Social Housing Resilience Group update: 22 September
Update from latest SHRG meeting on key issues and areas of work.
The Social Housing Resilience Group (SHRG) was convened by SFHA in response to the coronavirus outbreak.
As well as SFHA, the SHRG comprises Scottish Government, Public Health Scotland, Scottish Housing Regulator, Wheatley Group, Glasgow and West of Scotland Forum of Housing Associations, Chartered Institute of Housing Scotland, and Association of Local Authority Chief Housing Officers.
The SHRG aims to deal with the significant challenges the outbreak is causing so that social landlords can continue to provide the support their tenants and communities need.
At the latest SHRG meeting, the group heard how Berwickshire Housing Association and Govan have been working with their communities, facilitated by the Supporting Communities Fund. The learning from on the ground is that:
- we can mobilise quickly to get resources to those who need them
- this was facilitated by much closer local partnership working with HSCPs, including data sharing
- we need to support tenants/communities to take work forward in the longer-term.
The SHRG discussed the announcements on national restrictions and the need for clear communication to the sector.
The latest dashboard from the Scottish Housing Regulator shows an increase in rent arrears although this is lower than in previous months; there are more empty properties which may be due to increased lettings; and there is a slight increase in people in temporary accommodation. The SHRG agreed that discussion on aims and targets for lettings to homeless people needs to take account of lettings through allocations policies which then free up properties for people experiencing homelessness.
It was agreed that the housing sector needs to be involved in the review of adult social care. SFHA will publish a paper on models of housing with care and support in the coming weeks to support these conversations.