Caithness Map :: Links to Site Map Great value Unlimited Broadband from an award winning provider  

 

Council Consults On Rented Housing Pressured Area Status

28th June 2010

People in the Highlands are being asked to make their views known on 'Pressured Area Status' concerning socially rented housing provided by The Highland Council and housing associations.

Many communities in Highland are already covered by Pressured Area Status designation which over the last 5 years has helped to prevent social rented housing being sold through the Right to Buy. The Highland Council applied to the Scottish Government for Pressured Area Status to try to address the severe and persistent lack of affordable housing in the area.

Pressured Area Status designation means that tenants in designated communities who have been given a new tenancy on or after 30 September 2002 have their 'Right to Buy' suspended for 5 years.

The Highland Council is proposing to apply to the Scottish Government to have Pressured Area Status renewed and extended to all Highland communities with the exception of Caithness where Pressured Area Status designation will be sought for Thurso and small neighbouring communities of Forss, Geise, Glengolly, Janetstown, Scrabster, and Weydale.

If Pressured Area Status is extended anyone with a Scottish Secure tenancy that started in their current home on or after 30 September 2002 would have their Right to Buy suspended unless they live in Caithness outside of Thurso and its small neighbouring communities of Forss, Geise, Glengolly, Janetstown, Scrabster, and Weydale.

If approved, the Pressured Area Status designation will come into force later this year, before the current designation comes to an end in November 2010.

Pressured Area Status designations last for 5 years after which local authorities can re-apply.

The Council is seeking views and comments on its application to renew and extend Pressured Area Status. More information on pressured area status designation is on the Council's website www.highland.gov.uk at the Housing and Social Work Committee agenda for 19 May 2010.

Comments should be sent to: Housing Strategy Officer, The Highland Council, Housing & Property Services, Glenurquhart Road, Inverness IV3 5NX; or e-mailed to housingandproperty[AT]highland.gov.uk by Monday 26th July 2010.

Councillor Margaret Davidson, Chairman of The Highland Council's Housing and Social Work Committee said: "We recognise the desire of many tenants to become owners and help them buy a home of their own at a price they can afford. Through the Government's LIFT home ownership scheme, shared equity houses are available to buy in communities across Highland at discounted prices from housing associations. As well as having priority, Council and housing association tenants are eligible to buy these on special terms. Hundreds of people have already benefited from this scheme.

"I urge tenants, individuals and communities across Highland to make their views known to the Council on Pressured Area Status and to identify communities where there are shortages of socially rented housing."

 

Related Businesses

 

Related Articles

Yesterday
Wick Public Service Obligation Celebrates Successful Second Year Subsidising Wick Aberdeen FlightsThumbnail for article : Wick Public Service Obligation Celebrates Successful Second Year Subsidising Wick Aberdeen Flights
The Highland Council is delighted to confirm a highly successful second year for Public Service Obligation (PSO) flights between Wick and Aberdeen.   The period from April 2023 to March 2024 has seen a substantial increase in passenger numbers, with several months seeing over 1,000 passengers using the service, and overall the service has seen year on year growth of 25%.  
18/3/2024
Members Agree Digital Ambition For Highland Council - Or How To Make Cuts Without Saying SoThumbnail for article : Members Agree Digital Ambition For Highland Council - Or How To Make Cuts Without Saying So
Members of Highland Council, who met on Thursday 14 March 2024, approved a corporate Digital Ambition, which has been designed to deliver significant organisational change across Council services, recognising the current priorities within the organisation.   The Strategy, which is embedded within the wider Council Delivery Plan, has been developed to focus attention and resources on areas of change which will deliver the greatest benefit to the Council.  
14/3/2024
Clarification On The Role Of MCR Pathways' Coordinators And Mentors In Highland Schools
The Council remains committed to supporting mentoring in our schools, including the support that is currently delivered through the MCR Pathways programme.   Highland Council is currently undertaking a review of Employability Support provided by a number of different council services and how these relate to the work carried out by external partners and in our schools.  
15/3/2024
Council Agrees A New Draft Highland Outcome Improvement Plan
Highland Council members have considered and agreed a revised draft Highland Outcome Improvement Plan.   The partnership plan has been reviewed and updated by the Community Planning Partnership.  
15/3/2024
Members agree Highland Council's new Community Wealth Building Strategy
Members at today's (14 March 2024) meeting of The Highland Council agreed the local authority's new draft Community Wealth Building Strategy.   They were also asked to note that a period of public engagement on the draft will now begin, with a final strategy returning to full Council for consideration in September.  
15/3/2024
£60m Capital Investment Approved For Roads And Infrastructure In Highland
Plans to invest up to £60m new Capital in Highland roads and infrastructure have been approved by Members at the Council meeting on 14 March 2024.   The decision will see an additional £40m Capital investment in roads and transport infrastructure.  
10/3/2024
Highland Council Budget - Delivery Plan Sets Out Roadmap To Deliver Savings And Investment
A draft Delivery Plan sets out a roadmap which will ensure the delivery of £54.6m savings and over £100m investment agreed by Council over the next 3 years.   The report is a difficult to follow series looing at areas but does not specify where the cuts to jobs will come over the next three years.  
Cuts And More Cuts But Still Cash For Arts In Highland - £30,000 For TapestriesThumbnail for article : Cuts And More Cuts But Still Cash For Arts In Highland - £30,000 For Tapestries
The Co-Chairs of the Inverness Castle Delivery Group, Fergus Ewing MSP and Cllr Ian Brown, are delighted to announce the award of £30,000 from Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) in support of framing the 57 panels that will form the Tapestry of the Highlands and Islands.   This financial commitment from HIE has contributed significantly to the preservation of the 57 panels created by communities across the Highlands and Islands, of which 32 will be included in the first exhibition as part of the Inverness Castle Experience.  
6/3/2024
Council Employee Receives Special Recognition At The Scottish Empty Homes AwardsThumbnail for article : Council Employee Receives Special Recognition At The Scottish Empty Homes Awards
Dawn Meston from The Highland Council's Housing team won a prestigious award at the Scottish Empty Homes Awards held at The Studio, Glasgow on Thursday 29 February 2024 in recognition of her contribution to bringing empty homes back into use across Highland.   Between 1 April and 31 December 2023, a total of 25 empty properties were brought back into use following Dawn's intervention as Highland's Empty Homes Officer.  
5/3/2024
Highland Council Confirms Dates For Thermal Trial To Start In ThursoThumbnail for article : Highland Council Confirms Dates For Thermal Trial To Start In Thurso
The Chair of The Highland Council's Economy and Infrastructure Committee has confirmed details of a trial, to start next week, of a thermal process for carrying out pothole repairs.   An external contractor, Thermal Road Repairs, has been appointed to undertake the work using a thermal repair process.