The purpose of Local Housing Strategies
1.14 A LHS must map out the course between the current operation of the housing system and how the local authority, with partners, wants the housing system to operate in five years time, taking into account the national housing priorities set out above. LHS should:
Demonstrate the fit between national housing priorities and local requirements;
Identify the broad picture of investment needs for existing and new housing. The priorities identified in LHS are expected to determine councils' future expenditure priorities. However the Strategies are not intended to be bidding documents;
In relation to the Scottish Housing Quality Standard, provide a vehicle for councils to set out their delivery plans;
Show how the housing circumstances for households across all tenures will be improved by guiding local action and planning effective intervention.
Specifically, LHS should:
Provide a strategic framework for the future development of the whole local housing system, taking account of wider regional trends so that needs and demands can be met more effectively with available resources;
Establish a shared understanding, between partners and providers, of the issues and priorities within an area;
Translate identified priorities into a local strategy highlighting issues of national and local relevance;
Provide a framework within which objectives and targets are set, options identified and appraised, progress is monitored and impact evaluated;
Provide an understanding through which housing providers and investors can operate, and contribute to the agreed strategy;
Assess the need for specialised housing provision and the provision of housing related services as well as for general needs housing. In preparing their LHS local authorities should therefore include:
• Proposals for the implementation of Supporting People, from their Supporting People Strategic Plan due for submission in April 2003;
• Assessment of the need for, and availability of, housing constructed or adapted for people with disabilities.
LHS should be integrated fully with the local authority's corporate strategy and with their approach to community planning.
More information on the purpose of LHS is available in the CIH/LGA publication.
