dunbartonshire. The following priority actions have been identified to enable the Council and partners to deliver LHS Priority 1 Outcomes over the next five years:

• Maximise the development of social housing through the Strategic Housing Investment Plan delivering a diverse mix of property sizes and more accessible, adaptable homes

• Pursue a proactive master planning approach to land assembly (affordable and private housing) in partnership with landowners, developers, infrastructure providers, funders, housing and planning services

• Ensure housing supports the delivery of 20-minute neighbourhoods by considering the potential for placemaking throughout the design and development of new build housing and existing stock

• Review the affordable housing policy and configure affordable housing ratios to maximise affordable housing delivery

• Continue to find creative ways to increase the supply of larger homes within the existing stock of social housing e.g. evaluating and expanding the Council's loft conversion pilot

• Target investment in open market purchase to increase the supply of affordable housing including homes that are accessible, adaptable and larger family homes

• Improve connectivity of our communities by encouraging investment in physical, social, digital and sustainable transport infrastructure

• Maximise partnership opportunities to access housing infrastructure funding streams, easing brownfield development.

To produce the evidence required to calculate local housing and land requirements over the next 20 years, the Council worked with partners across the Glasgow City region to produce a Housing Need & Demand Assessment. HNDA3 was signed off as ‘robust and credible’ by the Centre for Housing Market Analysis (CHMA) in 2022.

The Scottish Government has developed an HNDA calculation tool.The tool produces an estimate of the additional housing units needed locally.The HNDA tool works by projecting forward the number of new households who will require housing in East Dunbartonshire.This is based on household projections produced by the National Records of Scotland (NRS).The number of existing households who need to move to more suitable housing is also included. Economic scenarios are then applied to calculate housing affordability so that total housing estimates can be split into housing tenures.

HNDA3 estimates provide evidence to inform local decision making on setting Housing Supply Targets in the Local Housing Strategies. This will guide decisions in the East Dunbartonshire Local Development Plan on ensuring there is a generous supply of land for housing
Based on principal household projections, HNDA3 housing estimates suggest that East Dunbartonshire will require additional housing in the region of 4,642 units over the next 20 years, on average 245 new homes per annum. About 40% of this requirement is for affordable housing options, with 21% of housing estimates focused on the delivery of social rented housing, with a further 17% on below market rent options.

As part of the Glasgow City Region Housing Market Partnership, East Dunbartonshire Council has recently completed a Housing Need & Demand Assessment (HNDA3) which provides a statistical estimate of how much additional housing will be required, to meet all future housing need and demand in the area.The housing estimates produced by the HNDA provide the starting point for setting a Housing Supply Target (HST) within the Local Housing Strategy.

The Housing Supply Target (HST) sets out the estimated level of additional housing that can be delivered on the ground and informs the definition of the Housing Land Requirement within the Local Development Plan (LDP).

Local Housing Strategy Guidance (2019) requires the HST to take a policy view, informed by the HNDA estimate of the number and type of dwellings that can realistically be delivered over the period of the LHS. The HNDA3 total estimate figure of 4,642 new homes over the next 19 years, whilst challenging in terms of land, is considered to be a reasonable target which balances increasing the supply of high-quality homes with a realistic pace of delivery.

However, the above split in tenures is not considered to be realistic or deliverable.Whilst the Council will endeavour to increase the supply of properties available for below market rent and private rent, it is likely that a significant proportion will require to be delivered as social rent and owner-occupied accommodation respectively.

Therefore, taking the HNDA estimates and other factors into account, an annual Housing Supply Target (HST) for East Dunbartonshire has been set at 245 units per annum with a target of 95 affordable housing dwellings per annum and 150 market dwellings per annum.

It should be noted that, as a result of the Planning (Scotland) Act 2019, a Minimum All Tenure Housing Land Requirement should be set for each authority area in the National Planning Framework (NPF).The draft NPF4 (as published November 2021) requires the next Local Development Plan for East Dunbartonshire to provide an overall supply of 250 dwellings per year.

NPF4 was adopted by the Scottish Government in February 2023 and states that Local Development Plans must exceed the Minimum All Tenure Housing Land Requirement.Therefore, the Housing Supply Target may require to be amended during the lifetime of the LHS.

A detailed briefing which sets out the housing system evidence underpinning LHS Priority 2 can be viewed on Youtube.

Climate change is already happening, and measures must be taken to enable communities to adapt to these changing conditions, protecting themselves from damaging impacts of severe weather events. Housing is a key part of this with much of the current housing stock vulnerable to a variety of extreme weather types, for example, flooding.

Flooded properties have been experienced in East Dunbartonshire in the past and projected future climate trends indicate an increase in the frequency and geographical extent of flooding, and a consequent increase in potential damage; the required remediation action would entail significant resource implications for the Council and would also significantly impact residents e.g., via increased insurance premiums and potential displacement from homes.

Homes must also be equipped with mechanical ventilation systems to allow cooling as summers become hotter, with more frequent heatwaves being experienced.

(Further info re weather events impacts: 43 extreme rainfall and flooding events -2007-2022.That is 1/3 of all extreme weather events. All but one service has been impacted by rainfall and flooding, highlighting the extent of size and impact of this weather type.)

New build housing will be subject to the New Build Heat Standard (NBHS) from 2024 through the Building (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2023.The NBHS will prohibit the use of direct emissions heating systems in new buildings applying for a building warrant from 1 April 2024 onwards. All newly installed heating systems must be zero direct emissions heating systems from this date. This will directly impact provision of all housing tenures, including affordable housing.

The Heat Networks (Heat Network Zones and Building Assessment Reports) (Scotland) Regulations 2023 include a heat networks Duty on local authorities. This includes identifying potential areas for Heat Network Zones (HNZs) within East Dunbartonshire and will be done through both the development of the LHEES and the production of the Heat Network Review Statement that will be produced in early 2024. The two requirements are closely linked, and work is currently being undertaken as part of the LHEES preparation to identify potential HNZs in East Dunbartonshire.

LHS analysis suggests that the key issues which drive the need for action, investment and partnership; to improve housing condition, energy efficiency and fuel poverty levels in East Dunbartonshire are as follows:

The Scottish House Condition Survey suggest that 3% of all dwellings in East Dunbartonshire are below tolerable standard, compared to the Scottish average of 2%.The level of disrepair is 10% higher than the Scottish average at 81% and 25% of dwellings are in urgent disrepair.

61% of East Dunbartonshire Council stock met the Scottish Housing Quality Standard as of 31 March 2021, compared to the Scottish average of 87%.

Most households in East Dunbartonshire (84%) live in private sector housing. The Scheme of Assistance offers information, advice and practical support, as well as financial assistance, for private sector households. Since 2017/18, 30 cases totalling £46k have been assisted with property grants and 45 with non-financial assistance. Despite having the highest proportion of owner occupiers, this is the lowest number of private sector households supported in Scotland.

20% of households in East Dunbartonshire are estimated to be fuel poor compared to 24% in Scotland. Furthermore, 8% of households are estimated to be in extreme fuel poverty compared to 12% nationally. There is a higher prevalence of fuel poverty in older and other households compared to family homes (22%).These proportions are likely to rise due to the current energy crisis that will have a direct impact on fuel poverty.

Within the social rented sector, 481 energy efficiency measures have been installed, each offering an annual fuel cost saving of £261.

The Scottish Government’s Heat in Buildings Strategy, published on 7 October 2021, outlines a pathway to net-zero emission homes and buildings in Scotland by 2045.The Strategy includes an overarching ambition for all homes to achieve at least EPC Band C by 2033 where feasible and cost effective.

It is estimated that 54-60% of all East Dunbartonshire homes currently have an EPC rating of D or lower. Targets for the social housing sector are more stringent with all homes required to meet an EPC B by 2032. Currently only 3% of homes in the sector meet Band B.

In the social housing sector, the EESSH2 milestone (Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing) is that all homes in the sector will meet EPC B or, be as energy efficient as practically possible by 2032.The Scottish Government is delivering a Social Housing Net Zero fund that will assist social landlords meet some of the costs associated with this target. In addition to these energy targets, by 2030, the vast majority of homes that use high emission oil, LPG or solid fuels will have to convert to zero emission heating.

At the submission of 2022 Annual Return, East Dunbartonshire Council had a 15% failure rate with the EESSH 2020 milestone. It is anticipated that the failure rate will decrease due to Capital Programmes recommencing, that will result in new energy efficient boilers being installed. Maximising funding from the Scottish Government’s, Energy Efficient Scotland Area Based Schemes, to apply external wall insulation (EWI) to mixed tenure non-traditional stock, will ensure improved energy efficiency ratings, therefore increasing the stock numbers meeting EESSH.

The Council is developing a new strategy that will ensure all Council owned stock is compliant with the EESSH 2032 target. It is important to carefully plan this process to ensure the Council can afford this and achieve economies of scale, along with the correct measures being installed for each archetype.

As the majority of Council owned housing stock is within mixed tenure blocks, it is vital to ensure timely engagement with private owners, providing relevant information and access to grant funding where possible. Many private owners may not have the technical knowledge to carry out projects that will provide the required EPC improvements. East Dunbartonshire Council and other partners such as Home Energy Scotland have a key role to inform private owners of the benefits of energy efficiency.

The following map, produced by Changeworks, shows the extent and distribution of cold homes across Scotland, with East Dunbartonshire showing the highest proportion of homes with an EPC rating of D or lower. Furthermore, statistics from the latest Annual Return on the Charter from the Scottish Housing Regulator show that 40% of homes in the social housing sector have a valid EPC, with just 3% meeting the EPC rating of B.

Housing investment and improvement programmes will require to be carefully reviewed to incorporate the costs arising from Heat in Buildings and EESSH2 targets.

Both homeowners and landlords are encouraged to pursue a ‘fabric first’ approach to housing maintenance, that maximises the performance of the components/materials that make up the building fabric, before considering the installation of energy saving products, or renewable technologies, to improve energy standards. This approach could be instrumental in making progress in improving the energy efficiency and condition of homes across East Dunbartonshire.

There has been a 39% reduction in the emissions from domestic energy since 2005. Renewable electricity installation will have been a contributing factor in lowering CO2 emissions. East Dunbartonshire’s renewal electricity installations mostly come from PV panels.

The cost of all East Dunbartonshire homes meeting net zero standards is estimated at approximately £1bn or £20k per property. Some measures could increase fuel bills if cost-offsetting measures are not implemented.

Informed by resident feedback and housing system analysis, partners and stakeholders came together to define the major barriers that need to be overcome in the East Dunbartonshire LHS to improve housing condition, energy efficiency and fuel poverty. Key local challenges which drive the need for future partnership, investment and delivery activity include:

• Key issue: 84% of the homes are in the private sector and there has been limited targeted funding or financial advice services provided in recent years to encourage homeowners to improve home energy performance
• Key issue: There is a need to improve the marketing of advice and assistance available to help homeowners improve the energy efficiency of their homes
• Key issue: Labour and skill shortages in the construction sector are a cause for concern with questions remaining over contractor capacity to deliver energy efficiency improvements
• Key issue: The LHS should be innovative in its ambitions to improve property condition and energy performance. This means pursuing a fabric first approach to meeting energy and net zero targets
• Key issue: There is a significant volume of homes that do not meet future standards and the challenge of meeting government targets may exacerbate fuel poverty
• Key Issue: Disrepair in East Dunbartonshire is higher than Scotland. Understanding the barriers to tackling disrepair is needed so advice can educate residents on property maintenance and investment.

Partners and stakeholders co-produced a range of options and ideas to proactively address the challenges associated with improving housing condition and energy efficiency. The following priority actions have been identified to enable the Council and its partners to deliver LHS Priority 2 Outcomes over the next five years:

• Develop an Asset Management Strategy for East Dunbartonshire Council to identify poor performing assets (including properties in abeyance for SHQS) and consider strategic response

• East Dunbartonshire Council and partners work collaboratively to maximise the use of national funding programmes to tackle disrepair and poor energy efficiency

• Reassess capital investment plans to work towards energy efficiency and net zero targets and include retrofit of the following: energy efficiency measures, heating and ventilation systems and renewables

• Pilot Missing Shares Scheme to assist homeowners with common/mixe tenure repairs and maintenance

• Ensure that advice and information services are kept up to date so we can develop targeted and holistic information and advice services which encourage investment in the full range of energy and carbon reduction improvements in existing homes

• Through workforce planning and training, successfully resource/upskill labour for Property Maintenance Services to develop capability to achieve energy improvement standards

• Adopt joint working approaches with agencies and services to contribute to the delivery of net zero targets under the LHEES and Climate Action Plan

• Promote access to income maximisation and fuel advice services to reduce fuel and child poverty that can also provide a passport to other energy efficiency funding and assistance.

The LHS has a key role to play in meeting national health and wellbeing targets in East Dunbartonshire through the delivery of the Housing Contribution Statement (HCS). The Health and Social Care Partnership’s Strategic Commissioning Plan was approved by the Integrated Joint Board in March 2022 and has incorporated the ‘Housing Dimension’ into the Plan, to demonstrate the contribution Housing makes to improve health and wellbeing, while also supporting independent living in communities.

The LHS plays a significant role in improving public health in East Dunbartonshire by setting the framework for delivering accessible homes, wheelchair homes and specialist forms of provision such as supported accommodation for key client groups. The LHS also sets the framework for enabling people to live independently and well for as long as possible through investment in property adaptations, technology, care and support services. East Dunbartonshire Council will consider setting an appropriate target for specialist housing provision as part of the next SHIP during 2023. This will be included and updated as part of the LHS annual update process to allow for monitoring and review. Research to establish where best to target will also be progressed via the LHS Action Plan.

Aligned to improving access to specialist housing and enabling independent living, the LHS is required to provide evidence and policy direction in relation to:

• Targets for delivering more wheelchair, accessible and specifically designed homes
• Mechanisms to enable existing homes to be adapted to meet the changing needs of households via the Scheme of Assistance and investment programme of social landlords
• Need for specialist housing provision across key client groups
• The delivery of preventative housing support services to promote independent living
• Maximising the use of technology enabled care in homes across East Dunbartonshire.

Informed by analysis of the main issues and housing system drivers, LHS Priority 3 focuses on ‘Supporting people to live independently and well at home’ in East Dunbartonshire by:

• Improving housing support services for households with complex needs
• Increasing housing options for older people
• Increasing the supply of accessible /barrier free housing
• Increasing specialist housing provision
• Harnessing in-situ solutions to enable independence.

Chapter 7 sets out the evidence base and outlines what East Dunbartonshire Council and partners are doing to address the main challenges to increasing specialist housing and promoting independent living. It concludes with LHS priority actions for partnership, investment and delivery activity.

Watch: A detailed briefing which sets out the housing system evidence underpinning LHS Priority 3.

LHS analysis suggests that the key issues which drive the need for action, investment and partnership to improve access to specialist housing and promote independent living in East Dunbartonshire are as follows:

There are 478 units of specialist social housing stock held by the Council and local RSLs across East Dunbartonshire, with 75% of this designated for older people. The average wait time for Sheltered Housing in November 2021 was 7 years and the turnover averages 20 homes per annum. There are 33 supported housing units in the social rented sector.

As of November 2021, there were 308 applicants on the waiting list for Sheltered Housing, 298 of which had less than 50 points suggesting an aspiration for this type of housing rather than a need.

Despite the growing population of older people in East Dunbartonshire, there are questions over the current model of sheltered housing provision and its effectiveness.

9% (278) of waiting list applicants have a health/disability reason listed on their application and 28% of these applicants have no points.

46% of survey respondents thought a “Lack of accessible housing options for people with health problems or disabilities including wheelchair, sheltered or adapted housing” was a top 5 housing challenge.

On average £2.5m has been spent per annum over the last two years on social housing adaptations for landlords with any stock in East Dunbartonshire. Average timescales for adaptations are variable across landlords but typically 60/70 days.

Over the last 2 years, c.£2.5m per annum has been invested in property adaptations by East Dunbartonshire Council and local RSLs.

Scottish Government Stage 3 grant funding has enabled RSLs to deliver just over £2m adaptations. The Council funds adaptations to its properties via the HRA Capital budget and subsidises a Care and Repair service for privately owned properties via the general fund. Over the past four financial years, £679k has been spent on 260 disabled adaptations in the private sector through the Council’s Scheme of Assistance.

Investment in aids and adaptations makes a significant contribution to ensuring that households with health conditions and disabilities can live independently and well in their own homes for as long as possible. East Dunbartonshire Council and RSLS provide property aids and adaptions to improve the accessibility and suitability of tenants' homes.

The older population is expected to substantially increase by 25.9% over the ten years to 2028 in East Dunbartonshire and across all housing market areas nationally. A rapid movement from ‘Third Age’ into a frail cohort is also on the horizon leading to increases in care, support and housing options.

Based on evidence from the social housing waiting list at November 2021, 17 applicants require wheelchair accommodation, with the average wait time for wheelchair housing being 3.6 years. It is estimated that 100 wheelchair homes, across all tenures, will be built over the next five years.

Despite a 10% reduction in the number of home care clients from 2010 to 2017, there has been an increase in home care hours of 10%.The number of clients receiving 10+ home care hours has increased from 160 to 440 between 2010 and 2017, an increase of 120%. 85% of telecare users use the Community Alarm only.

With a loss of 15 pitches since 2008, there is no longer any public (or private) provision of sites for Gypsy/Travellers in East Dunbartonshire. Eight unauthorised sites have been used for encampments with an average of three encampments per annum from 2014 to 2019.

Discussion is underway with the Gypsy/Travellers community to discuss if there is any local need and demand for a site via the LDP2.

Informed by resident feedback and housing system analysis, partners and stakeholders came together to define the major barriers that should be overcome in the East Dunbartonshire LHS to improve access to specialist housing and promote independent living. Key local challenges which drive the need for future partnership, investment and delivery activity include:

• Key issue: The fundamental mismatch between supply and demand restricts the ability to move when there is a significant change to people's circumstances. As does the shortage of accessible/barrier free homes
• Key issue: The Allocations Policy could be simpler and more effective in prioritising medial needs but also as a vehicle to create deliberate communities for people at the same stage/age
• Key issue: Specific gaps in support services were highlighted for young adults struggling to cope with independence, and particularly those with care experience
• Key issue: Poor local transport links in East Dunbartonshire make it difficult to access support services out-with each community, especially for older people with no independent means of travel
• Key issue: An increase in housing options for older people will be necessary to deal with the increase in this demographic. Connected retirement homes to allow downsizing was viewed as a priority for the LHS
• Key issue: Lack of awareness of in- situ solutions can lead to unnecessary housing applications. Aids and adaptations may also be a way to assist 'asset rich but cash poor' older households to age in current accommodation.

Partners and stakeholders co-produced a range of options and ideas to proactively address the challenges associated with improving access to specialist housing and promoting independent living in East Dunbartonshire. The following priority actions have been identified, to enable the Council and its partners to deliver LHS Priority 3 Outcomes over the next five years:

• Set targets to increase the supply of accessible and wheelchair housing in the LHS and LDP
• Increase the supply of retirement housing and shared ownership opportunities to address the projected growth of older people in partnership with public and private housing developers
• Review the effectiveness of sheltered housing including the provision of concierge services and including a place perspective
• Ensure the effective provision and promotion of Care and Repair and Occupational Therapy services to owner occupiers to support the delivery of property repairs and adaptations
• Review the Allocations Policy framework to create a more effective system for medical points and also to aid the creation of deliberate communities for people at the same stage/age
• Adopt a multi-agency and early intervention approach to support clients with current or emerging additional support considerations to explore the most suitable housing options for them
• Work with the Gypsy/Travellers community to discuss need and demand for provision within East Dunbartonshire
• Develop information, advice and support services to encourage older people to pre plan their housing needs to avoid crisis interventions later.

The LHS provides the overarching framework to realise East Dunbartonshire’s ambition for Rapid Rehousing, by ensuring those who experience homelessness access sustainable and settled housing as quickly as possible.

Tackling homelessness and preventing housing crisis is a key housing priority both nationally and in East Dunbartonshire. Ensuring that households in East Dunbartonshire have good awareness of local housing options and are empowered to find the right home to meet their needs, is at the centre of a proactive and preventative model of housing information, advice and assistance. Equally, enabling households to sustain their current home through the provision of person-centred housing support services, is at the heart of preventing homelessness in East Dunbartonshire.

Aligned to preventing and alleviating homelessness, the LHS is required to provide evidence and policy direction in relation to:

• Delivering housing information, advice and assistance within a housing options model of homelessness prevention
• Reducing reliance on temporary accommodation by improving access to settled housing via the Rapid Rehousing model
• Providing support services, which meet housing and underlying needs to enable housing sustainment
• Innovative ways of extending the range of housing options available to households who may be facing housing crisis.

Informed by analysis of the main issues and housing system drivers, LHS Priority 4 focuses on ‘Improving housing options, choice and affordability’ by:

• Improving rental affordability
• Increasing the range of housing options available
• Developing a multi-agency approach to preventing homelessness
• Enhancing housing support services.

Chapter 8 sets out the evidence base and outlines what East Dunbartonshire Council and partners are doing to address the main challenges in preventing and alleviating homelessness. It concludes with LHS priority actions for partnership, investment and delivery activity.

Watch on YouTube: A detailed briefing which sets out the housing system evidence underpinning LHS Priority 4.

LHS analysis suggests, that the key issues which drive the need for action, investment and partnership, to improve the approach to preventing and alleviating homelessness in East Dunbartonshire, are as follows:

In 2020/21, 249 households made applications for assistance under the homeless legislation in East Dunbartonshire, down a substantial 40% on the previous year. Although COVID-19 is likely to have had an impact on presentations, a redesign of the homeless service model could also be a factor. On average over the past five years, 416 households made homeless applications in East Dunbartonshire. The majority of homeless applicants are single people (52%), with 3/4 aged 25-59.

The Housing Options model encourages homeless households to consider all options across all tenures, including accessing alternative landlords and tenures. In addition, support is put in place to remain at home if it is safe to do so. Practical assistance with finances, independent living skills and tenancy set up is also provided. This approach has enabled a dramatic reduction in the backlog of homeless households waiting for settled housing by 48%.

There are 188 units of temporary accommodation across East Dunbartonshire with 177 households in temporary accommodation at any one time. There has been a 22% reduction in the number of households in temporary accommodation over the last five years. There has been a 46% drop in the number of temporary accommodation placements from 451 in 2016/17 to 131 in 2020/21.

Over 80% of homeless applicants in East Dunbartonshire have no identified support needs. This group simply require access to settled housing to resolve their homelessness. The Housing Support Service aims to prevent homelessness through the provision of person-centred housing support. During 2020/21, 156 of households in East Dunbartonshire were assessed as requiring Housing Support, with 27% of service users homeless applicants.

As part of the national ‘Ending Homelessness Together Action Plan’ (2018), all local authorities in Scotland were required to submit a Rapid Rehousing Transition Plan to Scottish Ministers by 31st December 2018. The vision behind Rapid Rehousing, is to empower local authorities to pursue transformational change to eradicating homelessness across Scotland, through a ‘housing first and housing fast’ approach. In East Dunbartonshire, the principles of the Rapid Rehousing Transition Plan (July 2021) reflect the updated recommendations of the Homelessness & Rough Sleeping Action Group (HARSAG) namely:

• A person-centred approach
• Prevention of homelessness
• Prioritising settled accommodation for all
• Responding quickly and effectively when homelessness happens
• Joining up planning and resources to tackle homelessness.

Actions within East Dunbartonshire’s Rapid Rehousing Transition Plan include:

A key aspect of tackling homelessness in East Dunbartonshire is the move towards a more pro-active, early intervention, preventative model of service delivery.

East Dunbartonshire’s private rented sector accounts for just 8% of the housing stock. In comparison, the Scottish average is 14%. During year 4 (2021/22) of the RRTP, 17 private lets were secured via the rent deposit guarantee/private sector scheme, that was delivered with financial assistance of £16,125 from DHP and £9,645 from homelessness prevention funds.

A household requires to earn more than £33k to be able to afford the average PRS rent if they devote 30% of their income to housing costs, well above lower quartile incomes at £22.7k.There is anecdotal evidence from local letting agents of extreme pressure in the PRS in East Dunbartonshire.

East Dunbartonshire is an affluent area, with average incomes the second highest in Scotland at £48,638 and 22% above the Scottish average. Despite this affluence, there is evidence of income inequality. Although 50% of local households earn more than £40k per annum, almost 1 in 3 (29%) earn less than £25k.Although East Dunbartonshire’s children are less likely to be in poverty than the national average of 24%; there is still a long way to go to eradicate child poverty in the area with pockets of deprivation existing within East Dunbartonshire.

Although homelessness is not means tested, as part of the Council’s dual housing options/homelessness interview, officers will provide basic advice and information to applicants with regards any additional financial assistance or benefits they may be entitled to claim. Where specialist advice and/or advocacy is required, the customer is referred to a specialist agency or service.

The Homelessness and Prevention team, work in partnership with the Citizen’s Advice Bureau in Kirkintilloch to employ a Welfare Rights Officer. During 2022/23, the Welfare Rights Officer received 114 new referrals; of these referrals 74 were assisted to claim benefits, some of which also received a backdated payment. The financial gain for customers was £211, 413.91.A majority of households were awarded Universal Credit, Personal Independence Payment (PIP),Attendance Allowance, Housing Benefit/Element and Council Tax Reduction.

Financial Gain

• Benefits - Attendance Allowance £36,577.10 17.30%
• Benefits - Discretionary Housing Payment 4 £2,072.88 0.98%
• Benefits - Employment and Support Allowance - Contributory 1 £2,959.00 1.40%
• Benefits - Housing Benefit £14,649.64 6.93% Benefits - PIP (Daily living) 11 £54,810.55 25.93% Benefits - PIP (Mobility) 5 £17,494.10 8.27%
• Benefits - Scottish Welfare Fund – Community Care Grant 2 £2,750.00 1.30% Benefits - Scottish Welfare Fund – Crisis Grant 2 £218.00 0.10%
• Benefits - Universal Credit 10 £71,624.12 33.88%
• Education - Schools 1 £1,372.00 0.65%
• Finance and Charitable Support - Charities - Food bank 16 £271.18 0.13% Finance and Charitable Support - Charities (non food bank) 1 £100.00 0.05% Tax - Council Tax 8 £6,515.34 3.08%.

The Council also employ a specialist Rent Deposit Guarantee Officer who can assist households to move to the private rented sector. The rent deposit guarantee, supports a household to move to a property, or area of their choice and also reduces time spent on the Homelessness List as well as pressure on the Council’s temporary accommodation. During 2022/23, 84 households requested additional information regarding accommodation in the Private Sector. Following advice, 17 of the 84 households secured accommodation. To assist with the deposit and rent in advance, a total of £16,125.00 was paid from the Council’s Discretionary Housing Payment Fund (DHP) and £9,645.66 from the Council’s Rent Deposit Guarantee/Rapid Rehousing Transition Fund (RDGS/RRTP).

Welfare Reforms have not had a significant impact on homelessness numbers in the area in the last few years, however the freeze of Local Housing Allowance (LHA) Rates has had a direct impact on housing options for households, particularly families on a low income in the area being able to afford accommodation in the private sector. On average, those in receipt of the full housing element, still need to find an additional £157 per month from their own resources to meet the shortfall between the LHA and the current rents. Previously, some households have been able to “top up” their rental payments from their own resources however, due to the recent Cost of Living Crisis this has been more difficult.

The Homelessness and Prevention Team play an active role in the West of Scotland Housing Options HUB. In addition to representing the Council during meetings/partnership events, the Homelessness and Prevention Team also act as treasurer for the HUB.

Members of the HUB directly manage a housing stock of approximately 140,000 social rented properties, which constitutes a huge resource for meeting housing need in the West of Scotland.

The Hub works together to gain a shared understanding and common strategy for providing housing options across the area, including the development, implementation and roll out of the Housing Options Training Tool Kit.

As well as improving the accessibility and affordability of housing options in East Dunbartonshire, LHS Priority 4 also focuses on offering greater choice, improved service experiences and better value for money for housing tenants and service users. East Dunbartonshire Council is committed to a review of the housing services operating model, to unlock the benefits of technology and new ways of working to improve tenant experiences and service performance outcomes.

The new LHS provides a framework for the delivery of a Housing Service review including the implementation of a new Housing Management Information System (HMIS), the review of customer processes, an agile working model, a restructuring of job roles and decision-making structures and new data insights to maximise the use and management of the Council’s Housing stock.

Informed by resident feedback and housing system analysis, partners and stakeholders came together to define the major barriers that need to be overcome in the East Dunbartonshire LHS, to improve the approach to preventing and alleviating homelessness. Key local challenges which drive the need for future partnership, investment and delivery activity include:

• Key issue: The value of temporary accommodation rents mean many are financially better off not to be in work limiting the range of housing options available to those facing housing crisis
• Key Issue: The LHS should continue to drive reductions in the homeless backlog/length of stay in temporary accommodation through ongoing review of letting targets and flipping temporary Tenancies
• Key Issue: The LHS should identify opportunities to grow and develop the PRS to improve the range of housing options on offer and address housing affordability pressures
• Key issue: Households facing homelessness need better and more accessible advice on housing options; and more multi-agency working to create housing path ways for households at risk
• Key issue: Further investment to increase capacity of housing support services would enable a greater number of households to access the practical help needed to remain at home or find alternative accommodation
• Key issue: An LHS priority should focus on increasing the supply of smaller homes in the area both by testing the economics of developing 1- bedroom properties or by pursuing alternative accommodation models.

Partners and stakeholders co-produced a range of options and ideas to proactively address the challenges associated with improving housing options, choice and affordability in East Dunbartonshire. The following priority actions have been identified to enable the Council and its partners to deliver LHS Priority 4 Outcomes over the next five years:

• Ensure that the RRTP vision is aligned to the housing allocations policy and all other Corporate and partner strategies to speed up access to sustainable settled housing options

• Review service user involvement ensuring that lived experience guides the design and development of homelessness and housing options services including the delivery of person centred, holistic and trauma informed practice

• Commission research to assess options for growing the private rented sector in East Dunbartonshire including the feasibility of Build to Rent models and landlord appetite to further develop the Private Sector Scheme

• Review local domestic abuse procedures to ensure compliance with the Domestic Abuse (Protection) (Scotland) Act
  2021 and deliver a training plan for all frontline housing staff and partners

• Work with partners to support delivery of the proposed statutory ‘Prevention Duty’ to identify and prevent homelessness

• Monitor the outcomes of the temporary accommodation strategy to ensure the service is financially sustainable, meets advisory standards, improves affordability and meet the needs of homeless customers

• Align actions in the Child Poverty Action Plan with investment in the Housing Options model to improve access to financial support and assistance for families struggling with housing affordability

• Use the Scottish Government’s HR Guidance to review the transparency, value for money and service performance offered to tenants from Property Maintenance and Corporate Services within East Dunbartonshire Council

• Deliver a strategic review of the EDC Housing Service operating model including delivery of a new HMIS, staffing restructure, process and system review and new data insight models.

The actions set under each LHS Priority, have been developed into a series of detailed action plans which set specific, timescales, resources and partner responsibilities to guide implementation and delivery, provide a strong basis for monitoring LHS progress.

Aligned to each LHS Priority Action plan, a range of LHS Outcome measures will be developed to track change over time including baseline indicators and delivery targets.The LHS Outcome framework will providing a strong basis for evaluating LHS impact across East Dunbartonshire.

LHS Outcomes will be best delivered through a strong partnership network.The LHS Delivery Group is a new mechanism to stimulate and co-ordinate this partnership activity based on the LHS Steering Group assembled to coordinate LHS Development.The LHS Delivery Group includes partners from Housing Services, Planning, local RSLs, Police Scotland,Third Sector agencies, Health and Social Care Partners and Glasgow City Region Strategic Development Plan Team.

The objectives of the Group are as follows, to:

• track progress and measure impact via the LHS Monitoring and Evaluation Framework
• ensure that LHS outcomes are linked effectively into other strategic plans across East Dunbartonshire Partnerships
• consider investment priorities and maximise shared resources
• exchange information and planning data
• review outputs from housing related research and insight, making recommendations to inform LHS implementation.

The LHS Delivery Group will link into a number of existing partnership forums which plan, implement and deliver housing related investment and activity.The activity across this network will be coordinated by the LHS Delivery Group to ensure partnership, investment and collaboration to maximise opportunities to deliver LHS outcomes.

The LHS evaluation framework will clearly set outcome targets for each LHS priority, together with the high-level inputs, indicators and timescales that will underpin successful delivery. LHS Action Plans, set out in detail the delivery programme required to achieve each LHS Outcome; to drive implementation and facilitate monitoring and review against milestones.

The LHS will be monitored annually against each Action Plan, to track progress and to enable remedial actions to be pursued to ensure the milestones are achieved, while also seeking assurance that services/ partners are on track to deliver specific LHS workstreams.

LHS Action Plans will be reviewed annually by the LHS Delivery Group. In addition to strategic monitoring, partners will be responsible for monitoring the progress of related housing plans including the SHIP, the Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy, the Housing Contribution Statement and the Rapid Rehousing Transition Plan.

The Outcome Actions outlined within this LHS have significant resource requirements to be delivered during a potentially challenging economic period, not only in Scotland but across the UK and globally.These challenges come at a time when there is an increased need for public services and demand for affordable housing.

The Local Government Finance Settlement for East Dunbartonshire in 2022/23 was £235M, made up of £227M in revenue income and £8M in capital grants. In addition to this, resources to deliver the LHS Outcome Actions are outlined below:

Over and above this, further delivery resources include staff, organisational capacity, land, existing housing stock as well as finance.

East Dunbartonshire’s affordable housing supply programme is supported by grant subsidy from Scottish Government’s Affordable Housing Supply Programme. Based on SHIP Projections for 2021-2026, the total investment in affordable housing will be £72M over the lifetime of this SHIP, with £17.47M of grants funding the programme and the remaining funding comprised of:

• £1.2M of Council Tax Second Homes discount money (see below)
• £0.6M of Developer Contributions (from S75)
• £9.8M of Shared Equity Sales Income
• £43.53M of Prudential Borrowing against the HRA 30-year business plan.

The total minimum level of Resource Planning Assumption (RPA) funding for the Council’s strategic local programme, during the period 2019/20 to 2020/21 was £16.3M, which represents only a proportion of the overall projected grant requirements for this period of the SHIP.The Scottish Government has not yet announced RPA levels for future years, but the Council anticipates that these grant aid levels will continue as a minimum, given the ambitious housing programme in East Dunbartonshire.The estimated number of completions in the Strategic Housing Investment Plan (2021-2026) is 1,154, with 1,045 homes being social rented, 12 Mid-Market Rent and 97 Low-Cost Home Ownership homes.

The resource requirements to deliver the LHS Outcome Actions are shared across a number of lead partners. Partners include the Scottish Government, East Dunbartonshire Council, local RSLs, Health & Social Care Partnership, as well as the independent and private sectors along with other public bodies.

It is difficult to predict the level of Scottish Government Funding to be allocated to local authorities over the next 5 years of the Local Housing Strategy, however, the 2022/23 baselines position provides an opportunity to outline requirements against potential funding availability.

East Dunbartonshire’s General Fund contribution to the delivery of housing services is outlined below. £4.5M from this fund can be attributed to housing related expenditure per annum, including £3.5M for homelessness and temporary accommodation and £150,000 for housing support, along with £870,000 for private sector services including disabled adaptations.

Total Expenditure by Council General Fund Spend by Category

Homelessness and Temporary Accommodation -

• Homeless Assessment and Housing Options - £395,000
• Temporary Accommodation - £2,200,000
• Supported Accommodation and Support to households in Temporary Accommodation - £930,000
• Rent Deposit Guarantee Scheme - £4,600

Housing Support Services

• Commissioned Services from External Providers - £157,000

Private Sector Housing (including Scheme of Assistance) -

• Private Landlord Registration - £40,000
• Scheme of Assistance - £50,000
• Private Sector Disabled Adaptations - £420,000
• Care and Repair - £160,000
• Council Tax Levy on Empty Home - £200,000

Total General Fund Resources - £4,556,600

East Dunbartonshire Council’s Housing Revenue Account (HRA) is projected to spend over £66M in the next five years, with further investment in housing and housing services from Registered Social Landlords operating in East Dunbartonshire.

To maximise the value and performance of HRA related housing services, an action point with the 2023-28 LHS, is to deliver a tenant led review of HRA expenditure using the Scottish Government’s HRA Guidance to assess the transparency, value for money and service performance offered to tenants from Property Maintenance and Corporate Services within East Dunbartonshire Council.

East Dunbartonshire Council Projected HRA Expenditure

Over the period of this LHS, the main social landlords operating in East Dunbartonshire are projected to spend over £15.3M, with nearly £6.7M on housing related services through revenue funding and over £8.5M to be invested in stock improvement through capital funding.

Over the five-year period of the LHS, the Council and Housing Associations in East Dunbartonshire are
projected to spend over £80M on the delivery of housing and housing services.

Over and above this, East Dunbartonshire Council will spend over £22M on the delivery of housing services to local residents. Direct investment in housing over the life of the LHS is therefore somewhere in the region of £100M within the next five years.

This scale of investment in housing and related services within East Dunbartonshire supports the local economy, employment in the public, private and independent sectors alongside the valuable impact of private sector new build programmes.

The LHS Outcomes identified to deliver LHS Priorities have been designed through, the LHS development process and coproduced with partners and stakeholders from public, private as well as the independent sectors.A full option appraisal was undertaken as part of the LHS development process, which systematically assessed and prioritised the actions required to deliver LHS Outcomes in terms of impact, equalities and maximising resources.

Full details of these LHS actions are detailed in the following Outcome Action Tables.

The Action Plan, activities and targets will be riewed annually to ensure partners are able to respond flexibly to changes in need across East Dunbartonshire.

(The tables below should be used to identify and assess ALL risks to the Council in implementing the strategy / policy).

Name of Policy/Strategy: Tenant Participation Strategy 2022 – 2027

Lead Officer (Name and Position): James P Wright, Team Leader – Housing Operations

Risk: Strategy fails to meet the requirements of the Scottish Housing Regulator in terms of coproduction and delivery

• Likelihood Score (L): 2
• Impact Score (I)*: 1
• Risk Rank = (Lx I): 2
• Acceptable Risk Yes/ No: Y

Risk: Failure to put adequate resource in place to implement the Strategy and coordinate activities to drive participation forward

• Likelihood Score (L): 2
• Impact Score (I)*: 1
• Risk Rank = (Lx I): 2
• Acceptable Risk Yes/ No: Y

Risk: Tenants are not kept informed about the performance of housing and repairs services that is a key Scottish Social Housing Charter Indicator (ARC) reported to Regulator on an annual basis.

• Likelihood Score (L): 2
• Impact Score (I)*: 1
• Risk Rank = (Lx I): 2
• Acceptable Risk Yes/ No: Y

* See Risk Management Assessment Criteria on page 3 for scores.

Risk Exposure Score Ranking Key

• HIGH = 12 & above Unacceptable level of risk to the Council. Either additional controls are adopted to reduce the risk or policy should not be approved.
• MEDIUM = 4 -11Acceptable, policy should be approved but with frequent monitoring of the risks to ensure no negative impact to the Council
• LOW = 4 or below Acceptable level of risk for the Council.

What are the potential impacts to the Council and its objectives if the above risks occur?

The Council must fulfil its statutory requirements and obligations under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2010 (“the 2010 Act”) that introduced the Scottish Social Housing Charter (SSHC) and the requirement to produce an annual Return (ARC) providing key performance information on how the Council encourages, and provides opportunities for tenants to get involved in decision making and review of housing and repairs services. Failure to do so may result in intervention by the Scottish Housing Regulator and would cause embarrassment to the Council. 

Life

• Impact score 1 - Minor injury to employee, service user, public
• Impact score 2 - Lost time due to employee injury, small compensation claim from service user or public
• Impact score 3 - Serious injury to employee, service user, public, council liable
• Impact score 4 - Number of significant injuries to employees, service users or public
• Impact score 5 - Single or multiply Fatality within council control, fatal accident inquiry.

Property

• Impact score 1 - Minor disruption to building, alternative arrangements already in place. Below insurance claim threshold
• Impact score 2 - Marginal damage, covered by insurance
• Impact score 3 - Loss of use of building for medium period of time, no alternative arrangements in place
• Impact score 4 - Significant part of building out of action for prolonged period of time, alternative. Accommodation required
• Impact score 5 - Complete loss of building, rebuilding required, prolonged temporary accommodation needed.

Business Continuity

• Impact score 1 - No operational difficulties, back up support in place, security level acceptable
• Impact score 2 - Reasonable back up arrangements in place. Minor downtime of service/system
• Impact score 3 - Security, support and performance of service/system deemed to be borderline. Some downtime realised
• Impact score 4 - Significant impact on service provision/loss of service. Frequent service/system interruption
• Impact score 5 - Complete inability to provide system/service prolonged downtime no backup in place.

Reputation

• Impact score 1 - Minor impact to council reputation no interest to press
• Impact score 2 - Some public embarrassment no damage to reputation or to service users
• Impact score 3 - Local adverse public embarrassment leading to limited damage, elected members become involved
• Impact score 4 - Regional/National adverse publicity, loss of confidence in the organisation
• Impact score 5 - Highly damaging adverse publicity, loss of confidence, Scottish Government and/or Audit Scotland involvement.

Finance

• Impact score 1 - 0.5% budget
• Impact score 2 - 0.5-2% budget
• Impact score 3 - 2-3% budget
• Impact score 4 - 3-5% budget
• Impact score 5 - >5% budget.

The Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 places a statutory requirement on local authorities to produce a Local Housing Strategy (LHS) that sets out the strategic vision for the delivery of housing services and housing related services and the outcomes the Council aims to achieve over a five-year period. Once implemented, the new LHS will run from 2023 to 2028.  

The LHS requires in depth analysis of the housing system and identification of housing issues that need to be tackled, there will be a set of high-level actions under each outcome that will form the basis of the direction of the new LHS. The LHS should demonstrate how it supports:

• Access to affordable housing
• Scottish Housing Quality Standard (SHQS)
• Tackling climate change
• Fuel poverty reduction
• Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing (EESSH)
• Child poverty reduction
• Duties to homeless people
• Public bodies joint working (Housing Contribution Statement).

Supporting National Priorities, Plans and Targets and links to Local Outcome Improvement Plan: Housing to 2040, Glasgow City Region HNDA3, Planning Advice Note (PAN) 2/2010:Affordable Housing and Land Audits, East Dunbartonshire Local Development Plan 2022, Scottish Planning Policy (SPP) ,‘A Place to Stay, A Place to Call Home: a Strategy for the Private Rented Sector in Scotland’, Public Health Priority, Scotland’s National Performance Network, Creating Places – A Policy Statement on Architecture and Place for Scotland, Designing Streets, Green Infrastructure: Design and Placemaking, Planning Advice Note 77: Designing Safer Places, Community Empowerment Act 2015, Place Standard, Town Centre First Principle.

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Maximise the development of social housing through the Strategic Housing Investment Plan, delivering a diverse mix of property sizes and more accessible, adaptable homes

Baseline

• New build Completions 2021/22
• 2022/23
• 2023/24

Indicator or Measure

• Annual New build Completions Effective Land Supply Wheelchair Target Achieved
• Robust and Credible HNDA (anticipated Aug/ Sept 2023).

Milestone

• Annual SHIP Approved
• More Homes Division Liaison Meetings
• Regular RSL Progress Meetings
• Identification of wheelchairmrequirements
• New build Completions
• Meet annual HSTs
• Identify mismatch of supply and demand in social rented housing to inform investment priorities
• Maximise partnership opportunities to access housing infrastructure funding streams, easing brownfield development.

Target/End Point

• March 2024

Action Lead/Coordinator

Executive Officer –

• Housing;
• Executive Officer – Assets & Facilities; Executive
• Officer - Land Planning Policy & Development.

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Pursue a proactive master planning approach to land assembly (affordable and private housing) in partnership with landowners, developers, infrastructure providers, funders, housing and planning services

Baseline

• Effective Land Supply 2022/23

Indicator or Measure

• Annual HSTs delivered via Effective Land Supply – number of completions

Milestone

• Develop collaborative master planning framework for land assembly with partners

• Contribute to strategic planning for housing in Glasgow City Region

• Land available for both affordable and private sector HSTs.

Target/End Point

• Annually reviewed in line with SHIP and LDP

Action Lead/Coordinator

• Team Leader Housing Investment; Strategy and Performance Adviser; Policy Planner

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Ensure housing supports the delivery of 20-minute neighbourhoods by considering the potential for placemaking throughout the design and development of new build housing and existing stock

Baseline

• Existing Planning Applications meeting

• 20 Minute Neighbourhood requirements.

Indicator or Measure

• Number of Planning

  Applications meeting 20 Minute Neighbourhood requirements

Milestone

• Implement 20 Minute Neighbourhoods with a focus on provision of physical, digital and social infrastructure
• Mapping and review of provision
• Participation in 20-Minute Neighbourhood & Infrastructure Subgroup.

Target/End Point

• End of each financial year due - March 2024

Action Lead/Coordinator

Team Leader Housing Investment; Development Adviser; Team Leader Housing Operations; Strategy and Performance Adviser

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Review the affordable housing policy and configure affordable housing ratios to maximise affordable housing delivery

Baseline

AHP Delivery

e.g. Annual Commuted Sums, On and Off Site Provision

Indicator or Measure

Annual AHP Delivery e.g. Annual Commuted Sums, On and Off Site Provision

Milestone

• Review Affordable Housing Policy and evaluate impact
• Annual Pressure Analysis on Social Housing.

Target/End Point

End of each financial year re BIP, due – March 2024

Action Lead/Coordinator

Executive Officer Housing Executive Officer Land Planning and Development; Team Leader Housing Investment;

Chief Finance Officer

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Continue to find creative ways to increase the supply of larger homes within

the existing stock of social housing e.g. evaluating and expanding the EDC loft conversion pilot

Baseline

Current Stock Profile Current number of Loft

Conversions via Pilot

Indicator or Measure

Annual Stock Profile (Smartsheet)

Milestone

• Development and implementation of Empty Homes/Open Market Purchase Scheme
• Expansion of Loft Conversion Pilot implemented.

Target/End Point

Annually March 2024

Action Lead/Coordinator

Team Leader Housing Investment; Team Leader Housing Operations

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Target investment in open market purchases to increase the supply of affordable housing, including homes that are accessible, adaptable and also larger family homes

Baseline

Number of units purchased

Number of adaptations completed

Indicator or Measure

Annual Number of units purchased by HSMA

Adaptations Annual Budget

Milestone

• Development and implementation of Empty Homes/Open Market Purchase Scheme
• Identify households requiring larger accessible homes and their needs.

Target/End Point

End of each financial year Due - March 2024

Action Lead/Coordinator

Executive Officer

Housing; Team Leader Housing Investment; Team Leader Housing Operations; Chief Finance Officer

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Improve connectivity of our communities by encouraging investment in physical, social, digital and sustainable transport infrastructure

Baseline

Improve connectivity of our communities by encouraging investment in physical, social, digital and sustainable transport infrastructure

Indicator or Measure

Number of Planning

Applications meeting 20 Minute Neighbourhood requirements Number of households

Milestone

• Implement 20 Minute Neighbourhoods
• Mapping and review of provision
• Delivery of City Deal Programme
• Identify/deliver opportunities for sustainable travel
• Assist with delivery of fast, affordable digital connectivity for businesses and communities.

Target/End Point

August 2025

Action Lead/Coordinator

Executive Officer

Housing; Team Leader– Housing Operations;Team Leader Land Planning Policy; Strategy and Performance Adviser;

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Maximise the potential to generate more homes by reviewing Town Centres strategies and encouraging mixed developments and change of use in redundant retail and commercial assets

Baseline

Town Centre Strategies

Indicator or Measure

Annual number of housing units within Town Centres

Milestone

• Review Town Centre Strategies
• Continued Engagement with communities
• Implement Place Standard Tool
• Active encouragement in relation to change of use for retail/ commercial premises.

Target/End Point

August 2026

Action Lead/Coordinator

Executive Officer Housing;

Team Leader Land Planning Policy; Team Leader Housing Investment;

Policy Planner

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Further refine the housing estimates produced by the HNDA to build more insight/ intelligence on housing need disaggregated to sub/local areas, property size/type and amenity so that development planning policies can be tailored to local need

Baseline

Baseline HNDA Housing Estimates 2023 by housing tenure

Indicator or Measure

• Pressure Analysis
• Area Profiles

Milestone

• Disaggregate HNDA toolkit to HMA through analysis and research
• Develop Area Profiles
• Low Demand Analysis and Action Plan
• Identify options to address low demand stock.

Target/End Point

March 2026

Action Lead/Coordinator

Strategy and Performance Adviser Policy Planner

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Maximise opportunities to deliver a wider range of affordable housing options (e.g. shared equity, shared ownership and Mid-Market Rent), including testing the viability of the development funding model and impact on local affordability pressures

Baseline

SHIP

Existing levels of Shared Ownership, Shared Equity and MMR

Indicator or Measure

Annual levels of Shared Ownership, Shared Equity and MMR

Milestone

• Carry out affordability analysis along with further housing needs and aspirations analysis
• Explore AHP as delivery mechanism for Shared Equity Housing
• Carry out feasibility study to determine viability of wider range of affordable housing options
• Develop funding model if appropriate along with Housing Delivery Partnership to develop MMR and other tenures
• Consider partnerships with RSLs to deliver mixed tenures on Council sites
• Approval of SHIP annually.

Target/End Point

Reviewed annually end of financial year and, linked to SHIP annual review (Autumn)

Action Lead/Coordinator

Team Leader Housing Investment; Development Adviser; Strategy and Performance Adviser

Supporting National Priorities, Plans and Targets and links to Local Outcome Improvement  Plan:  Housing to 2040, Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategies (LHEES), Sustainable Housing: Fuel Poverty and Climate Change Advice Note, Scottish Government’s Energy Efficient Scotland Route Map, Fuel Poverty (Targets, Definition, and Strategy) (Scotland) Act 2019, the emerging East Dunbartonshire Climate Action Plan 2023, Scottish Housing Quality Standard, Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing, Scottish Social Housing Charter.

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Develop an Asset Management Strategy for East Dunbartonshire Council to identify poor performing assets (including properties in abeyance for SHQS) and consider strategic response

Baseline

30 Year HRA Business Plan Investment Programme Stock Condition Survey

Indicator or Measure

30 Year Business Plan Updates Annual Review of Strategy Action Plan

Annual Return on Charter

Milestone

• Carry out Stock Condition Survey to ensure robust baseline information
• Annual Return on Charter EEESH and SHQS
• Develop and implement Housing Asset Management Plan
• Develop route map to compliance for EDC stock
• Consider development of Asset Management Forum with RSLs to share approaches and practice aligned to updated SHR Recommended Practice on integrated asset management (2022).

Target/End Point

Ongoing through lifetime of LHS 2023- 2028

Action Lead/Coordinator

Executive officer - Housing; Executive Officer - Assets & Facilities; Chief Finance Officer;

Development & Investment Manager; Team Leader Housing Investment; Team Leader Housing Operations

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

East Dunbartonshire Council and partners to work collaboratively to maximise the use of national funding programmes to tackle disrepair and improve energy efficiency

Baseline

Create register of current funding programmes

Indicator or Measure

Successful funding opportunities identified and received

Indicator or Measure

• Identify funding programmes and appropriate partnerships
• Create a bank of project proposals that could be addressed by funding programmes
• Application to funding programmes as appropriate
• Project Management of wide variety of opportunities

Target/End Point

March 2025/26

Action Lead/Coordinator

Team Leader Housing Investment

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Reassess capital investment plans to work towards energy efficiency targets, ensure compatibility with net zero targets, and include retrofit of the following: energy efficiency measures, heating and ventilation systems and renewables while ensuring adherence to the New Build Heat Standard.

Baseline

Current position in relation to: EEESH

Net Zero Targets Retrofits EEES:ABS

Indicator or Measure

Annual Return on Charter

Number of retrofits per annum

EEES:ABS – funding and owners assisted

Indicator or Measure

• Review Capital Investment Plans
• Identify requirements in relation to EEESH, Net Zero Targets and Retrofits
• Identify resource requirements
• Develop route map for EEESH compliance
• Carry out feasibility study for delivery of Retrofit Programme
• Manage EEES: ABS.

Target/End Point

March 2025/26

Action Lead/Coordinator

Team Leader Housing Investment; Development & Investment Manager

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Missing Shares Scheme to assist homeowners with common/mixed tenure repairs and maintenance

Baseline

BTS within private sector housing Current level of Disrepair within Private Sector Number of mixed tenure blocks with repair/maintenance challenges - Capital Programmes unable to proceed.

Indicator or Measure

Reduction in mixed tenure blocks where Capital Programmes unable to proceed

Number of owners assisted through Missing Share Pilot

Indicator or Measure

• Develop owner engagement strategy for mixed tenure estates
• Identify and respond to priorities using landlord registration powers to improve house condition
• Review/Develop BTS statement
• Consider house condition survey to better understand extent of disrepair in private sector
• Review and Promote Scheme of Assistance and consult on ‘Missing Share’ as a priority
• Develop and implement Pilot Missing Share Scheme.

Target/End Point

Ongoing through lifetime of LHS 2023 – 2028

Action Lead/Coordinator

Team Leader Housing Investment; Development & Investment Manager

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Ensure that advice and information services are kept up to date, so we can develop targeted and holistic information and advice services, which encourage

investment in the full range of energy and carbon reduction improvements in existing homes

Baseline

Current advice and information available Current number of households assisted with advice and information

Indicator or Measure

Annual Number of households assisted with advice and information

Indicator or Measure

• Review advice and information available at present and improve energy efficient and fuel poverty advice
• Identify full range of energy and carbon reduction measures available and resources required to deliver these
• Improve understanding of fuel poverty in EDC (extent, nature and location) to enable better targeting of resources

Target/End Point

Annually 2023/24

Action Lead/Coordinator

Team Leader

- Housing Operations; Strategy and Performance Adviser

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Through workforce planning and training, successfully resource/upskill labour for Property Maintenance Services to develop capability to achieve energy improvement standards

Baseline

Current workforce training and skills in relation to energy improvement standards

Indicator or Measure

Additional training and development opportunities in relation to energy improvement standards

Indicator or Measure

• Identify training needs and resources required
• Develop and implement training programme (potential for integrated skills employment programme for house building and repair programmes)
• Agree energy improvement standards

Target/End Point

Annually 2023/24

Action Lead/Coordinator

Executive Officer - Assets & Facilities; Property Maintenance Manager

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Adopt joint working approaches with agencies and services to contribute  to the delivery of statutory net zero targets, actions to be confirmed in the LHEES delivery plan and actions to promote climate resilience in the Climate Action Plan

Baseline

Current Partners Current contributions by partners

LHEES and Climate Action Plan

Indicator or Measure

Partners identified Contributions quantified

Actions within LHEES and Climate Action Plan delivered

Indicator or Measure

• Identify key partners and map out their contribution to achieving Net Zero Targets
• Work with partners to improve understanding of fuel poverty in EDC (extent, nature and location) to enable better targeting of resources
• Delivery of actions within LHEES and Climate Action Plan

Target/End Point

Financial year 2024/25 and annually thereafter

Action Lead/Coordinator

Executive Officer Land Planning and Development; Team Leader Housing Operations; Strategy and Performance Adviser

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Promote access to income maximisation and fuel advice services to reduce fuel and child poverty, that can also provide a passport to other energy efficiency funding and assistance

Baseline

Current income max services Current fuel advice services Current income generated for households Number of households currently assisted with income max advice and fuel advice

LCPR annually

Indicator or Measure

Annual Number of households assisted with

Income Max advice Annual Number of households assisted with Fuel Advice

Annual Number of households where referral made to another agency Number of campaigns in relation to Income Maximisation and Fuel Advice

Indicator or Measure

• Develop and deliver campaigns in relation to Income Max and Fuel Advice to raise awareness and access to services
• Develop and implement recording tools in relation to information and advice provided
• Develop bank of information and advice available from Partners
• Consider development of campaigns such as ‘It Pays to Switch’.

Target/End Point

March 2024 annually thereafter

Action Lead/Coordinator

Executive Officer Land Planning and development; Executive Officer Community Services; Team Leader Housing Operations

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Improve intelligence on the main barriers to improving disrepair in the private sector

Baseline

BTS and Disrepair Levels within private sector from SHCS

Indicator or Measure

• Improved understanding of barriers
• Annual Numbers of BTS and Disrepair Levels reduced within private sector
• Explore feasibility of carrying out house condition survey within private sector, alongside qualitative research into barriers for owners/landlords
• Develop services to ensure that advice, support and enforcement is targeted to reduce:
• The number of occupied sub-standard houses
• The number of properties failing the Repairing Standard
• The number of houses below the Tolerable Standard.

Target/End Point

Ongoing throughout lifetime of LHS 2023-2028

Links to Landlord Registration (3years)

Action Lead/Coordinator

Team Leader Housing Investment; Team Leader Environmental Health

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Take action to ensure that the housing stock in East Dunbartonshire is resilient to the effects of climate change including flooding, heat waves and extreme weather events

Baseline

Current Flood Maps for EDC

– Housing stock and development in flood risk areas Current Flood Mitigation and Adaptation Measures

Energy efficiency and level of ventilation within housing stock – To adapt to anticipated warmer, drier summers and milder, wetter winters

Indicator or Measure

Quantify annual measures put in place to ensure resilience against Climate Change

Indicator or Measure

• Develop an improved understanding of homes and communities at risk of flooding within EDC
• Develop maps to clearly identify risk areas along with mitigations and monitor trends
• Identify resources to mitigate flood risks
• Develop and implement plan to mitigate flood risks identified
• Develop understanding of the ventilation potential to install in homes, to cope with periods of extreme heat
• Develop methodology to adapt design and layout of future housing projects to take advantage of solar gain and consider shading potential.

Target/End Point

Throughout lifetime of LHS 2023 –2028

Review annual progress via LHS updates

Action Lead/Coordinator

Executive Officer
- Land Planning & Development

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Contribute to East Dunbartonshire's just transition plans towards Net Zero

Baseline

Pilots in progress (tCo2/year) Current specifications and processes

Indicator or Measure

Success of Pilots Average CO2 emissions per home

Technical specifications and evaluations

Indicator or Measure

• Consider heating approaches for all new council homes
• Develop, agree and deliver approach for procurement and delivery of renewable energy installations
• Understand whole life costs and issues associated with transition to zero carbon heat for Council and tenants/ residents
• Consider opportunities for district heat zones
• Route map for retrofit programme
• Develop and implement training programme (potential for integrated skills employment programme for house building and repair programmes).

Target/End Point

Throughout lifetime of LHS Updated via LHS annual review

Action Lead/Coordinator

Development & Investment Manager; Team Leader Housing Investment

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Adopt joint working to ensure the early identification of potential areas for

Heat Network Zones and the alignment of housing development with the LHEES delivery plan and the Heat Network Review Statement.

Baseline

Current Partners Current contributions by partners

LHEES and Climate Action Plan

Heat Network Review Statement

Indicator or Measure

Partners identified Contributions quantified

Actions within LHEES and Climate Action Plan delivered

Net Zero Targets

Indicator or Measure

Partners identified Actions within LHEES and Climate Action Plan delivered

Identification of potential areas for Heat Network Zones through the LHEES and the production of the Heat Network Review Statement to contribute to the target set in the Heat Networks Scotland Act 2021

Target/End Point

2025/26

Will be reviewed via LHS updates

Action Lead/Coordinator

Executive Officer Land Planning and Development

Supporting National Priorities, Plans and Targets and links to Local Outcome Improvement Plan: Housing to 2040, Public Health Priority, National Health and Wellbeing Outcomes, HNDA3, Good Mental Health for All, Keys to Life, Age, Home and Community –The Next Phase, Scottish Strategy for Autism, Race Equality Action Plan, Site Standards -Scottish Government guidance on minimum sites standards and site tenants’ core rights and responsibilities, Scottish Social Housing Charter, Improving the lives of Gypsy/Travellers 2019-21, Foundations for well-being: Reconnecting Public Health and Housing, Midlothian Council Housing Contribution Statement, Midlothian Health and Social Care Partnership Strategic Plan 2019-2022, East Dunbartonshire’s Housing Contribution Statement, East Dunbartonshire Health and Social Care Partnership Strategic Plan Period.

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Set targets to increase the supply of accessible and wheelchair housing in the LHS and LDP

Baseline

HNDA3

Housing Estimates and HSTs

Indicator or Measure

Annual Wheelchair Target Achieved

Indicator or Measure

• Undertake research to establish how best to target specialist provision in EDC
• HSTs set
• Annual Wheelchair Requirement identified
• Realistic and deliverable Wheelchair Supply Target agreed.

Target/End Point

September annually as part of CHR Review process Links to LDP timescales

Action Lead/Coordinator

Executive Officer –

Housing; Executive Officer - Land Planning Policy & Development

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Increase the supply of retirement housing

and shared ownership opportunities to address the projected growth of older people in partnership with public and private housing developers

Baseline

Number of older peoples’ homes EDC (all tenures)

Indicator or Measure

Annual increase in provision of older persons housing across all tenures

Indicator or Measure

• Deliver older persons housing through Council and RSL newbuild programmes
• Explore delivery of Shared Ownership opportunities through Affordable Housing Policy
• Develop information, advice and support services to encourage older people to pre plan their housing needs to avoid crisis interventions later
• Examine the feasibility of core and cluster models to support a range of client needs as an alternative to specialist residential accommodation, taking cognisance of out of area placements
• Review design guides for housing developers aligned to changes with the Housing for Varying Needs and Building Standards.

Target/End Point

2026/27

Action Lead/Coordinator

Executive Officer Housing; Executive Officer Land Planning and Development; Team Leader Housing Investment; Health and Social Care partnership

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Review the effectiveness of sheltered housing, including the provision of concierge services and including a place perspective

Baseline

Profile of current sheltered housing provision Profile of current concierge services

Indicator or Measure

Option Appraisal Exercise completed Options identified and plan in place to deliver outcomes

Indicator or Measure

• Review existing sheltered housing and concierge services
• Identify options for future service delivery and carry out Option Appraisal
• Develop investment plan to deliver option and improve future sustainability of services.

Target/End Point

2025/26

Action Lead/Coordinator

Team Leader Housing Operations

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Ensure the effective provision and promotion of Care and Repair and Occupational Therapy services to owner occupiers, to support the delivery of property repairs and adaptations

Baseline

Current Care and Repair Provision Current Owner Occupier CL1 Referrals

Indicator or Measure

Annual households assisted by Care and Repair Service Annual owner- occupied households in receipt of property Adaptation Feasibility Assessment Complete

Indicator or Measure

• Undertake assessment of effectiveness of Care and Repair Service
• Further develop engagement and marketing strategy for Care and Repair Service
• Improve use of technology to enable independent living
• Carry out analysis to identify future demand for equipment and adaptations as well as OT Services with HSCP.

Target/End Point

Throughout lifetime of LHS, reviewed annually due 2023/24

Action Lead/Coordinator

Team Leader Housing Investment (Care & Repair)

Health and Social Care partnership

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Review the Allocations Policy framework, to create a more effective system for medical points and to aid the creation of deliberate communities for people at the same stage/age

Baseline

Current households with Medical Points Profile, including location of older person/medically adapted properties

Indicator or Measure

Allocation Policy Review complete

Indicator or Measure

• Feasibility study into impact of policy changes
• Consultation and engagement in relation to Allocation Policy Review
• Allocation Policy Review
• Implementation of revised Allocation Policy.

Target/End Point

2025/26

Action Lead/Coordinator

Team Leader Housing Operations; Strategy and Performance Adviser

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Adopt a multi-agency and early intervention approach, to support clients with current or emerging additional support considerations, to explore the most suitable housing options for them

Baseline

Existing multi-agency arrangements for Case Conference

Indicator or Measure

Annual Number of Case Conferences for clients requiring support/emerging support

Annual number of clients with support/emerging support needs provided with Housing Options Advice and Assistance

Indicator or Measure

• Engagement with Housing Options Training Toolkit
• Review Housing Options, Advice and Assistance for clients with emerging/ support needs
• Review multi-agency Case Conference activities with a view to improving services
• Explore possible innovative housing solutions for people with dementia
• Improve awareness and access to community-based support and advice services, across the authority for those that require them.

Target/End Point

LHS Annual update 2023/24

Action Lead/Coordinator

Team Leader Housing Operations; Team Leader Homelessness & Prevention

Action(s) and Commtments for Delivery of Outcome

Work with the Gypsy/ Travellers community to discuss need and demand for provision within East Dunbartonshire

Baseline

HNDA2/3

Negotiated Stopping Pilots in three Scottish LAs

Indicator or Measure

Annual use of Gypsy Traveller Sites

Annual number of unauthorised encampments

Number of annual engagement opportunities with Gypsy/Traveller Community

Indicator or Measure

• Consider findings from negotiated stopping pilots
• Develop engagement plan
• Develop Action Plan to improve outcomes for Gypsy Travellers in EDC

Target/End Point

Annual LHS Update 2023/24

Action Lead / Coordinator

Team Leader Housing Operations; Strategy and Performance Adviser

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Integrate asset management and housing allocations in relation to adapted properties, to make the best use of housing stock

Baseline

Stock Profile Asset Management Plan

Indicator or Measure

Asset Management Records to include Reporting on Adapted Properties

Indicator or Measure

• Develop and implement robust asset management records in relation to adapted properties
• Develop links between asset management/stock and Integrated Housing Management System
• Review Allocation Policy to enable alignment of housing need and adapted stock.

Target/End Point

Ongoing throughout lifetime of LHS 2023-2028
IHMS implemented in phases

Action Lead/Coordinator

Team Leader Housing Operations; Strategy and Performance Adviser

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Maximise investment in adaptations to enable older people to age in place

Baseline

Current number of Adaptations completed

Indicator or Measure

AHSP Adaptation Funding

Annual Number of Adaptations Completed

Needs Assessment for Adaptations

Indicator or Measure

• SHIP submission and approval
• Joint working with partners on Health and Housing Needs Assessment to establish future requirements
• Improve use of technology to help independent living.

Action Lead/Coordinator

HSCP – Homecare Property Maintenance Manager

Supporting National Priorities, Plans and Targets and links to Local Outcome Improvement Plan: Ending Homelessness Together Action Plan, Equally Safe -Scotland’s Strategy for Preventing and Eradicating Violence Against Women and Girls & the Equally Safe Delivery Plan, East Dunbartonshire Rapid Rehousing Transition Plan Period, Scottish Social Housing Charter, East Dunbartonshire Housing Contribution Statement, East Dunbartonshire Local Outcomes Improvement Plan 2017-27.

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Ensure that the vision for homelessness prevention activity is aligned to the housing allocations policy and all other Corporate and partner strategies, to speed up access to sustainable settled housing options

Baseline

• EDC Allocation Policy Temporary Accommodation Strategy
• EDC Corporate Plan
• HSCP Strategic Plan
• Child Poverty Action Plan Homeless Applications Homeless Decisions Repeat Homelessness.

Indicator or Measure

Number of homeless households accessing a permanent home Increased number of homeless households receiving support where need identified

Prevent 1

Indicator or Measure

• Review Allocations Policy and other Corporate Strategies and Plans for alignment
• Update wider Corporate Strategies and Plans for EDC and Partners to align with homelessness prevention
• Implementation of SHORE Standards
• Review Protocols for young care experienced people and those who have suffered domestic abuse
• Agree and monitor target Lets for EDC and RSLs
• Monitor the outcomes of the temporary accommodation strategy to ensure the service is financially sustainable, meets advisory standards, improves affordability, and meets the needs of homeless customers
• Align actions in the Child Poverty Action Plan
• Review process for assessing and recording the housing support needs of homeless households
• Improve access to wrap around support services by collaborating with statutory and non-statutory agencies.

Target/End Point

2024/25

Action Lead/Coordinator

Team Leader Housing Operations; Strategy and Performance Adviser; Team Leader

Homelessness & Prevention; Homelessness Adviser

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Review service user involvement, ensuring that lived experience guides the design and development of homelessness and housing options services, including the delivery of person centred, holistic and trauma informed practice

Baseline

Existing Service User Forums Existing person- centred services

Indicator or Measure

Engagement and Participation opportunities for Service Users Evidence of Service Improvements informed by Service User contributions

Indicator or Measure

• Review existing Service User arrangements
• Engage and consult with Service Users to shape their involvement
• Develop and implement participation opportunities for Service Users to shape person centred services
• Enhanced working relationships with Health and Social Care partners to deliver an integrated model of support.

Target/End Point

Annual LHS Update 2023/24

Action Lead/Coordinator

Team Leader Housing Operations; Strategy and Performance Adviser; Team Leader

Homelessness & Prevention Tenant Participation Officer

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Commission research to assess options for growing the private rented sector in East Dunbartonshire, including the feasibility of Build to Rent models and landlord appetite to further develop the Private Sector Scheme for homeless household

Baseline

Current PRS Stock

Indicator or Measure

Increase in PRS Stock Research/Feasibility Study complete Number of Homeless Households accommodated through PRS

Indicator or Measure

• Research commissioned to assess options for growing PRS
• Engage with Build to Rent Sector and support them to deliver homes in PRS
• Research commissioned to assess options for growing PRS for homeless households.

Target/End Point

Throughout lifetime of LHS 2023-2028

Reviewed via annual LHS updates

Action Lead/Coordinator

Executive Officer –

Housing; Team Leader Housing Operations; Strategy and Performance Adviser; Team Leader

Homelessness & Prevention

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Review local domestic abuse procedures to ensure compliance with the Domestic Abuse (Protection) (Scotland) Act 2021 and deliver a training plan for all frontline housing staff and partners

Baseline

Existing procedures

Indicator or Measure

Revised Procedures in place compliance with 2021 Act Training Plan developed and implemented

Indicator or Measure

• Review domestic abuse procedures with partners and stakeholders
• Develop and implement training plan for all frontline housing staff and partners.

Target/End Point

September 2024

Action Lead/Coordinator

Team Leader Homelessness & Prevention

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Work with partners to support delivery of the proposed statutory 'Prevention Duty' to identify and prevent homelessness

Baseline

Number of homeless presentations

Indicator or Measure

Reduction in homeless presentations as a result of initiatives All staff trained in Housing Options Advice

Indicator or Measure

• Review S11 Procedures
• Engage in Housing Options Training Toolkit
• Develop and implement housing initiatives that contribute to homeless prevention agenda
• Develop an interactive website, social media strategy
• Invest in the Housing Options model to improve access to financial support and assistance for families struggling with housing affordability.

Target/End Point

2023/24

Action Lead/Coordinator

Team Leader Homelessness & Prevention

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Use the Scottish Government's HRA Guidance to deliver a tenant led review of the transparency, value for money and service performance offered to tenants from Property Maintenance and Corporate Services within East Dunbartonshire Council

Baseline

Operational performance indicators for key measures including:

• Void rent loss
• Repairs timescales
• Satisfaction with repairs service
• Recovery of bad debts
• Number of EDC homes meeting SHQS, EESSH 1&2
• HRA budget: Contribution to General Fund.

Indicator or Measure

Operational performance improvement Tenant VFM scores improve

Tenant satisfaction scores improve Reduction in HRA contribution to non-housing related service delivery

Indicator or Measure

• Appoint Independent Tenant Advisor
• Develop tenant scrutiny panel
• Review service specification and cost structure of Corporate Services delivered to HRA
• Review service specification and cost structure of Corporate Services delivered to HRA
• Complete best value review and report compliance with HRA Guidance.

Target/End Point

LHS Annual updates 2023/24

Action Lead/Coordinator

Executive Officer

- Housing; Team leader Housing Operations

Action(s) and Commitments for Delivery of Outcome

Deliver a strategic review of the EDC Housing Service operating model, including delivery of a new IHMS, staffing restructure, process and system review as well as new data insight models

Baseline

• IHMS
• Functionality and utilisation Operational data and insight gaps Staff engagement levels
• Customer satisfaction levels Number of customers using digital channels to engage with housing services.

Indicator or Measure

• IHMS modules successfully implemented
• New digital service options and tools for staff
• New digital service channels for tenants
• Improved tenant experiences aligned to new job roles and processes Improved tenant VFM scores
• Highly engaged staff
• Improved operational performance.

Indicator or Measure

• Deliver IHMS implementation Plan
• Develop programme of process and system review aligned to IHMS delivery
• Deliver staff training on IHMS
• Review scope of data integration across housing systems
• Develop new data insights tools e.g. asset management model
• Review effectiveness of existing housing service structure
• Design and deliver staffing restructure.

Target/End Point

IHMS to be delivered in phases

LHS Annual Updates 2023/24

Action Lead/Coordinator

Executive Officer

- Housing; Team Leader Housing Operations