Agenda item

To submit a report by the Head of Housing.

The report of the Head of Housing Services incorporating the Empty Homes Strategic Plan for 2023 to 2028 was presented for the Executive’s consideration and approval.

Councillor Gary Pritchard presented the report saying that the Plan is an important element of the Administration’s vision that everyone should have the right to call somewhere home. The Plan seeks to ensure that the number of empty properties is kept to a minimum and to encourage owners to bring them back into use. The number of empty homes on Anglesey currently stands at 612 with 908 applications on the Council’s social housing register requiring suitable accommodation as of March 2023; the return of those properties to use would make a significant difference in the lives of those waiting for a home. Councillor Pritchard spoke of having seen the return to use of several empty properties within his own ward and their becoming homes for people from the locality who would otherwise still be struggling to find accommodation or in some cases having to bed down in the homes of friends or relatives. The work that has gone into making that happen is deserving of praise and is a source of pride.

The Housing Service Manager (Strategy, Commissioning and Policy) said that the Plan explains why adopting a strategic approach to addressing the issue of empty homes is important given the demand for suitable housing and current housing pressures. The Plan set outs out four main objectives and details how those will be met; it recognises that bringing empty homes back into use is a partnership endeavour and involves working together with other Council services and external agencies to deal with the different aspects of empty homes and the various legislation.

The Head of Housing Services confirmed that the Strategic Plan encapsulates the Council’s vision for bringing empty homes back into use in line with the approach it has taken over a number of years which since 2017 has seen the return of 525 empty homes into use. The Council has established a strong foundation for the work of tackling empty homes and is seen as being in the vanguard for this activity.

Councillor Douglas Fowlie, Chair of the Corporate Scrutiny Committee reported from the Committee’s 21 September 2023 meeting which considered the Empty Homes Strategic Plan and he confirmed that in recommending the Plan to the Executive, Members had discussed the approach to addressing long-term and problematic empty homes, the contribution which the Plan makes towards achieving the Council’s corporate objectives, the extent to which the Plan relies on input by partners and other services and the challenges in engaging with private sector empty home owners.

The Executive’s members welcomed the Strategic Plan as the continuation of the good work undertaken by Housing Services in dealing with empty homes over several years and they highlighted some of the success stories in transforming difficult sites such as Beaumaris Social Club, the Old Snooker Club in Holyhead as well as Plas Alltran in Holyhead and bringing them back into use for the benefit both of local people and local communities. In supporting the Plan, the Executive sought assurance about the sufficiency of the Housing Services’ empty homes resource to be able to realise the Plan’s objectives over the five-year term.

The Head of Housing Services confirmed that although the team is small the service is making the best use of the resources it has at its disposal; it was noted that an Empty Homes assistant post has been funded through the Empty Homes Premium which is vital in supporting the work in this area.

In noting that 251 homes have stood empty for 3 years or longer and 77 homes have been empty for 10 years, the Executive urged the owners of long-term empty homes to engage with the Council to see what advice and assistance in can provide to help in bringing those properties back into use.

It was resolved to approve the Empty Homes Strategic Plan 2023-28.