Following the tragedy at Grenfell Tower on 14 June 2017, the Grenfell Inquiry’s Final Report (also called the Phase 2 Report), was published in September. It paints a bleak picture of years of failures by government and others in the construction industry and calls for far-reaching reform

Clare Booth from Aberdeenshire housebuilders Coldwells Build explains why the company is embracing the Passivhaus standard. The Scottish Government is currently undertaking a consultation on a policy to introduce a Scottish Passivhaus equivalent for newbuild housing across Scotland. The internationa

Harper Macleod partner Collette Miller takes a look through the Right to Repair Regulations to highlight the repairing obligations on Scottish social landlords for windows and describes what challenges are presented in meeting those obligations.

Professor Douglas Robertson continues his dive into the main findings of the RentBetter research project led by Indigo House and funded by the Nationwide Foundation. The RentBetter research shows that changing the legal basis of the tenancy has resulted in the majority of tenants feeling safe and se

Jimmy Black relives a few housing decades with Laurie Naumann, a campaigner on single homelessness, and a founder of Kingdom Housing Association. This is a story about Laurie Naumann, who recently retired after 44 years as a board member at Kingdom Housing Association. But it’s also a step bac

Jimmy Black cycled to Stornoway to meet Calum (Barney) MacKay, chair of TPAS Scotland and long-standing tenant activist. Barney is a trade unionist, and that explains a lot. Trades unions teach their active members how to do many useful things, including basic skills, like how to run a meeting or th

Jimmy Black meets the energetic Evie Copland, multi-award-winner and housing evangelist. “The biggest problem is … how do I change the world with this?” Evie Copland is finishing her Master's in Housing Studies, and she has been a distinguished student. In 2021 she won the Malcolm

Jimmy Black meets Bill Banks, retiring CEO of the multi award-winning Kingdom Group. Bill Banks looks relaxed, calm and entirely at home in his relatively modest office at Kingdom Housing Association. He’s a man at the height of his powers with a very solid track record of achievement. But Bil

Below is a full transcript of episode 62 of the Scottish Housing News Podcast titled ‘Accessible housing (part 3) with Jacquie Pepper and Elaine Ritchie’. Listen to the episode here.

“If we don't grab and grab with both hands that prevention agenda, do more now, given we know what's coming our way from our demographics, then we are going to be in a much worse state than we are now in 10, 20 years time.” Kieran Findlay and Jimmy Black continue their exploration of the

Below is a full transcript of episode 61 of the Scottish Housing News Podcast titled ‘Accessible housing (part 2) with Angela Currie’. Listen to the episode here.

“You can't do all of the things that people take for granted if you can't get in and out of your house.” In the run-up to the Housing & Social Care Accessibility Summit in Dundee, Jimmy Black and Kieran Findlay discuss the practical housing issues often confronted by people

Jimmy Black hopes Integrated Joint Boards (IJBs) will find inspiration at the Housing & Social Care Accessibility Summit, after a chat with Hanover Scotland's Angela Currie.

Jimmy Black thinks about wheelchairs, accessible houses, cycling on grass and a conversation with Pam Duncan-Glancy MSP.

Jimmy Black reflects on a conversation with Helen Murdoch from the Salvation Army and Janet Haugh from Right There.

Jimmy Black picks up themes from the latest episode of the Scottish Housing News Podcast, with SFHA’s Sally Thomas, Holyrood PR’s Chris Fairbairn and co-host Kieran Findlay.

In the latest article in the ongoing Our Housing Heritage series, Scottish Housing News discusses the Glasgow Rent Strikes of 1915. In the absence of social housing, families across the UK in 1915 were at the mercy of private landlords who could hike rents and evict tenants at will with little restr

The Springburn office of ng homes is named after Ned Donaldson. But who was Ned Donaldson? Kieran Findlay recalls the contribution of the activist and the post-war battle to stop the privatisation of council housing at Merrylee. It was a cold sleety December day in 1951. Slum landlordism and sublett

Duncan Smith, who works in the social housing sector, has contributed this piece as part of his quest for more information about housing architect George Gibson. Several years ago, just after starting my current job, I undertook some research on the properties we were refurbishing at the time. I fou

Next month marks the centenary of Scotland’s first council housing estate, the Logie Estate in Dundee. Lauren Brown reports.

The Ofgem Energy Industry Voluntary Redress Scheme opened for applications yesterday with its largest funding round since the scheme was established.

The Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA) in partnership with HACT has released the evaluation report into its Fuel Support Fund from 2021-2024 which demonstrates the significant impact the Fund has had on social housing tenants across Scotland, generating over £37.5 million in s

The annual Park Homes Warm Home Discount Scheme run by Charis is now open. Permanent park home and static caravan residents across England, Scotland and Wales can apply for a £150 payment to help towards their energy costs. The Charis Park Homes Warm Home Discount is an Ofgem-regulated, multi-

The latest spike in energy bills takes effect today due to changes to the Ofgem price cap, with a 10% increase for the average household.

The disproportionate impact of the housing emergency on women, and the additional barriers they face in accessing safe, secure, affordable, housing, have been highlighted in a new report published today by Shelter Scotland and Engender.

Transport and waste management organisation Gogar Services is providing waterproof care packages for homeless veterans as part of Aberdeenshire Council’s contract and tendering process.  Gogar Services worked with the Knights Templar Goodwill Charity of Scotland to put together packages t

New figures from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government yesterday have shown that the number of households facing homelessness in England has exceeded (320,000) between 2023-2024, the highest on record.

Homelessness charity Social Bite has submitted a planning application to relocate its Edinburgh Social Bite Village to a picturesque spot north of West Shore Road on the Granton Waterfront. If approved, the move is scheduled to take place from early 2025. The plans for the relocation, made in c

Edinburgh-based property expert Ben Di Rollo and businessman Ronnie Napier have co-founded a new residential property agency which has pledged to bring an innovative, client-focused approach to residential property sales and new build marketing services.  

The City of Edinburgh Council has become the first local authority to back a motion in support of rent controls since the introduction of the Scottish Government's new Housing Bill.

Professor Douglas Robertson continues his dive into the main findings of the RentBetter research project led by Indigo House and funded by the Nationwide Foundation. The RentBetter research shows that changing the legal basis of the tenancy has resulted in the majority of tenants feeling safe and se

Professor Douglas Robertson provides an overview of the main findings of the RentBetter research project led by Indigo House and funded by the Nationwide Foundation. The reform of any policy introduces a new set of dynamics within any system. Any policy’s success measured against its stated am

Social justice secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville has written to secretary of state for work and pensions Liz Kendall to urge the UK Government to reverse the cut to Winter Fuel Payment. Ms Somerville called on the UK Government to take action to address the root causes of fuel poverty and volatile e

The UK Government has been urged to assess the "inadequacy and volatility" of the Local Housing Allowance (LHA) in the wake of new private rent inflation figures.

In excess of 26,000 customers were assisted by the Highland Council’s Welfare Support Team and Citizens Advice during 2023/24 for support with welfare, debt and housing issues. As a result, financial gains for clients exceeded £26.8 million, representing a £17.32 return for every &

Innovative approaches to providing families with locally-based wrap-around support will be backed in five more areas as part of £1.57 million of additional investment this financial year. The Fairer Futures Partnerships will ensure services are integrated to help families where and when they n