Make empty houses homes
MSP calls on council to hire specialists
South Lanarkshire Council are still dragging their heels over hiring staff to tackle the region’s empty homes crisis – months after being slated over the matter.
The news came as the Scottish Parliament debated the issue last week, with the Conservative MSP for Central Scotland, Graham Simpson, accusing the Scottish Government of “not doing enough” regarding properties not in use throughout Scotland.
Figures last year revealed that the number of empty properties throughout South Lanarkshire had jumped from 2656 in 2007 to 3243 in 2017 – an increase of 22 per cent.
The figures also found properties empty for six months or more here had increased from 963 in 2007 to 1174 in 2018.
When those figures were unveiled Mr Simpson criticised South Lanarkshire for not having a dedicated member of staff working on the issue, and the council stated they were looking at “potentially” establishing am officer.
However, the proposal has not progressed. Mr Simpson stated last week: “We are making very little impact on the number of properties that are not in use.
“At a time when we have a homelessness crisis and young people struggling to get their foot on the housing ladder, the SNP Scottish Government simply are not doing enough.
“An opportunity is being missed with empty homes in Scotland as it makes far more economic sense to utilize an existing property than to build a new home.”
Data from the Scottish Government revealed that the number of empty properties and second homes have increased to their second highest level since 2005.
Mr Simpson added: “When you look at the difference in cost between building a new home and renovating an existing property, the relative cost savings are quite clear. Transforming a vacant property into a proper home would add so much to a neighbourhood and the broader community.”
Blantyre MSP Clare Haughey responded by saying the Government are taking
“innovative” steps regarding the problem.
She said: “The SNP envisages a Scotland where no home is left empty without good reason by 2040.
“As a country, we are vastly outperforming the UK and Welsh governments when it comes to delivering affordable and social housing and we are taking innovative steps to address long-term empty properties which are such a wasted resource.
“The Scottish Government funds Shelter Scotland to develop and deliver the Scottish Empty Homes Partnership, which gives advice to home owners and works with councils to develop policies to help bring private sector empty homes back into use.
“Empty properties blight our communities and are a missed opportunity to increase the supply of safe, warm places to call home.”
South Lanarkshire Council have confirmed they are now looking into employing an Empty Homes Officer.
Daniel Lowe, Executive Director of Housing and Technical Resources for the council, said: “We actively seek to identify empty homes across South Lanarkshire, and work in conjunction with owners to bring them back into use. While we do not currently have a dedicated officer with responsibility for empty homes, a broad range of services is available to engage with owners and offer advice and assistance to them.
“We are working with the Scottish Empty Homes Partnership to review the services it provides with the aim of increasing the number of long-term empty homes brought back into use, including the potential establishment of a dedicated empty homes officer.”
In 2019, there were over 40,000 empty properties found across Scotland.