Housing Revenue and Capital Account Budget 2023/24
| Title | Housing Revenue and Capital Account Budget 2023/24 |
|---|---|
| Resource | Housing and Technical |
| Service area | Housing and Property Services |
| Aims and objectives | The proposals detailed to increase council house rents for 2023/24 will impact on current tenants, future tenants, gypsy/travellers and residents who rent lock-ups. The scope of those effected by the increase will include people across those protected characteristics groups, where information is available, as defined by the Equality Act 2010. The population trends for South Lanarkshire have been collated from the Office of National Statistics, the Scottish Government and the census. The council monitors the uptake of its services by age, gender, disability and race. SIMD demonstrates higher concentrates of deprivation and poverty within the social rented sector. The proposal, if approved, will increase rents for South Lanarkshire Council tenants by 3.5% - a £2.67 rise to the average weekly rent. Given the higher concentration of deprivation and poverty within the social rented sector, financial assistance is available to those who quality for Universal Credit or Housing Benefit. There are also a range of other financial supports with a key focus on tenancy sustainment as a result of the cost of living crisis. |
| Conclusion | South Lanarkshire Council’s Housing Revenue and Capital Account Budget Report 2023/24 and specifically the proposals relating to £63.916m Housing Capital Investment Programme will help to improve the lives of tenants and residents within South Lanarkshire and the wider community by mitigating poverty and/or socio-economic disadvantage. The 30-year HRA Business Plan has been developed to reflect investment priorities of maintaining the housing stock to the Scottish Housing Quality Standard (SHQS), working towards the new Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing (EESSH2) by 31 December 2032 and increasing the supply of council homes. While 6.84% of the Council’s housing stock is currently compliant with the EESSH2 standard, a significant amount of work has been undertaken to ensure compliance with the first phase of the EESSH programme and over 98% of council stock is compliant with this. Key investment activities and priorities in relation to the Housing Capital Investment Programme include central heating upgrades and installations, external fabric upgrades, external wall insulation, kitchen and bathroom replacement, windows and doors replacement, legislative compliance works and external environmental improvements. To achieve these key priorities and other necessary works, as outlined within this assessment, a rent increase rise of 3.5% is required. South Lanarkshire Council has the 8th lowest Local Authority rent in Scotland – the lowest amongst the 21 social landlords who operate within the South Lanarkshire area. Affordability is a key consideration of the council’s approach to budget setting and the council working in partnership with tenants utilise the HouseMark rent affordability tool as part of the annual consultation programme of engagement. It is recognised that the rent increase may affect people who are impacted by socio-economic inequalities across the protected characteristics and the current cost of living crisis as well as the continued impact of COVID 19 will further compound this. Some of the priorities within the Investment Programme will contribute towards a reduction in fuel costs, helping tenants who are currently experiencing fuel poverty. Other internal and external improvements will help to improve tenants’ homes and general living environment and provide wider community benefits, thus contributing to improving general wellbeing. The availability of welfare benefits will continue to help to mitigate the impact of the rent increase for certain tenants experiencing financial hardship and the council’s Money Matters Advice Service provides benefits and money advice services to tenants and other customers. In addition, Housing and Technical Resources continues to focus on assisting and supporting tenants to access appropriate benefits and sustain their tenancies through the delivery of a range of services and approaches, including: • the Rent Income Support Team provides advice and support to tenants to claim benefits, consider rent payment options and make referrals to specialist agencies. • a key focus of the rent management policy is to ensure that a person-centred approach is taken when dealing with a tenant in rent arrears, to reflect the diverse range of needs and circumstances tenants may be experiencing • the tenancy sustainment fund aims to help tenants in financial difficulties by providing financial support to reduce rent arrears, alleviating some of the financial pressure the tenant may be under and enabling them to reach an agreeable repayment arrangement for the remaining arrears • support has also been made available through the Scottish Government Tenant Grant Fund, which also provides financial support to vulnerable households most at risk of homelessness • general housing support and advice to help tenants to sustain their tenancy As part of the annual review of our budget and business plans which inform proposals for any rent increase, a consultation programme with tenants is undertaken to seek views on setting rent levels. The Budget Scrutiny Group (BSG) and the Tenant Participation Co-ordination Group (TPCG) are the 2 core tenants’ groups that lead on the development of the programme of engagement in relation to rent setting each year and also includes representation from the Disability Housing Partnership sub-group, local housing forums and an extended interested individual tenant register. Tenants are supported by the South Lanarkshire Tenant Development Support Project which encourages, supports and facilitates tenants from across South Lanarkshire to engage and participate to provide views on the council’s budget and rent setting proposals. For the 9th year, the BSG panel provided tenants with the opportunity to scrutinise how various parts of the housing budget is spent whilst taking into consideration annual budget proposals and key performance indicators. As part of the scrutiny exercise, the panel met with senior council officers from the Council and discussed a range of key topics and questions including the delivery of the new build programme, the ongoing cost of living crisis, fuel poverty, support and advice for tenants/residents living in South Lanarkshire. Due to the ongoing impact of the cost-of-living crisis and the uncertainty surrounding the position in relation to the rent control provisions, the BSG recognised that there was a need for a slightly different approach to be taken to this year’s consultation programme. A summary of the engagement programme is detailed below: • an on-line survey, available on the council’s website • promotion of consultation and survey through various social media platforms including South Lanarkshire View, Facebook and Twitter • E mail and text messages to over 11,000 tenants • articles on rent setting and encouraging tenants to have their say, published in the Autumn 2022 edition of Housing News (distributed to all council tenants) and on the council website • a tenant led “Conversation Café” event supported by the South Lanarkshire Tenant Development Support Project, provided an opportunity for open discussion on the proposed rent increase and investment priorities • Virtual local meetings At the time of writing, feedback through the engagement process indicates positive support of a further one year rent increase, of the proposed 3.5% for 23/24 and support for the Council to maintain its position as one of the most affordable local authority rents in Scotland. |
| Completed date | 10/1/23 |
| Contact email | equalities@southlanarkshire.gov.uk |
| Area | Council wide |