Scottish Government

(6) Guidance on the preparation of local housing strategies under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 should make homelessness a priority, and this should be reflected in the allocation of resources by Scottish Ministers.

RAG status: Amber

Delivery contact: Communities Scotland

Progress to date:

• Homelessness was identified as a key national housing priority to be addressed in the first round of Local Housing Strategies ( LHS) submissions.
• All 32 Local Housing Strategies ( LHS) have now been assessed by Communities Scotland; the assessment shows that links with homelessness strategies were generally good.
• The information contained in LHS, along with a range of other information including research from Heriot-Watt University, has informed the Executive's proposals for investing £1.2 billion in affordable housing over the next three years.
• Consultation on Strategic Housing Investment Framework ( SHIF) launched 17 March 2006; contains proposals to change the way funds for housing investment are managed and distributed, with increased emphasis on Local Housing Strategies. The consultation includes a specific question as to how management and distribution should reflect the implications of the 2012 target.

Action required & by whom:

• Scottish Executive and Communities Scotland to take account of consultation responses on the SHIF in determining how housing investment funds are managed and distributed.

Key milestones:

Next round of LHS 2009

(7) If current research confirms the usefulness of lead tenancies, this should be actively pursued by Communities Scotland using resources from their development programme.

RAG status: Amber

Delivery contact: Communities Scotland

Progress to date:

• An independent evaluation, commissioned by the Executive, of past and present Lead Tenancy Schemes ( LTS) has been completed.
• Communities Scotland is liaising with SFHA regarding a number of proposed improvements to guidance on LTS in light of research findings, specifically: introducing clearer guidance on the standards which properties must meet; more flexibility on the categorisation of clients housed; more clarity on 'exit route' arrangements for individual tenants and at the end of the lease period; scope to align tenancy conditions as closely as possible with those for RSL owned stock; and updating the allowable grant levels.

Action required & by whom:

• Scottish Executive and Communities Scotland to discuss role of lead tenancies in context of greater access to private rented sector.

Key milestones:

• Evaluation published.

(8) Local authorities should assess the local availability of affordable housing for young people seeking their own accommodation for the first time. Housing strategies should include proposals to address any shortfall.

RAG status: Amber

Delivery contact: Communities Scotland

Progress to date:

• The first round of Local Housing Strategy submissions provide only a partial picture of housing need among young people seeking their own accommodation for the first time (this is because of local variation in the local housing needs assessments undertaken).
• In their LHS, 15 councils identify a need for affordable housing generally ( i.e. not just for young people) while a further 3 are currently undertaking revised local housing needs assessments and have yet to identify the need for affordable housing generally. In 8 of the remaining 14 LHS, evidence suggests that there may nevertheless be local pockets of shortage for affordable housing generally.

Action Required & by whom:

• Communities Scotland taking forward Local Housing Need Assessment Proforma project, a local affordable housing needs proforma which will be completed by local authorities and revisited with them on a regular basis. Development work to take place late summer, with training on proforma completion for local authority staff with LHS responsibilities provided in the autumn. It is expected that proformas will be returned to Communities Scotland for assessment before Christmas, allowing them to form part of the 2007 update of LHS.

Key milestones:

• Spending Review 2007
• Local Housing Need Assessment Proforma project launched - Autumn 2006.
• Next round of LHS 2009.

(9) All local authorities should provide access to rent guarantee / deposit schemes by 2004. The Executive should issue national guidance on such schemes based on lessons learned from local pilots; local authorities should also receive initial funding to enable schemes to be set up.

RAG status: Amber

Delivery contacts: National Rent Deposit Forum Officer (Scotland)

Progress to date:

• Funding provided to local authorities to deliver recommendations of Homeless Task Force (£20 million in 2005-06); many local authorities have used this resource to develop schemes.
• An independent evaluation of rent deposit guarantee schemes in Scotland, commissioned by the Scottish Executive, was published in September 2003 and has been widely disseminated.
• Due to a small number of schemes currently being redeveloped not all local authorities are currently offering access to a rent deposit scheme. This is in contrast to Spring 2005 when all authorities offered access.
• Lisa Allan appointed in July 2004 as National Rent Deposit Forum Development Officer (Scotland) - funded by the Scottish Executive. Following NRDF's decision to cease business at end April 2006 arrangements are being put in place to continue the work of the Scottish Development Officer. The Development Officer provides advice and support to all established and developing schemes, by providing support services in Scotland, e.g. networking meetings, training, research, responding to queries and disseminating information.
• The Development Officer has carried out 2 audits of rent deposit schemes, the most recent in March 2006. The 2006 audit revealed that schemes are in different stages of development, with most well established but some still in strategic form. All schemes receive local authority funding and some receive assistance from voluntary organisations in the form of underwriting. Over 1100 bonds were issued by schemes in 2005 and all schemes offer wider services such as tenancy and landlord support and help and advice with welfare benefits.

Action required & by whom:

• Development Officer to produce Good Practice Guide on Rent Deposit Schemes -
• Scottish Executive and Development Officer to agree programme of engagement with local authorities not currently offering access to a scheme to ensure service becomes available.

Key milestones:

• Survey of schemes completed January 2005 and March 2006.
• Good Practice Guide to be published

(10) A national framework for furnished tenancies should be drawn up, with appropriate funding, by Communities Scotland. A national furniture grant scheme and furniture re-cycling network should be established. We propose a target of 1,000 additional furnished tenancies a year for 5 years, at which point further need should be assessed.

RAG status: Amber

Delivery contact: Scottish Executive Homelessness Team

Progress to date:

• Grant of £3m per annum over the period 2003-06 has been made available through Communities Scotland to fund achievement of 1302 additional tenancies in 2003/04, 1329 in 2004/05 and 1523 in 2005/06. Communities Scotland has prepared a national framework for furnished tenancies, completed design of the furniture grant scheme and issued guidelines to local authorities.
• On the basis of feedback, Communities Scotland has made some changes to guidance such as including washing machines amongst the 'essential' electrical goods covered by the grant.
• The 1,000 tenancies a year target is expected to be achieved during the course of the three year scheme.
• A national furniture co-ordinator (Linsay Chalmers) was appointed in March 2003 and is developing links between furniture recycling projects and homelessness strategies. A furniture re-cycling website ( www.morethanfurniture.com) was launched early in 2004.
• National mapping exercise completed by end of 2004 by national furniture co-ordinator.
• Review of national framework for furnished tenancies carried out in January 2006; decision taken by Monitoring Group to continue the furniture grant scheme for financial year 2006/07. Operation of the scheme to be considered further during course of the year to ensure it is meeting the Task Force's objectives in the most effective way.

Action required & by whom:

• Scottish Executive to review operation of furniture grant scheme and report to HMG in June 2006.

Key milestones:

• Appointment of national furniture co-ordinator March 2003.
• Furnished tenancies scheme in operation 2003/04
• Furniture re-cycling website launched early 2004
• National mapping of furniture re-cycling projects December 2004.
• Review of national framework for furnished tenancies carried out - January 2006.

(11) The number and quality of accommodation offers to homelessness applicants should be monitored by Communities Scotland.

RAG status: Amber

Delivery contact: Communities Scotland, R&I

Progress to date:

• Communities Scotland monitor the number and quality of accommodation offers through their cyclical inspections of local authority homelessness services. Inspections look at the level of allocations to homeless people compared with the level to other applicants and in the context of the number of people applying as homeless and in priority need. Inspections also look at the type of and location of lets. The level of analysis that is possible is largely determined by the quality of information held by each local authority; inspections have found that the collection and use of outcome information was limited.
• Communities Scotland published a summary of its findings from pathfinder inspections in a themed report on homelessness published in June 2005. This noted that two local authorities (of the five involved in the pathfinders) treated homeless people equally with other applicants in terms of the number, quality and location of houses offered. One authority made lets available quickly but limited choice for homeless people, one restricted access to homeless people through a quota system and one council could not demonstrate what outcomes were (in this area it was also found that significant numbers of homeless people did not get access to appropriate housing).
• Inspection reports for three councils have been published since then: one council allocates around one in ten of permanent lets to homeless people, limits choice for homeless people and does not always consider their needs fully; one council was treating homeless people to whom they have a duty to provide permanent housing equally with other applicants in the number of houses they are offered, but restricted choice and was poor at accessing accommodation held by RSLs; and one council allocated houses to a high proportion of people it found to have a priority need, but was not always clear why it bypassed homeless people for particular houses and they are more likely to get lower demand houses.
• Communities Scotland currently consulting on the Regulation and Inspection Framework for Housing; consultation ends June 2007.

Action Required & by whom:

• Scottish Executive and Communities Scotland to collate information collected through data returns and inspections to form picture of trends in the allocation of housing to homeless people - this should also take account of any relationship with the provision of temporary accommodation. Report to be made to HMG once sufficient data available.
• Scottish Executive to commission wider research and to consider guidance on allocations policies as set out in the Ministerial Statement on the abolition of priority need. Homelessness Monitoring Group to offer advice on the basis of the report submitted to them.

Key Milestones:

(12) Future guidance on choice-based letting schemes should incorporate arrangements to prevent homeless people being disadvantaged.

RAG status: Amber

Delivery contact: SE Affordable Housing and Housing Management Team

Progress to date:

• Choice Based Letting schemes were addressed in the Executive's allocations guidance issued in April 2002 which made clear that any allocation system had to reflect statutory requirements to give reasonable preference to homeless applicants.
• The Executive is engaged in UK research into the longer-term impact of choice based lettings systems which will include examination of two Scottish case studies.

Action required & by whom:

• The Executive to consider this recommendation further in the light of any representations from landlords and other interested bodies and issues arising from Communities Scotland's regulation and inspection process. Taking account of the outcome of the research mentioned above, the Executive to consider as a matter of high priority the development of specific guidance for any landlords wishing to implement choice-based lettings to ensure any such scheme is introduced effectively and consistently within the overall context for delivering CHRs. It is envisaged that such guidance would provide advice on suitable models to achieve this.
• Homelessness Monitoring Group to consider international evidence on the implications of CBL schemes for homeless people and Communities Scotland's reports on landlords operating CBL schemes.

Key milestones:

• Allocations guidance issued 2002.
• UK research to report April 2006.