Timon Moss, a housing researcher and planner, outlines his vision for a community-led housing model in Scotland, showing real-life examples from the rest of UK and further afield and highlighting legal impediments in Scotland to this model flourishing here

Housing Minister: “While we know this is an ambitious target, we have shown we can deliver on housing and we will continue to do so.”

HOMELESSNESS charity Shelter Scotland has warned the Scottish Government that it must not break its “promise to Scotland” of delivering 35,000 social houses between 2016-2021, as new data shows it has a long way to go to meet its target.

The statistics, published by the Scottish Government today [11 December] shows 5,340 social rented homes were delivered to September 2018, an increase of 19 per cent.

Report argues Brexit “poses a clear risk of regression in terms of human rights”

FIRST Minister Nicola Sturgeon’s advisory group on human rights has published its recommendations, proposing an Act of the Scottish Parliament which would partly fill the “significant gap in the protection of rights in Scotland” once Britain leaves the EU.

Almost one fifth of Scotland’s land is kept barren and dead for the sole purpose of maximising the number of red grouse – so they can be killed for sport. Many people object to the killing of animals for sport as a matter of principle; others believe that Scotland’s land is  concentrated in too few hands and used inefficiently and unproductively.

Renters union hopes example can help restore legal rights across the country

THE Living Rent Scottish tenants’ union has secured a breakthrough agreement with a Glasgow letting agency, emphasising the rights of tenants not to pay illegal fees.

The agreement, signed with Home and Property (HAP) Lettings in November also allows tenants to claim back three times the sums they were charged upon moving in, and backdates this right to the relevant legislation covering illegal fees.

The number of homeless people in Scotland is on the rise – figures from Shelter Scotland show homeless applications rose in 2017, the first increase in 9 years.

The Scottish Government published its ending homelessness & rough sleeping action plan on 27 November. The plan aims to “achieve a fundamental shift to rapid rehousing”, yet campaigners argue more should be done to address the issue now.

The Scottish Government accepted all the recommendations of its homelessness and rough sleeping action group

A PETITION will be heard by the Local Government and Communities Committee of the Scottish Parliament next week calling on the Scottish Government to “front load” its five year fund for ending homelessness in Scotland this year, in light of the severity of the homelessness crisis in Scotland.

As DRM Residential drops its demand for a ‘Post-Tenancy Works Fee’ from a Living Rent member, the tenants’ union vows to see the clause eliminated from all leases

THE LIVING RENT CAMPAIGN have today (12 November) claimed victory in a dispute with letting firm DRM Residential, announcing that the Edinburgh letting agency had dropped a controversial deposit fee charged to one of its members.

At least 94 people have died on Scotland’s streets over the past 12 months

THE Living Rent tenants union have stepped up their campaign for a legal restriction on housing evictions over the winter months, as France’s Winter Break begins today [1 November].

The French winter break has been in place since 1956 and ensures that no one is evicted from a rented property or has their gas and electricity switched off from 1 November  to 31 March.

The regular turnover of private sector tenancies in Edinburgh means it “is unlikely that a rent pressure zone would benefit many current private sector renters”, report finds

A REPORT by Edinburgh City Council has found that the Scottish Government’s Rent Pressure Zones have not been designed in a way that will work effectively, leading to the Council to request that the Scottish Government reviews the policy.