Agenda

Including any notices of motion and any other items of business submitted as urgent for consideration at the meeting.

Members should declare any financial and non-financial interests they have in the items of business for consideration, identifying the relevant agenda item and the nature of their interest.

If any.

Minute of the Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Committee of 5 December 2023 – submitted for approval as a correct record

Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Committee Work Programme

Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Committee Rolling Actions Log

Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Committee Business Bulletin

Edinburgh Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy and Delivery Plan – referral from the Policy and Sustainability Committee

Internal Audit reports: Management of Ad-hoc Mixed Tenure Works (PL2302), Housing Stock Condition - Tenant Safety, Damp and Mould (PL2303), Repairs Right First Time (PL2306) and service area responses for (PL2303) and (PL2306) – referral from the Governance, Risk and Best Value Committee

By Councillor Dobbin - Voids Returned for Letting

“Committee:

Notes that the Council having declared a Housing Emergency, urgent action to address the emergency is essential.

Bringing Voids back into service represents an opportunity that sits directly within the Council’s control.

Recognises that not all Voids are suitable or available to return for letting.

Requests the status of Voids be reported in the Business Bulleting in each cycle:

-         voids returned to stock for letting.

-         new voids added during period.

-         balance of voids for re-letting.

-         breakdown of voids unable to be let.”

By Councillor Dobbin - Damp and Mould Cases Clearance Reporting

“Committee:

Welcomes the establishment of the dedicated Damp and Mould Team approved at the May 2023 committee meeting.

Notes that while Edinburgh has declared a Housing Emergency in order to address the extreme shortage of accommodation in the City, also recognises that all accommodation offered by the Council should be free from damp and mould and be a safe, secure living environment.

Requests reporting in each Business Bulletin on progress made to eradicate Damp and Mould as a factor impacting the lives of Council tenants and their families, in line with the approved tenant engagement process:

Reporting to include:

Number of homes by Ward reported as having damp and mould at date of report

Average waiting time for a dampness survey

Number of homes by Ward having been cleared of Damp and Mould since formation of the Dedicated Team (first report) / since last report (ongoing)

-           as recorded by the Damp and Mould Team

-           as confirmed by Tenant sign off

New Damp and Mould Cases reported since date of last report by Ward.”

By Councillor Parker - Opportunities for nature on HRA land

“Committee:

1.         Notes that the Council declared a Nature Emergency in February 2023 recognising the “inherent value of nature, including its crucial importance as an integral part of culture and society, and for our health, wellbeing, and economy”.

2.         Notes a number of existing Council strategies and pledges which focus on improving outcomes for biodiversity, for example the Thriving Greenspaces strategy, Biodiversity Action Plan, Nature Network, Living Landscapes work and Million Tree City pledge.

3.         Notes that much of the work under these strategies to date is primarily planned for Parks and Greenspace land, though welcomes discussions to focus on HRA land as part of the next stage of delivery of the Edinburgh Nature Network.

4.         Considers that people - as well as birds, bees, butterflies, caterpillars, worms, badgers, foxes, otters, hedgehogs, fungi, lichen, mosses, plants, trees, grasses etc - have no concept of the artificial categorisation of HRA land vs Parks and Greenspace land, and that therefore general strategies which focus on improving outcomes for biodiversity should operate across these boundaries, and that this will require a joined up approach across the Council.

Additionally:

5.         Notes that the HRA includes spending on the Neighbourhood Environment Programme – worth £3.5m in 22-23 and £2.3m in 23-24 – to cover funding for projects taking place on HRA land to improve estates, but that:

a.              There are no specific outcomes or relevant KPIs defined for nature as part of these projects.

b.              There is no data collected about: i) land converted from greenspace to hardstanding, ii) land converted from hard standing to greenspace or, iii) land converted to that with high biodiversity value, through these projects, despite these being key aims / indicators as part of the wider Council’s nature strategies.

6.         Notes that, whilst maintenance standards are consistent between HRA land and Parks and Greenspace land, monitoring of landscape quality is not – for example, Parks and Greenspace land is routinely assessed against Green Flag standards / Parks Quality Assessment (which includes the monitoring of positive outcomes for biodiversity), but this is not applied to HRA land.

7.         Recognises that nature has a key role to play in improving health and wellbeing and, in line with a climate justice approach, the opportunity for people to access nature should apply equally across all of the Council’s estate, be that on HRA land or Parks & Greenspace land.

Further notes that:

8.         Estate-wide changes are taking place within the Parks and Greenspace service to change operations to improve outcomes for biodiversity and that this will impact on how some areas of HRA land are maintained, as well as how the HRA is charged for Parks & Greenspace services.

9.         The Housing and Property Framework which contains NEP spending is due for retendering in November 2024.

10.       Over the next year the Council will be developing a Local Housing Strategy for Edinburgh (2025-2030).

11.       A Living Landscape map is being developed to outline where interventions  ...  view the full agenda text for item 9.3