Make Housing a National Priority, Scottish Government Urged

Three major housing and construction bodies have joined forces to call on the Scottish Government to make housing a national priority, in order to meet acute and rising demand for affordable homes while providing a direct economic boost and significant job creation opportunities.

The Scottish Building Federation (SBF), the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA) and the Glasgow and West of Scotland Forum of Housing Associations (GWSF) have issued a joint statement setting out the case for greater investment.

In ‘Making Housing a National Priority,' the three groups say the time is right to invest in affordable rented housing developed by housing associations and co-operatives. There are three principal reasons to invest now:

• To support economic recovery, growth and jobs
• To meet housing need, which is reaching crisis levels in Scotland
• To improve equality of opportunity and achieve wider social benefits, helping to regenerate Scotland's poorer communities

The additional borrowing powers available through the Scotland Bill present an
opportunity to provide long-term investment at a sustainable level. The three
bodies call on the Scottish Government to use these powers to make housing a
national priority and invest in affordable rented housing by housing associations
and co-operatives.

The joint statement  emphasises that:

• Housing need is reaching crisis levels with almost 200,000 households on council housing lists across the country (1) and almost 335,000 on housing association lists (2).

• According to research for the Scottish Government last year, investing in affordable housing is a highly effective way to boost jobs and stimulate the economy (3).

• Investment in affordable housing supports high quality apprenticeships. Between April and December 2010, 32% of all Modern Apprentices that successfully completed their training in Scotland did so in construction or associated trades (4).

• Housing associations and co-operatives are well established as the principal providers of social rented housing and other forms of affordable housing. They are well placed to do so in future, because of their capacity to lever in substantial levels of private finance to boost public investment.

• Housing associations and co-operatives have a major role to play in reducing fuel poverty and combating climate change. They have the most energy efficient housing in Scotland and can lead energy efficiency improvements and generation of renewables, creating jobs and training opportunities (5).

• Investing in affordable rented housing helps reduce social inequality and has wider benefits for health and education. There are clear relationships between poor housing conditions and poor health. Both overcrowding and homelessness have a particularly negative impact on children's educational performance, as well as on their physical and psychological health and thus their life chances (6).

• Affordable housing was one of the biggest losers in the 2011-12 Budget. As such, a further cut in 2012-13 would be deeply damaging to new affordable housing development (7). Housing associations' capacity to build new social rented housing has been further eroded by an unsustainable cut of 40% in subsidy benchmarks for individual projects, under the Scottish Government's Innovation and Investment Fund.

Read the statement here  Making Housing a National Priority

Scottish Building Federation Chief Executive Michael Levack said:

"Our latest membership survey found SBF members think spending more on affordable housing should be the top priority when it comes to determining where public investment should be made to support the construction industry.

"At a time when private investment in housing is still struggling to recover, boosting the delivery of new homes through housing associations is a vital mechanism to increase housing supply and sustain jobs in the building industry."

Dr Mary Taylor, CEO of the SFHA said:

"Our three organisations have come together to draw attention to the importance of government support for building the affordable homes that are so much needed. It is crucial for the Scottish Government to pay attention to the arguments to assist construction, to benefit jobs and housing. According to the SNP's housing manifesto, the Scottish Government aims to build 6,000 new socially-rented homes each year but with government investment at current levels, this target cannot be met. Additional public investment - particularly with scope for additional borrowing powers - will be vital in realising the Scottish Government's ambitions for new supply of affordable housing."

Jim Harvey, Director of GWSF said:

"Investing in affordable housing creates and protects Scottish construction jobs, while also addressing a whole host of social policy aims. In tough times, it is vital that housing investment is directed primarily towards the communities and individuals who will benefit the most, notably those on very low incomes who are poorly housed or who have no home at all. This depends on the Scottish Government taking a rounded, long-term view of what represents effective and sustainable value for public spending, to safeguard construction jobs and help revitalise our poorest communities."

 

 

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Case Study - Donich Park, Dunbritton Housing Association & Argyll Community Housing Association

Dunbritton Housing Association recently held a ‘topping-out' ceremony for its first new-build homes at Donich Park, Lochgoilhead.

Donich Park is a joint venture between lead developer Dunbritton and Argyll Community Housing Association. The Donich Park site was bought from the Forestry Commission and the new-build project of 18 houses will provide much-needed affordable housing in an area where waiting lists in Argyll & Bute exceed 3,500.

There is a waiting list of 75 families for the 18 properties.

In addition to Housing Association Grant of £1.4m from the Scottish Government, Dunbritton brought £600,000 of private finance to the project.

Morven Short, Director of Dunbritton Housing Association said:

"Dunbritton is delighted to have reached the topping out stage of this superb development at Donich Park, Lochgoilhead. It is the culmination of nearly eight years work and dedicated effort by all the partners and of course the excellent craftsmanship of John Brown (Strone) Ltd.

"This development is a response to the crying need for affordable housing here, as in every part of Scotland. But sadly, due to the sudden withdrawal of Housing Association Grant by the Scottish Government, this is likely to be one of the last developments of its kind. There are few, if any, housing associations that can afford to finance developments from their own funds and offer the housing at affordable rents. Dunbritton's sole purpose is to provide help with affordable housing. Donich Park proves that with co-operation it can be done. We stand ready and able. For more success stories all we need is the Scottish Government to rejoin the team."

Gillies Brown, Managing Director of the construction team John Brown (Strone) Ltd, described the benefits of a local construction firm to staff and the community as well as some of the worries he has about the future:

"We are a small rural builder, with 60-plus employees and we are concerned about the future," said Mr Brown.

"We pride ourselves on being an all trades company which gives us more control over the finished product. Continuity of work means that we retain and train people in a variety of trades and also we have a workforce that is sought after outwith our geographical region.

"We are known as being a stable employer and a high proportion of our staff have worked with us in excess of 10 years. We recently had a retirement where the individual had worked with us from the age of 15 to 65. This has given our staff confidence in an uncertain economic climate. However we are very concerned that 2012 will mean redundancies.
"We currently have three apprentices and this number is low due to the uncertainty facing the construction industry. Up until two years ago we had ten apprentices."

Mr Brown continued:

"Where possible we try to source materials locally and use local suppliers for the trades that we don't have in house. We are known for quickly settling invoices which helps the cash flow of these businesses. We fully support our schools and other local institutions by gifts, talks and helping out where possible."

"Our staff are building homes for people that they generally know and in some cases are fortunate enough to be allocated these homes themselves. This is important as it allows them to stay and work in this area. We have seen a big influx of people into the area and this has meant fewer houses being available to our younger staff. We need to see continued investment in quality affordable rented housing to communities and local economies."

Speaking at the ‘topping out' of the houses, SFHA CEO Mary Taylor said:

"This project is a fine example of a local community working with local associations to identify need, put funding and approvals together and with a local builder winning a contract providing jobs for local people. All of this goes to sustain the economy, local services and the community in a rural setting."

ends

For further information, contact Press and Public Affairs Manager Claire Munro on t: 0141 567 6244 m: 07771 926778 or e: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

www.sfha.co.uk

www.scottish-building.co.uk

www.gwsf.org.uk

NOTES:

1) Scottish Government, Housing Statistics for Scotland 2010, Key Trends Summary (August 2010), page 1. Available at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/1035/0103752.pdf (accessed 6th July 2011)

2) Statistics supplied to SFHA by the Scottish Housing Regulator (5 July 2011) based on data in the 2009-10 Annual Performance and Statistical Return

3) Monk, S, Tang, C and Whitehead C (2010), What does the literature tell us about the social and economic impact of housing?, Edinburgh, Scottish Government. Chapter 2. Available at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/1125/0099401.doc (accessed 6th July 2011)

4) Skills Development Scotland, National Training Programmes Performance Report, April to December 2011. Available at http://www.skillsdevelopmentscotland.co.uk/media/3749/MAG%20Quarter%203%202010-11%20All%20MAs.pdf (accessed 6th July 2011)

5) Scottish Government, Scottish House Condition Survey, Key Findings for 2009, para. 28 and table 9. Available at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2010/11/23125350/3 , (accessed 6th July 2011)

6) Monk, S, Tang, C and Whitehead C (2010), What does the literature tell us about the social and economic impact of housing? Edinburgh, Scottish Government, Chapter 4. Available at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/1125/0099401.doc (accessed 6th July 2011)

7) Scottish Government, (2011) Scotland's Spending Plans and Draft Budget 2011-12 Available at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/331661/0107923.pdf (accessed 6th July 2011)

8) A copy of the statement is attached to this press release, or available at...

9) The SFHA was established in 1975 and has around 170 members providing affordable housing and wider community services in Scotland, as well as a further 200 commercial members. The SFHA is owned by its membership and exists to support the work of housing associations and co-operatives in Scotland by providing services, advice and good practice guidance.

10) The SFHA is the voice of the principal builders and managers of new affordable housing for rent in Scotland. Housing Associations own and manage around 40% of the country's affordable rented housing stock, over a quarter of a million homes across Scotland.

11) Housing associations and co-operatives are not-for-profit bodies regulated by the Scottish Housing Regulator.

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