Find information about

ARGYLL AND BUTE COUNCIL HOMELESSNESS SERVICE INSPECTION REPORT

The Scottish Housing Regulator today published its inspection report on Argyll and Bute Council’s services to homeless people. It awarded the Council a ‘fair’ rating.

The purpose of inspection is to provide an independent external assessment of the effectiveness of housing service delivery, and make recommendations to help improvement.

Argyll and Bute Council is situated on the west coast of Scotland, it is Scotland’s second largest local authority by geographical area covering approximately 2,700 square miles and has a population of some 91,000 people. Following a successful ballot of tenants in December 2005 Argyll and Bute Council transferred all its housing stock (5,800 houses) to Argyll Community Housing Association. Last year it received 848 applications for assistance from homeless people.

Lesley Kerr, Acting Head of Inspection at The Scottish Housing Regulator, said:

“Our inspectors found that Argyll and Bute Council has a number of strengths. It provides good access to the service including a customer focussed approach of having six service points in the main settlements in the area. It works hard to prevent homelessness and provides advice and assistance to a wide group of people.

The Council is aware that its problems in accessing sufficient temporary accommodation and the length of time some people wait for a permanent home are areas where it needs to improve. However it is committed to improving the service it provides and we are confident that that it is capable of addressing the weaknesses we have identified.”

Councillor George Freeman, Argyll and Bute’s Spokesperson for Housing and Communities, said:

“The Council welcomes the outcome of this rigorous inspection process. We are particularly delighted that the inspection team has recognised our strong customer focussed approach, and the fact that we work very hard to prevent homelessness in Argyll and Bute. We also recognise that there are a number of areas in which we need to improve our service, and the Council is committed to moving forward positively in this regard, working in collaboration with our partner agencies.”

NOTES TO NEWS EDITORS

1. Inspectors gave the following grades:

Argyll and Bute Council has achieved a C grade for services to homeless people. This is a fair performance.

2. Full details of the Argyll and Bute Council inspection report can be found on the Scottish Housing Regulator website at www.scottishhousingregulator.gov.uk

3. The Scottish Housing Regulator came into operation on 1 April 2008. It is the successor to Communities Scotland’s Regulation & Inspection Division. As a government agency the Scottish Housing Regulator has complete operational independence, but remains accountable to Scottish Ministers, and through them to the Scottish Parliament for the standard of its work. The agency sits within the Justice and Communities Directorate of the Scottish Government and will work within the government’s overall purpose and contribute to its strategic objectives.