Scottish councils to share increase in affordable homes funding

The Scottish government has announced that council areas across the country will receive a share of more than £3.2bn in grant funding over five years to deliver affordable homes.

This funding will see an increase of more than £541m on the previous five-year allocation, allowing local authorities to benefit from a 20% uplift.

Housing secretary Shona Robison said: ‘We have already delivered more than 102,000 affordable homes since 2007.

‘Building on this, our aim is to deliver 100,000 affordable homes by 2032, with at least 70% of these for social rent. Meeting this ambition will require continued collaboration across the private and public sectors. I’m pleased to be increasing significantly the available affordable housing grant funding for council areas to help with this important work.

‘The five-year allocations will provide the certainty and assurance the housing sector needs to deliver the ambitious affordable homes target set out in our Housing to 2040 strategy,’ she said.

Housing to 2040 is Scotland’s first long-term national housing strategy, published in March 2021, which provides a vision for what housing will look like and how it will be provided.

To achieve these aims, the grant funding will be available to assist councils in planning and delivering affordable homes between 2021 and 2026.

The increase in funding commitment was welcomed by Cllr Gail Macgregor, spokesperson for COSLA Resources, a councillor-led organisation that represents local government in Scotland.

‘We welcome the Scottish Government’s commitment to contributing to the cost of affordable housing in Scotland. The priority for councils, and housing associations, is ensuring rent affordability and warm, safe, comfortable homes for current and future tenants.

‘As we look to recover from the impacts of the pandemic, councils are working side by side with their communities.  We maintain a focus on our shared ambitions around tackling child poverty and climate change, alongside building more houses,’ she said.

In related news, the largest net-zero housing development in Scotland has been granted approval.

Photo by Paul Chambers