SFHA Responds to Local Living and 20 Minute Neighbourhoods Consultation

SFHA submitted a response to the Scottish Government’s consultation of draft planning guidance on Local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods last week.

The draft guidance intends to support planning authorities, communities, and others with an interest in local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods. It sets out the context for 20 minute neighbourhoods, key considerations of delivery, guidance on ways to support them, and case studies.

SFHA’s response asked for elevation of role of affordable housing within guidance and key criteria to creating local living neighbourhoods. We emphasised the importance of affordable housing options in delivering accessible and ‘liveable’ neighbourhoods, particularly with regards to enabling choice—affordable housing options allow people to choose where they want their ‘local’ to be.

Our submission described RSL’s wide-ranging work to support 20 minute neighbourhoods by bringing services to tenants and the wider community’s doorsteps through community hub partnerships, bike schemes, and partnership delivery of play parks and green spaces alongside housing, to name a few. We also provided examples of the ways in which RSL’s community engagement and data collection practices help make local services and programming responsive to tenants’ needs and aspirations. Our submission also underlined the wider supportive partnership and funding environments that RSLs are operating within, which are required to successfully deliver 20 minute neighbourhoods.

Our response also supported the draft’s principle-based applications of local living guidance for remote and rural locations, where 20 minute neighbourhoods can be inappropriate. 

Thanks to the members who fed into our consultation response. If you would like more information or to discuss 20 minute neighbourhoods, please contact apidgeon@sfha.co.uk.