 Colonsay Community Development Company directors Andrew Abrahams, Dannie Onn & Project Coordinator Carrie Seymour survey the Scalasaig site (Credit: Caitlin NcNeill) This blog is part of a monthly series about community-led housing in Scotland, jointly written by Mike Staples, Chief Executive at South of Scotland Community Housing (SOSCH), and Ronnie MacRae, Chief Executive at Communities Housing Trust (CHT). Between us we’ve worked with hundreds of communities across Scotland, facilitating well over 1,000 affordable homes. In a 2021 survey of Badenoch & Strathspey, the Cairngorms Business Partnership found that 68% of businesses reported a shortage of housing had impacted on their efforts to recruit staff, and 60% felt that a shortage of housing had impacted on their efforts to retain staff. 35 businesses reported people had declined job offers due to their inability to secure housing, with 91% saying it was a recurring issue.[1] A study in April by Mull & Iona Community Trust showed that 78% of businesses report that the lack of worker housing is impacting on their current operation, and 73% believing it creates staff retention issues.[2] A recent survey of Glenkens and District Trust similarly indicated critical challenges securing enough housing to attract and retain staff from some of the region’s largest employers. This picture is reflected across Scotland, with areas heavily reliant on tourism affected most acutely. In November 2021, over a third of Scottish businesses reported experiencing a shortage of workers, and around half of businesses in the hospitality and construction sectors struggled to fill vacancies.[3] “The future of our business is seriously at risk. We are already being forced into reduced operating hours and staff pressures are making this worse all the time. We are able to offer really attractive terms to work here and staff would love to move here, but it is almost impossible due to housing shortages.” This is a dire situation. Not for any grand aims of economic recovery or growth, but simply because it’s affecting people’s ability to live day-by-day, let alone live well. Private rented tenancy legislation has had a negative impact on availability of worker housing, especially in rural areas. It’s a complex area, and we would recommend a review between Scottish Government and estates and landlords, to ensure that appropriate amendments are implemented which work for all. There’s a clear need for short-term, emergency accommodation to support businesses, which cannot be supported through schemes such as the Rural & Islands Housing Fund. We therefore need to come up with ways of assisting and enabling accommodation for workers. Between SOSCH and Communities Housing Trust, we believe we have developed some of the solutions and would welcome the opportunity to explore these and implement them on a wider scale, with appropriate support. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, this issue can be tackled effectively through a community-led approach. Housing workers in rural and fragile communitiesIn rural, remote or fragile communities, affordable homes close to key employers help attract and develop a skilled workforce. Such homes also build resilience by creating diverse work opportunities for residents. Some large employers have historically provided housing for their workers; some did so until the pandemic when the homes were sold off; some are looking into it now as a pressing issue. An alternative approach would be businesses and staff, or indeed just communities more broadly, coming together to jointly provide homes. The affordable, high quality, healthy homes and spaces that community-led housing creates (see our previous blogs, for example here and here) help make remote or rural communities attractive places to live and work. They also help combat urban drift that many of the communities we work with are experiencing. This includes a concerning outward migration of younger people, unable to find jobs and housing, leaving behind ageing populations vulnerable to reductions in services as there are simply not enough working-age people to keep them going. How it works It’s a simple idea to live near where you work. Living locally reduces commutes, prioritises green transport networks, keeps spending power locally, and frees up time for other things, increasing quality of life. It supports the principles of a ’20-minute neighbourhood’ with positive climate impacts and promotes circular economies. In reality, this simple idea may present a huge challenge for rural communities. Community-led housing presents a feasible solution to these complex environmental and economic issues. A main benefit of community-led housing is that it can be flexible and responsive to peoples’ needs, including shifts in work patterns, commuting, and spacial requirements. For example, it may include a community hub or co-working space to support the changing needs of working people throughout the ongoing pandemic. The community development trust All Roads Lead to Whithorn (ARLTW) in Whithorn, Dumfries has refurbished two family flats on the high street for local people. At the same time, ARLTW is refurbishing the Town Hall into a Hub and Bunkhouse that includes flexible space and a learning hub to support the community’s co-working and learning needs. The Hub is projected to provide up to £100,000 worth of community and tourism benefits each year, with many visitors attracted by the popular Whithorn Way pilgrimage.[4] 12 community-led affordable homes in Tomintoul in the Cairngorms have just opened for applications, a partnership between Tomintoul & Glenlivet Development Trust and the Communities Housing Trust. Futureproofing includes energy efficiency measures, PV panels and EV chargepoints, as well as homeworking space in some homes, in response to community needs. In addition, community-owned housing often provides rental income that can be reinvested within the local community. Case studies In Colonsay, there are just two pupils left in the primary school. There are fewer than 10 residents aged 18-30, and the island is struggling to keep the ferry, plane and fire services going (on top of ‘normal’ jobs, of course). Over 40% of housing stock on the island is now holiday- or second-homes, with very few options for available affordable housing stock. The issue here is overemployment with the threat of services closing, leaving working-age residents stretched to breaking point. Outside the main settlement of Scalasaig, the Communities Housing Trust negotiated a sale of land from the estate, and work has begun on up to 24 affordable homes in partnership with Colonsay Community Development Company. All these homes will be protected for use by the local community, and their affordability will also be protected in perpetuity. A second site will provide new commercial units and workshop space. The community are leasing some of the land to MOWI, who will provide an additional three houses of multiple occupancy for their own staff, as recruiting and retaining staff was a recurring issue for the company’s Colonsay site. As and when MOWI decide they don’t need the homes anymore, they will return to community use.
The four new Police Station homes in Langholm delivered by the Eskdale Foundation and SOSCH in 2021 play an important role in supporting other regeneration and repopulation efforts in the area. The Langholm Alliance, an umbrella community organisation approved by Scottish ministers to oversee the economic regeneration of Langholm by 2030, brings together 73 groups working to increase economic vibrancy in the town. This concerted effort to attract more businesses, employees, and boost the tourism industry in Langholm in the wake of its textile industry decline urgently requires affordable homes. The Old Police Station homes support the town’s wider ambitions by providing secure and attractive places to live for people moving or returning to Langholm.  Langholm Old Police Station (Credit: Tom Manley) SOSCH supported Wigtown & Bladnoch Community Initiative’s (WBCI) refurbishment of a former Bank of Scotland building on the Wigtown High Street. The community created two new affordable homes and a bunkhouse for 8 visitors. WBCI will employ full-time staff to manage the bunkhouse. . As Scotland’s National Book Town, tourism is important to Wigtown’s local economy, and this project means the community can directly benefit from its growth.  WBCI homes & visitor bunkhouse (Credit: Hazel Smith) SOSCH is also currently supporting Glenkens and District Trust in planning the delivery of community-led housing across the region. In addition to a community housing survey that was sent to residents, SOSCH surveyed large employers in the Glenkens and District area to establish housing need and demand from their workforce. This data helps establish a picture of the housing issues key employers face when recruiting staff, as well as difficulties existing employees have in securing housing. [5] One large employer in the region reported: New staff relocating to the area have found it challenging to find affordable and available accommodation… [A]s an organisation, the lack of readily available housing could lead to potential new staff looking elsewhere. The bottom line Community-led housing is a sensible approach to deliver worker housing in that it not only tackles the current need in the community, but it plans for future need by working with local people, businesses and employers. It creates affordable and long-lasting homes that attract and retain new people into the community, and supports sustainable, thriving populations and economies. Community-led housing enables communities to prepare for the future they would like to see. References:
[1] Communities Housing Trust Report for Cairngorms Business Partnership on Multi-tenure Development for Affordable Housing, May 2022 [2] See https://www.mict.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Mull-and-Iona-Key-Worker-Housing-exec-summary.pdf (May 2022) [3] See Cabinet Secretary Kate Forbes’ statement to Scottish Parliament, 11 January 2022: https://www.gov.scot/publications/labour-shortages-debate-cabinet-secretarys-statement/ [4] https://www.southofscotlandenterprise.com/news/components-folder/filtered-listing-panel/whithorn-town-hall-to-be-brought-back-to-life [5] SOSCH Housing Needs and Demands report for Glenkens and District Trust, March 2022 available at: a7a70d_ad9c8e50d69e47e3b2938c955b4ffbad.pdf (glenkenstrust.org.uk) This blog is part of a monthly series about community-led housing in Scotland, jointly written by Mike Staples, Chief Executive at South of Scotland Community Housing (SOSCH), and Ronnie MacRae, Chief Executive at Communities Housing Trust (CHT). Between us we’ve worked with hundreds of communities across Scotland, facilitating well over 1,000 affordable homes. We have 43,000 long-term empty homes in Scotland[1]. We have soaring costs of building materials, and challenges of supplying them, particularly to remote or island areas. We have goals for net zero and zero waste, to help tackle the climate crisis. And we have an affordable housing crisis. Amid all this, there is an obvious starting point: use what we have already. Communities are best placed to take on projects to ‘recycle’ buildings, reusing materials and repurposing them to meet local needs. Recycling for net zero Often unattractive to commercial developers, restoring and repurposing older buildings is an important part of a more sustainable environment and meeting net zero goals. It should be considered alongside other industry priorities, including, for example, using net zero heating and energy efficiency measures, and local materials. Especially for urban areas, where new builds and green spaces are harder to come by, repurposing empty buildings is a strategic and climate conscious way to address the housing crisis. This opportunity is reflected in Community Right To Buy legislation, updated in 2018 to include ‘abandoned, neglected, or detrimental land.’[2] However, many would consider this extension underutilised, in part because of the convoluted process. CHT and SOSCH support communities through this process to bring recycling buildings into the mainstream. Costs of building materials and challenges of supply Following Brexit and the Covid pandemic, there has been a well-documented rise in costs of building materials. Prices of timber and steel increased by 79% and 77% respectively by September 2021.[3] Coupled with, for example, attempting to build on an island, and additional transport costs of materials by ferry, reduced ferry sailings due to bad or winter weather and associated delays, this is a pressing challenge. In real terms, all this has led to a 20-40% increase in development costs.[4] There is therefore an obvious case to be made, not only for supplying home-grown materials through collaborations between crofters, farmers and landowners, but for reusing and recycling as many materials as we can. A third crucial aspect is then actively tackling the skills and labour shortage, particularly keenly felt in rural areas, by creating more opportunities for implementing a recycling, circular economy approach to construction. Raising confidence and spirits Beyond these practical points, there is value in what we call ‘placemaking’ – communities having a role in shaping where they live, strengthening relationships between people and place, having pride in where you live and raising confidence for exploring what changes are possible. Many of the vacant buildings in urban areas are linked to services or businesses ending, and high street decline. Therefore these buildings are often central, visible, and can greatly affect local pride and spirits – and the economy – if they sit empty. In rural areas, the empty buildings may be schools, or houses – buildings important to generations of people. There’s often a sense of sadness at decline within the community, as an indicator of wider problems of rural depopulation. Community-led projects to re-use and re-purpose buildings are not just environmentally-conscious approaches to housing, but also approaches that can appreciate the personality, character, and history of a place where communities become responsible stewards. In doing so communities demonstrate model ways of how best to integrate historical places with their long-term future in mind. Recycling buildings provide an opportunity to integrate all of the above. Case studiesSOSCH has supported the following projects: Langholm Old Police Station: An award-winning project in which a former police station lain empty in town centre for 15 years before the Eskdale Foundation turned it into 4 affordable homes (family, single-resident, and fully accessible homes). Wigtown: the Wigtown & Bladnoch Community Initiative turned a former Bank of Scotland, which vacated the high street in 2017, into two homes and a community-run bunkhouse for visitors. Whithorn: All Roads Lead to Whithorn (ARLTW) redeveloped a former Grapes Hotel, derelict for over 30 years on the historic main street, into two family homes (with a phase two: two additional fully accessible homes at the back of the site and landscaping). ARLTW is also renovating the Town Hall. Communities Housing Trust has facilitated or is undertaking the following projects: Glendale, Skye: CHT is a key partner to renovate and convert the old Borrodale school and schoolhouse in Glendale into 5-6 affordable homes, alongside the Glendale Trust, Historic Environment Scotland, Local Energy Scotland and Zero Waste Scotland, amongst others, with a focus on reusing materials, boosting local skills and rural trades, and energy efficiency. Achiltibuie: with Coigach Community Development Company, CHT converted the old schoolhouse into 2 affordable homes for the local community, with funding support from the Nationwide Foundation and the Scottish Government’s Rural Housing Fund. It was the first successful completed project to receive RHF funds. Acharachle: CHT worked with Acharacle Community Company to renovate the old school and schoolhouse, as well as a derelict empty home, Druim Garbh. CHT developed an innovative long lease model which allowed the home to be refurbished to a high standard. In all of these cases, had the community not taken control of the buildings and led the conversion into housing, the properties would very likely remain empty and degrading. Communities are taking on a vital role and undertaking work that others will not, and must be supported in doing this important work. These projects require specialised architectural vision to reshape an existing building into unique homes with character, with support from organisations such as Historic Environment Scotland, the Architectural Heritage Fund, and Construction Innovation Centre Scotland. Challenges such as Brexit, Covid, material costs and the energy crisis are causing regulatory bodies to be more cautious, when in fact these are the exact reasons why urgent and flexible cooperation is needed whilst there is a desperate demand for more housing. Both SOSCH and CHT will continue to support communities to take on projects on empty homes and vacant buildings, as one crucial aspect of tackling Scotland’s housing and climate crises. References [1] See Scottish Empty Homes Partnership: https://emptyhomespartnership.scot/ [2] Community Right to Buy (A,N, & D): https://www.gov.scot/policies/land-reform/community-right-to-buy-abandoned-neglected-or-detrimental-land/ [3] See RICS article, 19 Nov 2021: https://www.rics.org/uk/news-insight/latest-news/news-opinion/construction-materials-cost-increases-reach-40-year-high/ [4] Communities Housing Trust projects at March 2022; own calculations. This correlates with the wider sector, see e.g. https://www.constructionnews.co.uk/supply-chain/how-sharply-rising-materials-prices-have-rocked-the-sector-28-02-2022/ Further reading
‘Not so pretty vacant’ campaign by SLC & SEPA Empty Homes Partnership Case Studies - Scottish Empty Homes Partnership You can also report an empty home here: https://emptyhomespartnership.scot/ This blog is part of a monthly series about community-led housing in Scotland, jointly written by Mike Staples, Chief Executive at South of Scotland Community Housing (SOSCH), and Ronnie MacRae, Chief Executive at Communities Housing Trust (CHT). Between us we’ve worked with hundreds of communities across Scotland, facilitating well over 1,000 affordable homes. Public consultation for the proposed National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4), the Scottish Government’s long-term plan for spatial development is open until 31 March 2022, and once adopted by Holyrood, will provide an overarching guide for local planning decisions through to 2045. CHT and SOSCH and whole-heartedly welcome the introduction of community ownership, community wealth-building, and the wellbeing economy that appear throughout the NPF4. We celebrate the formal recognition of these ideas and see their inclusion in the draft framework as an important shift from existing planning policy. Scotland’s approach to community land use and land reform is world class. If we have a planning system that matches and follows up this approach, we can build a more equitable, sustainable, and diverse Scotland—just what NPF4 sets out to do. We should not lose sight of this opportunity for big changes: to ensure communities are given priority in planning considerations. At SOSCH and CHT, our work is already aligned to many of NPF4’s intended outcomes. The projects we support tackle the critical challenges of:
We know community-led housing builds the ‘great places’ NPF4 describes:
Photo credits: Hazel J L Smith, Chartered Architect SOSCH supported the Wigtown and Bladnoch Community Initiative’s community-led redevelopment of a former bank in Wigtown into two affordable family homes and a community-owned bunkhouse. The project creates new housing options for local families who need it, but also generates income by providing visitor/tourist accommodation in the heart of Scotland’s Book Town. Maintenance of the bunkhouse will provide new jobs to the community. This project provides an excellent example of sustainable growth of key industries in the region, delivered through community wealth-building models that do not leave locals behind.
Taighean a’ Chaiseil in Staffin, Skye, was a community-led partnership between Staffin Community Trust, Communities Housing Trust and Lochalsh & Skye Housing Association. Six affordable homes, a new NHS Highland health centre, and new commercial space implement the principles of a 20-Minute Neighbourhood, but in a way that’s realistic for rural settings. As a result, the development has helped retain the primary school; the population of Staffin has increased; there is improved and expanded health services for the area; the local economy is growing and is more diverse; and rental income for the community-owned units is reinvested in community projects. This also echoes the principles and practice of circular economies which we believe should be at the forefront of NPF4. The concepts put forward by NPF4 should allow for clear understanding and interpretation by planners and consultees, to ensure consistency and efficacy – particularly in the approach to rural areas.
We need localised policies; we know that communities already do this well, in expressing their needs and aspirations. Spatial zoning may flatten and ‘box’ this expression, with little flexibility for future changes of use. We believe that positive and inclusive language should be used for all proposed zones, to reflect how we value Scotland’s diverse residents. The five broad regions and their priorities will be more effective and valuable on the ground if communities have central involvement in the transitions proposed. An NPF4 that unequivocally supports community-led development could be radical for Scotland. We could achieve positive community outcomes at a new scale, if our planning system succeeds in establishing preference for community ownership models over the market-based approaches that are failing us. With 27,571 households homeless [1], an estimated 25% of those who are housed living in inadequate homes [2], and 1 in 4 renters and mortgage holders worried about not being able to pay their housing costs [3], we urgently need a better national strategy. NPF4 is an important opportunity to refresh our collective approach to housing, local development, and public participation. We recognise the need to make the most of it and we ask the Scottish Government to go boldly towards a more equitable, participatory, and sustainable future. NPF4 can deliver the great places it envisions, if we use what we already know and let communities lead the way. References: 1] Shelter Scotland: https://scotland.shelter.org.uk/housing_policy/key_statistics/homelessness_facts_and_research 2] Young, G. 2021: The right to adequate housing: are we focusing on what matters? : CaCHE (housingevidence.ac.uk) 3] 2021 research from Shelter Scotland: https://scotland.shelter.org.uk/media/press_releases/one_in_four_are_worried_about_not_meeting_housing_costs_in_2021 This blog is part of a monthly series about community-led housing in Scotland, jointly written by Mike Staples, Chief Executive at South of Scotland Community Housing (SOSCH), and Ronnie MacRae, Chief Executive at Communities Housing Trust (CHT). Together, we’ve worked with hundreds of communities across Scotland, facilitating more than 1,000 affordable homes. Two policies with huge public impacts will shortly be put before Holyrood: the Human Rights Bill, including the ‘right to adequate housing and to the continuous improvement of living conditions’[1]; and National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4), which will direct planning across Scotland for the next 20 years.[2] Neither policy mentions the other, nor considers how they could complement each other in principle or practice. The draft of NPF4 references protecting human rights, but does not mention the ‘right to adequate housing’– a key component of the Human Rights Bill. This is a missed opportunity. The human rights principles of non-discrimination, participation, transparency and accountability[3] could apply equally to NPF4. For us, a clear and obvious way to put this into practice is to plant a community-led approach firmly at the core of both policies. Community-led development fulfils all four principles by requiring ongoing participation and engagement; collaborative working to fulfil local needs and aspirations; and clearly-defined benefits to protect housing stock legally for local communities, forever. We therefore suggest prioritising community-led development as a human rights approach to NPF4. The Human Rights Bill and NPF4 both speak of valuing Scottish residents’ knowledge and experiences, and we are presenting a tried and tested way to do just that. Delivering housing as a human right through community-led models We at CHT and SOSCH join Shelter, Alacho, CACHE, CIH Scotland, and the Scottish Human Rights Commission in supporting a human rights-based approach to housing. By realising housing as a human right, Scotland could guarantee everyone has an adequate home. This is a core shift. It would override the failures of a speculative housing market that leaves so many people behind; where second homes outprice local residents and workers, and truly affordable homes are few and far between; where homelessness is a by-product of false scarcity; and increasing numbers of holiday homes are forcing outward migration of both urban centres and rural areas. These are the very issues that community-led housing tackles. They are also issues our planning system should redress. The community right to repopulation and the individual right to live where you choose - rights which a community-led approach supports in practice - are manifestations of housing as a human right. Community-led housing is an exemplary model for a human-rights based approach to housing. It should be one of the central pillars of NPF4, as a planning framework for everyone, everywhere. Bringing Human Rights to NPF4 There is a belief that the planning system is fair for all. It’s not. Despite 97% of Scotland’s landmass being rural, the current draft of NPF4 is highly urban-centric. This indicates to remote and rural communities that they are not equally included in Scotland’s future, despite the leadership they are showing in community-led development and long-term sustainability. Are small communities and small developments getting a fair crack of the whip? Lesley Riddoch argues that the current draft of NPF4 is “...a powerful blueprint for planning which ignores all the incredible efforts of Scotland’s rural communities and leaves them once again at the margins, fighting the system instead of having their success recognised and turned into a new officially endorsed, small-is-beautiful default.” “Are the myriad plucky and often crowdfunded self-help developments by small communities still not enough to prove their worth to policy makers?” With this plea we resoundingly say yes – they should be. So what does human rights-based housing look like? What would prioritising community-led developments across Scotland accomplish? We believe local people answer these questions best. Communities have insights into the needs of their residents and strong motives to create happy, healthy, thriving places that a truly sustainable future requires.
CHT worked in partnership with the Staffin Community Trust to provide not only the first affordable homes in the crofting community for 23 years, but also workshop space, office and commercial space, and a new NHS health centre that replaced an old building unfit for purpose. Facing increasing tourism and a population dropping to 40, the homes of mixed tenures have helped retain six families in the village including eight children, which in turn will help keep the primary school open.
SOSCH supported the Moniaive Initiative’s redevelopment of a long-neglected house in the village to tackle the demand for housing for older people with mobility needs. Refurbishment created a new fully accessible layout, with a second bedroom, open plan kitchen, and wetroom. The house was let to an elderly resident with additional care needs . The community’s work allowed the resident to stay living in their own home—maintaining independence, whilst also getting support from family nearby. Even the smallest community-led developments can have a large impact in remote and rural communities if they are meeting specific needs.
We’re keen that policymakers leading both the legislative human rights and planning agendas look to embed community-led development as a fair, effective, and respectful way to deliver the changes they are charged with. We ask them to take the opportunity to consider the work of the community-led housing sector and place the knowledge and experiences of Scottish people front and centre in their policies. As we proceed into the final stages of NPF4 public consultation, the values of non-discrimination, participation, transparency and accountability should ground our response. Look out for next month’s blog which will share a more in-depth review of NPF4 and community-led housing. References [1] The Human Rights Bill is intended to be introduced at the current parliamentary session: https://www.gov.scot/news/next-step-towards-scottish-human-rights-bill/ [2] NPF4 closes for consultation at the end of March: https://consult.gov.scot/local-government-and-communities/draft-national-planning-framework-4/ [3] United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) has defined seven general conditions that must be met to fully realise adequate housing, including security, affordability, location, and accessibility (among others). Cited from page 5 in Alacho report: Young, G. (2021) The Right to Adequate Housing: Are we Focusing on What Matters? Available at: ALACHO-HR-PAPER.pdf (housingevidence.ac.uk) (Accessed 2 February 2022) This is the first in a series of monthly blogs about community-led housing in Scotland, jointly written by Mike Staples, Chief Executive at South of Scotland Community Housing (SOSCH), and Ronnie MacRae, Chief Executive at Communities Housing Trust (CHT). Between us we’ve worked with hundreds of communities across Scotland, providing well over 1,000 affordable homes. Amid all the noise about Glasgow’s COP26 and the world’s net zero targets, progressive and creative climate action has been quietly taking place in communities across Scotland. Scotland has ambitious climate goals. We’ve committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2045 and having 1 million zero-emission homes by 2030. The built environment has widely been acknowledged as a key area for opportunity in meeting these goals, and communities are making great progress through community-led housing. This isn’t new. Community Land Scotland’s recently commissioned research, Community Landowners and the Climate Emergency, finds that communities are good at climate-friendly regeneration and that environmental sustainability is a key tenet within their activities. The report finds that communities have “an over-riding concern to care for the community and the local environment,” (p.7). A second report by the Community Land Trust Network of England and Wales finds that community-led housing organisations in the UK routinely meet and exceed local and national carbon reduction requirements. Why? Because communities focus on their experiences, their needs, and their aspirations for the future. They look long-term. They want to thrive. They prioritise wellbeing. And this all translates into genuine, grassroots commitment to sustainability and environmental protections that we find in so much of their activities. Both SOSCH and CHT know this to be true. We frequently work with communities who are generating their own power through, for example, hydro schemes, rather than relying on fossil fuels. We work with communities retrofitting abandoned buildings and bringing them back into productive use as low-energy homes. We work with communities using vacant and derelict land to develop diverse and creative combinations of housing, services, and social and green spaces. Providing homes and services within easy reach contributes to the national aim of 20-minute neighbourhoods and reduces travel. These are just a few aspects of a wide picture of how we’re supporting communities in working towards net zero, and indeed carbon negative. Green design and energy efficiency
A mix of facilities supporting a local circular economyThe GALE Centre, part of CHT’s regeneration of Achtercairn in the centre of Gairloch on the west coast, is run by the Gairloch & Loch Ewe Action Forum (GALE). It embodies GALE’s ambitions to provide services and lead sustainable, community-led development in the region.
Retrofitting disused buildings
Supporting rural trades and ‘green’ construction
So, the good news is that community-led housing is regenerating places and making important contributions to tackling our climate crisis.
Community-led housing enables a just and inclusive transition to net-zero. It is an empowering, democratic way to involve everyone in reducing climate change without jeopardising the human right to a warm, affordable home. Let’s widen the national conversation about net zero and the ways to achieve it. Community-led development, based on the everyday experiences of local people and their wishes for the future, is a fair and responsible way to deliver sustainable development that Scotland urgently demands. Support for community ownership and development means both people and planet thrive long-term. We’re calling on the Scottish and UK governments to recognise the leadership of communities and increase support for community-led housing. It’ll allow more communities to deliver on climate targets as well as building the homes we so desperately need. |
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