Time to give local people priority on Highland Council housing ladder, say local councillors
Local Highland councillors want to push through radical changes to the authority’s housing allocation system to favour residents in Badenoch and Strathspey.
It is the latest bid by members to tackle the chronic shortage of affordable homes for local people.
Current law requires the needs-based Highland Housing Register to ignore certain factors when selecting tenants for empty houses including how long someone has lived locally.
The move follows the strath last year becoming just the second local authority area in Scotland to be designated as a short term lets control area after Edinburgh.
It is a bid to take some heat out of the local housing market because of the demand for STLs for Airbnb and other providers but has proved controversial.
Highland Council convener Bill Lobban (Independent) proposed the local housing for local people motion at the latest area committee meeting in Kingussie’s Courthouse and it was unanimously supported by fellow councillors.
He told the Strathy afterwards: “For as long as I have been a councillor it has been fairly obvious that local people have difficulty getting to the top of the housing ladder - due to the simply ridiculous national housing register it does not matter where you reside.
“If you have enough points you get higher up the ladder even if you come from outwith the area.
“We need a fit for purpose local housing register that puts local people first and it cannot be beyond our collective wit to devise a simple and effective allocations policy.”
Area committee chairman Councillor Russell Jones (Independent) said local young people faced a real struggle to get their own home.
He said the demographic of the local population was getting ever older and added: “We want to retain our young people but it is very difficult for them to get houses locally.”
Councillor Muriel Cockburn (SNP) said: “Some of the allocations for homelessness can and do create some local tensions.”
She later added: “I care deeply and fully support the desperate need of people that find themselves homeless and I work tirelessly with and for the increasing numbers presenting.
“We have an amazing housing team that go above and beyond.
“This is a very sensitive and traumatic period for all that find themselves in these awful circumstances and I believe we have a duty of care to all.”
There has been differing responses from the strath’s two SNP MSPs.
Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness and Nairn and Strathspey, said: “I strongly support this motion asking that a new system of allowing local people with a strong provable connections with the local area more weighting when the vital points allocation is made.
“It is for the council to determine their policy but I do hope that this will emerge as the new policy.
“It is clear also that there is a distinct housing shortage in the strath, and a whole series of actions should be taken to tackle that wider problem.”
He added: “Surely it is only fair that local people are not denied housing in their own area because people from outwith the council area wish to come to live here?
“This is a sensitive area, and one where care must be taken to be as fair for all as possible. I look forward to studying the detail of the policy in due course.”
Badenoch MSP Kate Forbes said she fully appreciates and supports the need for more affordable homes in the strath.
But she said: “I believe there needs to be a balance found between providing housing for locals who want to stay in the area and, for example, those who may have found themselves to be homeless or having to move away from difficult circumstances.”
Highland Council uses a points-based system to allocate social housing with higher scores indicating greater need.
Specifically, those at risk of homelessness or already homeless receive 70 points - the highest single award available.
The bid for change came after the latest homelessness figures were presented to the area committee.
They revealed the number of lets in the strath to homeless applicants for the past six months up to the end of March was 95 with just 17 properties going to non-homeless housing list applicants.
Councillor Lobban observed: “Basically it means that if you are a local resident and you are looking for a house the chances of getting one are remote in the extreme.”
Council officials said they believed the majority of those declaring themselves homeless would be from the strath but agreed to provide a breakdown of figures.
The points allocation policy has been developed to comply with the legal requirements of the housing acts.
Highland Housing Register partner landlords also include Albyn Housing Society Ltd, Cairn Housing Association Ltd and Caledonia Housing Association Ltd.
Full details of the 29 page HHR allocations policy updated in March can be found by clicking here.
Highland Council was contacted for comment.
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