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2. Service Update Report - Report

Renfrewshire Council · 19 August 2025
Back to Communities and Housing Policy Board — 19 August 2025 and its agenda

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____________________________________________________________ 
To:    Communities and Housing Policy Board 
On:    19 August 2025 
_________________________________________________________________ 
Report by:  Director of Environment, Housing and Infrastructure  
__________________________________________________________________ 
Heading:  Service Update Report  
__________________________________________________________________ 
1. Summary 
1.1 This report provides and overview of key service activities, an operational
performance update since the last Policy Board meeting on the services and key
projects and updates on any other relevant changes to service areas covered within
the remit of this Board.   
__________________________________________________________________ 
2. Recommendations 
It is recommended that the Communities and Housing Policy Board: -  
2.1 Note the contents of this report. 
Updates for Communities and Housing Policy Board 
3. Housing Services 
3.1 Housing Management   
Neighbourhood Environmental Training Team (NETT) 
3.1.1 The Neighbourhood Environmental Training Team (NETT) are now fully
operational, following the successful expansion from two to four squads earlier this
year.   
3.1.2 All four squads are now active and delivering environmental support across the
four council housing areas: Paisley North, Paisley South, Renfrew, and Johnstone
with a flexible, responsive approach.

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3.1.3 The new 4 on / 4 off shift pattern has been implemented, enabling 7-day service
delivery across neighbourhoods, enhancing visibility, responsiveness, and overall
impact.   
3.1.4 An initial review is scheduled for mid – August to evaluate the progress of the
service expansion. This review will focus on identifying initial benefits, challenges
ad insights gained. We will gather feedback from officers, key services and tenants
as part of the process. 
3.1.5  The increase in the number of NETT trainees from 20 to 38 has resulted in positive
employability outcomes. All trainees have received training and certifications in
Health and Safety, Manual Handling, and First Aid along with gaining hands-on-
experience with maintenance equipment. This programme supports individuals in
their career journeys while improving the community’s environment. The model
continues to be effective, allowing for ongoing entry of clients from Invest in
Renfrewshire. 
3.1.6     An award application has been submitted to COSLA on behalf of the NETT in the
category of ‘Improving Partnership Working’. This submission highlights the
collaboration between Housing Services, Neighbourhood Services, and Invest in
Renfrewshire.  It also demonstrates how these teams have successfully worked
together to improve outcomes for the local community. 
Income Advice   
3.1.7  Information from advice interviews at the end of June 2025 confirms that over
1,824 income advice cases involved households from Council tenancies this
financial year. During these interviews staff assess any entitlements to assistance
that are due and support people to access benefits they are eligible for, alongside
giving advice on all money matters and budgeting.   
3.1.8    There are several sources of additional assistance accessed which can include
universal credit/housing benefit attendance allowance and disability payment, food
vouchers and many more, full details of which were shared with members of the
policy board following the meeting in March. 
3.1.9 In monetary terms this equates to £3,133,025 between April 2025 and June this
year.   
3.1.10  Between April 2025 and June 2025 there have been 52 tenants referred for Tenant
Support Fund assessment, which have the added value of full income assessment
and advice provision. Of the referrals 30 have engaged with Specialist Income
Advisors and 30 have qualified for assistance from the fund. 
Anti-Social Behaviour App 
3.1.11  The ASB App is a digital method of reporting and recording antisocial behaviour in
real time and offers an additional means of reporting, particularly out with office
hours. This is not a standalone tool but is intended to complement existing
resources and appropriate evidence can be used to strengthen investigations nor
is it a replacement for agencies that are available to witness and tackle antisocial
behaviour in the communities e.g. Police Scotland, Community Safety Wardens,
Noise Enforcement Officers.

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3.1.12  Housing Services, following the initial pilot, can now offer use of the Anti-Social
Behaviour app (the ASB app) to our tenants across Renfrewshire. 
3.1.13 Cases are assessed on an individual basis with strict criteria applied for use of the
app.  Housing Officers will consider whether there are ongoing issues that have
been slow to resolve, whether the layout of the building would restrict the number
of potential witness and if neighbours are unwilling to offer corroboration, for a
variety of reasons.  Complainers are still encouraged to report antisocial behaviour
using the agencies available to witness disturbances as and when they occur, e.g.
Community Safety Wardens. 
3.1.14  Each of the four local area housing teams has a trained “super-user” who will
support Housing Officers using the app.  Guidance has been issued on criteria,
managing customer expectations and handling audio/visual images, as agreed
with Legal Services.   
3.1.15 As the local housing area teams are now using the ASB app at an operational
level, the Council’s website has been updated to reflect this, thus ensuring we are
being transparent and using the system overtly.   
3.1.16  A demonstration of the ASB app for elected members will be conducted over
Teams on 8 September 2025. Invites will shortly be issued to elected members.   
3.2 Housing Innovation Project (HIP)  
3.2.1 The Housing Innovation Project to replace the housing management ICT systems
continues to progress well. The project team have participated in a steady stream
of workshops alongside the system supplier (NEC) as we continue to design and
build the modules to Renfrewshire’s requirements. 
3.2.2 The Project remains on track to complete our solution build for Phase 1 by
September 2025.  This build incorporates the Allocations, Anti-Social Behaviour,
Customer Services, Estates, Housing Advice, Property Lifecycle, Rents, Service
Charge and Support Services modules. 
3.2.3 A short life working group has been set up to fully assess the needs for Phase 2,
with the expectation being that this working group concludes by September 2025. 
3.3 Homeless & Housing Support Services 
Homeless Services 
3.3.1 As reported to the Policy Board meeting in May, the number of homeless
applications remained the same in 2024/25 as in the previous year. 
3.3.2 The first 4 months of this financial year however has seen a further increase in
homelessness with 22% more applications compared to the same period last year.
The main reasons for homelessness continue to be ‘relationship breakdown’ and
‘friends/ family no longer willing to accommodate’.

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Other influencing factors behind both the increase and the reasons for
homelessness include : the impact of the cost of living crisis, the pause placed on
the ‘local connection’ test which previously prevented households presenting to
Council areas they had no connection with, a reduction in the size / accessibility /
affordability of the private rented sector, as well as an increase in the number of
people granted refugee status or humanitarian protection rights.  This increase in
applications is understandably again presenting significant challenges in terms of
the provision of temporary accommodation 
3.3.3  Our stock of furnished temporary accommodation is therefore now being further
increased in order to minimise the use of hotel accommodation, and homeless
services are working closely with local area housing teams and RSL’s to match
applicants to suitable tenancies as quickly as possible. 
3.3.4  Officers will continue to monitor the number of homeless applications to establish
whether the increase experienced in the first 4 months of this financial year is
going to be a continuing trend and a full detailed report on homelessness in
Renfrewshire will be brought to the next Policy Board meeting. 
Sheltered Housing 
3.3.5 A full programme of events and activities are in place for the summer months, and
a new hub / office has been established at Gallacher Court in Paisley for the
Sheltered & Amenity Housing Manager and her team, which also provides a
private meeting space for discussions with sheltered residents and/or their
relatives. 
Refugee Resettlement Team 
3.3.6  The Refugee Resettlement Team is now registered with the Care Inspectorate - an
important milestone in ensuring good service standards, quality assurance checks
and service development. 
3.3.7  The new Health and Wellbeing team which has now been established within the
service is co-designing a wellbeing programme to support holistic integration and
mental health, with proposed activities including: 
 Maternal Mental Health Group
 Open Art Studio
 Men’s and Women’s Groups
 Befriending Support
 One-to-One Sessions
 International Lunch Clubs 
3.3.8  To mark Refugee Week, a successful ‘Community Connect’ event was held on
Saturday, 12 June at The Lagoon. The event brought together a wide range of
local organisations - including The Scouts, Boys Brigade, Girls Brigade, St Mirren
FC Juniors, arts and gardening groups, and ethnic minority support services
alongside members of the refugee community.

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Housing Support Update 
3.3.9  Demand for housing support remains consistently high, with a 10% increase
during Q1 of 2025/26 compared to the same period last year, and a 30% increase
from Q1 of 2023/24. The team is currently receiving an average of over 100 new
referrals per month. 
3.3.10 A newly commissioned service launched in June in partnership with the RCA Trust.
‘Opening Doors’ will provide enhanced support for individuals affected by gambling
and alcohol that impact their ability to maintain tenancies. The RCA Trust was
formerly known as the Renfrewshire Council on Alcohol. 
3.4 Housing Asset and Investment 
Externals Improvement Works 
3.4.1     The focus of the external improvement works programme continues to be targeted
at the housing regeneration areas as well as 230 properties requiring roof
replacement and standard render in Johnstone Castle, Foxbar and the Villages
(Lochwinnoch and Bridge of Weir). Improvements to a further 169 “crosswall (i.e.
hard to treat non-traditional construction)” properties are also being developed.
‘Crosswall’ is an archetype of non-traditional construction which requires a
particular approach to any external improvements. 
3.4.2 A separate window installation programme is also running in parallel with these
programmes in seven of the eight regeneration areas and in other investment
areas across our housing stock. 
Gallowhill and Glencairn Courts – Ground Source Heat Array 
3.4.3 All tenants at the above blocks have now been informed that the contractor Kensa
have been appointed to commence works to install ground source heating. Over
the coming year this installer will replace gas heating at all properties and upgrade
radiators and install new heat pumps. This is one of the first projects of its kind in
Scotland which has been supported with a Scottish Government grant of £1.8m. 
Houston Place Elderslie – Air source heating 
3.4.4 Eight terraced houses at Houston Place have had air source heating systems
installed as well as new roofs, rainwater goods, porches and high levels of
external wall insulation and new kitchens. These modern, environmentally efficient
heating systems have replaced gas central heating systems which will result in
tenants saving on standing charges. The Scottish Government provided grant
support of £254k for this project. 
Internal Improvement Works 
3.4.5  Our appointed contractor Bell Group have completed surveys for 157 properties
identified for kitchen/bathroom/rewire upgrades. 53 properties have now had one
or more of these installations completed to date with the remaining properties due
to complete towards the end of the year.

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3.4.6 Building Services have been recruiting staff to deliver a planned annual
programme of 360 kitchen installations and 720 boiler upgrades over the next four
years and initial survey assessments of properties are expected to commence in
the next few months. 
3.4.7  A tender was issued on 26 June to procure a contractor to deliver a larger contract
to install approximately 3,200 kitchens, bathroom, rewire installations over the next
four years. 
Housing Repairs Service Re-design 
3.4.8  Housing Services have engaged the Project Management Unit to carry out a
review of the housing repairs service, particularly the functions undertaken by the
repairs team within housing services, which include property inspections, issuing
work, owner processes, damp and mould processes, planned maintenance,
complaint and enquiry handling, 
The transformation model will go through 5 stages within a targeted 18-week
period. 
1. Prepare
2. Diagnose
3. Design
4. Implement
5. Sustain and Control. 
3.4.9 The transformation model will focus on the streamlining of the repairs and
maintenance operations, maximise value and encourage continuous improvement.
This will be achieved by performing a series of activities within each stage through
the perspectives of: 
 Tenant Experience
 Process Efficiency and End to End Flow
 Performance Management 
 Service and Skills
 Mindset and Behaviours 
3.4.10 An update on progress will be provided to the Policy Board in the next Service
Update report. 
3.5 Regeneration Update 
Newbuild Projects 
3.5.1 The new build housing development at Gallowhill commenced on site on Monday
4 August, following receipt of Scottish Water technical approval on 18 July. The
project will see 65 units being constructed on the site adjacent to Glencairn Court
which will be a mix of cottages flats and houses which will include 5-bedroom
properties. The development is expected to take 18 months to complete with first
handovers anticipated Spring 2026. 
3.5.2 Discussions are ongoing with Scottish Water for the Technical Approvals for the
Howwood Road new build housing development, with surveys and calculations
being carried out and provided as requested by Scottish Water.

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4 Public Protection 
PREVENT Assurance Process 
4.1  PREVENT is the UK government strategy aimed at stopping people from
becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism. It focuses on early intervention and
safeguarding to divert individuals away from radicalisation and extremism. The
Council has had partnership arrangements in place for a number of years to
ensure a coordinated approach to this area with colleagues in Police, NHS and
HSCP in particular. 
4.1.1  Each Council across the UK has been audited by the Home Office with
Renfrewshire receiving very positive feedback from an audit carried out in the
Summer of 2025. The audit highlighted that the Council is meeting all
requirements of legislation and guidance and is actually exceeding the standard in
some criteria. The following strengths were highlighted as part of the audit
process.   
 Senior oversight and Prevent partnership – there are strong governance
structures in place to ensure the Local Authority senior management is well
informed and Prevent features in multiple organisational and multi-agency
forums allowing for appropriate reporting. 
 Training – Prevent training is mandatory for all staff and hosted on the Local
Authority learning platform ensuring the workforce is aware of their statutory
duty, with other authorities now adopting our training model. Additional
training is delivered to staff in schools, children’s homes, charities and
community organisations and dedicated training to school staff will be
extended out over 2025/2026 to all teaching staff 
 Referral pathway – there is clear information available to staff about how to
put a referral in utilising internal web pages and an external webpage to
direct members of the public on how to report concerns. This includes
contact details for the Local Authority. 
4.1.2  The Home Office has recommended formalising arrangements in relation to a
venue hire policy to ensure Council and partner venues continue to adopt best
practice, and also to further enhance risk assessment methods and ensure
recording around risks which are recorded dynamically. 
4.2 Environmental Health   
Radon Compliance Monitoring Programme 
4.2.1 Officers have been progressing the radon monitoring programme, as detailed
within the Board Paper approved at the Infrastructure, Land and Environment
Policy Board on 21 May 2025. 
4.2.2 Radon monitors were sent, direct from the UK Health Security Agency to 292
Council tenancies during mid-June with monitors also being deployed by
Environmental Health staff within a number of Council buildings and schools
located within radon affected areas (monitors have also been deployed within
relevant One Ren premises).

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4.2.3 Staff within Housing Services contacted tenants to confirm they have received the
monitors, have deployed them within their home and assisted tenants who
requested this. Feedback from the calls indicated the majority of tenants have
deployed the monitors within their homes and it is anticipated that a strong rate of
return will be achieved. 
4.2.4 The monitors require to be left in place for three months, thereafter, being returned
to the UKHSA for analysis with results being issued six to eight weeks after this.
Upon receipt, the results will be evaluated, with appropriate follow up actions being
undertaken as required. Results of the monitoring will also be communicated to
tenants and duty holders within Council buildings. 
Dried up Private Water Supply support 
4.2.5 There are 97 private water supplies within Renfrewshire.  These supplies draw
water from wells, boreholes, springs, and surface sources to serve rural homes
and commercial premises where access to the main Scottish Water network is
limited or unfeasible. Some private water supplies, particularly springs and surface
water supplies, are susceptible to running dry through periods when there is a lack
of rainfall. When this happens, residents are left with no water to drink, cook with,
wash or flush toilets. In recognition of this, the Scottish Government have, over
recent years, operated a scheme with Scottish Water to supply local authorities
with bottled water for distribution to residents should their supply run dry. This was
brought into operation earlier this year following the driest start to a year since
1964.  As per guidance issued by the Scottish Government, letters were issued to
all residential properties that use a private water supply to make them aware that
bottled water would be available if their supply dried up. Commercial users of
affected private supplies were specifically excluded from this support. 
4.2.6 Throughout May, bottled water was delivered to 5 properties that had run dry,
providing a source of water for cooking, drinking and washing to 10 adults and 6
children. Each property was supplied with 240 litres of water, resulting in more
than 1,200 litres of water being delivered. 
4.2.7 Two pallets of bottled water are currently held by the Service should there be any
further periods of drought which impacts private supplies. However, the latest
water scarcity report from SEPA indicates Renfrewshire is currently under “normal
conditions” and is not likely to experience any further water scarcity in the short
term. 
4.3 Trading Standards 
4.3.1 The Single Use Vapes ban came into force on Sunday 1 June 2025. As outlined in
the Board Paper in March 2025, this legislation is the first in a staged process to
restrict the sale and use of tobacco and vaping products across the UK.  This first
piece of legislation bans the supply of singe use vaping products, primarily to
mitigate the environmental impact of these products, which – while recyclable –
have been treated as disposable.  This has resulted in littering, environmental
contamination, wasted limited resources (lithium) and fires in waste vehicles/sites
due to improper disposal.

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4.3.2 While the legislation does not impose a statutory duty on the Local Authority to
enforce the provisions, the Trading Standards Team have nevertheless prioritised
this activity alongside their existing duties.  All 240 businesses registered to sell
vaping products were provided with business advice by email prior to the
implementation date.  This includes online sellers, and trade suppliers. 
4.3.3 The bulk of products on the market were engineered to comply well ahead of the
ban. The team have only had 5 complaints to date, and all have been
unsubstantiated, e.g. consumers have mis-identified legal products as single use
products. 
4.3.4 Legislation around the safety and description of all vaping products is unaffected
by this ban, and as such the Team continue to recover re-usable product which is
illegal for the UK market.  Identified non-compliance is followed up, and
compliance is sought through advice, support and enforcement where necessary. 
Community Support 
4.3.5 Three days of action took place by officers from The Wardens Service. One took
place around cemeteries in Elderslie where complaints had been received
regarding dog walkers using the grounds to exercise dogs often resulting in dog
fouling being reported. Officers from our Open Spaces & Parks teams joined
enforcement officers explaining that dogs are not permitted off-lead in any of our
cemeteries and the negative impact of dog fouling on families and visitors. 
4.3.6 The second day of action took place across Renfrewshire, with Officers from the
Warden Service working in conjunction with officers across Regulatory Services to
focus on issues of environmental crime. Officers focused their efforts in areas
identified through intelligence and three fixed penalties were issued. 
4.3.7 Alongside colleagues from Finance & Resources, Officers targeted the misuse of
disabled blue badges within Paisley Town Centre and several additional areas. It is
intended that these exercises will continue throughout the rest of this year. 
5 Connected Communities Service Update 
Volunteers’ Event 
5.1.1 Adult and Family Learning Services held their first Volunteer Recruitment Event at
Southend Action Centre on Wednesday 4th June 2025 which coincided with
Volunteers’ Week. 30 members of the public came along to find out what
volunteering opportunities were available in the Renfrewshire area.    Adult and
Family learning Services, Bipolar Scotland, Community input, Engage
Renfrewshire, Invest Renfrewshire, One Ren, Paisley Thread Museum,
Renfrewshire Carers Centre, Roar, Stronger Communities Glenburn, Team up to
Clean up, Wise Group, White Cart Credit Union and West College Scotland all
spoke to members of the public and highlighted what volunteering opportunities
were on offer as well as providing additional support when required. 
Science Centre Visits 
5.1.2  Glasgow Science Centre once again kindly gifted the Adult and Family Learning
Team some tickets, transport and lunch at their venue in July.

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A group of 15 men from the Mens’ Groups in Johnstone and Glenburn attended
one day and families from Bargarran attended on another.  All participants had a
chance to take part in scientific workshops and have a good look around the
Centre. It is something that the adults in particular would be unlikely to do without
this support. 
Family Learning Summer Sessions 
5.1.3 Summer Family Learning Sessions took place in Bargarran, West Johnstone,
Foxlea, Southend and Moorpark.  This particularly targeted low income and ESOL
families and a variety of activities were enjoyed by all participants including STEM,
nature and sports.  Nutritious lunches were also provided with the parents and
children preparing these together to learn about food sustainability. 
Partnership with St Charles Primary 
5.1.4 Adult and Family Learning Services have been working in collaboration with St.
Charles Primary School staff, parents, and children. The staff, children and parents
visited Southend Action Centre and took part in a wide variety of topics.
International Women’s Day, aspects of the world and their own environment,
expression of art, intergenerational work, creative and physical challenges.
STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics) were
demonstrated on a weekly basis. 218 children, 20 parents and staff. This was
made possible with our previous work with parents from the school taking part in
the Talk Learn and Do Course. As a direct result of this partnership working,
families are now participating in a range of events at Southend Action Centre.   
ESOL 
5.1.5 The Adult Learning team have continued to work with partners to support ESOL
delivery and resettlement over the summer period.  This include delivery of ESOL
sessions as part of Sewing 2Gether All Nations Language Café sessions.  Work
was also undertaken to support local groups including the Glencairn ESOL
Conversation Group who enjoyed a trip to the Kelpies. 
Safe Kids Event 
5.1.6 The Youth Team successfully delivered the annual Safe Kids event over a three-
week period from 13th to 29th May. This community safety initiative is aimed at all
Primary 6 pupils across Renfrewshire. This year, the event was hosted at St Mirren
Football Club and welcomed over 1,900 children. 
Based on feedback from previous years, we brought together a wide range of
partners to deliver engaging and informative workshops. These included. 
 British Transport Police
 Police Scotland
 Scottish Fire & Rescue
 Alcoholics Anonymous
 Road Safety
 ASB Youth Team
 Civil Contingencies
 NHS 24

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 St Andrew’s First Aid / Heart Start
 Youth Services (Young & Equally Safe) 
Celebrating Renfrewshire Youth Fund 
5.1.7 CLD continued to support the Celebrating Renfrewshire Youth Fund, working
closely with the Youth Steering Group to promote the voting process. Young
people were encouraged to vote for the projects they felt deserved funding. Voting
closed on 2nd July, followed by an announcement event that showcased all the
successful projects from across Renfrewshire. 
Youth Summer Camps 
5.1.8 Over the summer holidays, CLD Youth Services partnered with Street Stuff to
deliver free summer camps, funded through Fairer Renfrewshire. A total of 700
spaces were made available across six venues over five weeks. The camps were
initially offered to low-income households or from service referrals, with remaining
spaces opened to the wider public. 
5.1.9 Children and young people took part in a mix of sports and youth work and arts
activities at the following venues: 
5.1.10 Gallowhill Primary, Glencoats Primary, St Paul’s Primary, Linwood High School,
West Johnstone Campus and St James Primary (Renfrew) 
5.1.11 An evaluation of the programme will be undertaken as part of the wider Summer of
Fun project and will be reported to board at a later date. 
P7–S1 Transition Events 
5.1.12  The CLD ASB Youth Team delivered transition day events for P7 pupils moving
into S1 at Johnstone High, Paisley Grammar, and Castlehead. These sessions
focused on key issues such as knife crime and the impact of antisocial behaviour
in schools and local communities. 
5.1.13   The content was tailored to reflect local concerns, including in relation to public
transport issues. The sessions also addressed discrimination particularly racial
discrimination and highlighted the importance of mutual respect among pupils. 
Young and Equally Safe 
5.1.14     Young and Equally Safe in Renfrewshire is delivered by Renfrewshire Council’s
Youth Services in partnership with Children’s Services and Education Scotland
hosted “Action for Change” Youth Assembly in Paisley Town Hall on 3rd June.   
The event brought together 235 young people, youth workers and education
professionals from local authorities across Scotland to engage in interactive
sessions around gender-based violence.  Young people formed practical strategies
to advance gender equity and community safety and inspire peer-led action and
community engagement.  The Keynote speaker was Jackson Katz, co-founder of
Mentors in Violence Prevention and leading educator/activist on positive
masculinity, who emphasises the critical role of everyone, but especially men and
boys in preventing gender-based violence.

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The Climate Change Champions 
5.1.15 The Climate Change Champions won in environmental charity Keep Scotland
Beautiful’s Young Reporters for the Environment competition.  They won the top
prize in the environmental journalism competition in the 15 to 18 yrs category for
their “Closed loop recycling, a visit to ENVA”.    
5.1.16  Young people and local partners from across Renfrewshire came together in June
for EcoNet, a one-day climate action and sustainability event being held at the
Lagoon Leisure Centre in Paisley.  Organised by the Climate Change
Champions in Renfrewshire, the event explored key themes including green
careers, sustainability, and climate action networking.  The young organisers
worked with Renfrewshire Council’s Youth Services, Keep Scotland Beautiful and
the RenCan Hub to co-design the day of workshops, a learning marketplace, and
a green careers panel. 
West Partnership Youth Voice Ambassadors 
5.1.17 West Partnership Youth Voice Ambassadors is a collaboration supported by
Community Learning and Development Youth Work Teams from local authorities
across the West of Scotland: Renfrewshire, East Renfrewshire, North Lanarkshire,
Glasgow City and East Dunbartonshire. This approach is underpinned by the
youth work outcomes and UNCRC.  They held an inspiring exhibition showcasing
the work of the dedicated young people who researched important local issues,
with a focus on social justice and equality. The young people presented their final
projects and received their Participatory Democracy Certificates in recognition of
their hard work and commitment.   
Promise Champs 
5.1.18 Youth Services continue to support the Promise Champs to design and deliver
their Youth-Led Programmes which have included re-designing spaces, gardens
and rooms for young people who are care-experienced.  There have been arts
projects with Mary Russell pupils attending the Sculpture House, and the
Soundplay Studio in Glasgow, and the community murals in Seedhill. 
5.1.19    The summer programme has also included trips including to the Zoo, picnics in the
park and seaside.  The first Youthy Fest was held for children and young people
and their families which provided ice-cream, food stalls, workshops, “animal man”,
laser quest, and other exciting workshop activities. 
EVOLVE Ukrainian group 
5.1.20 The EVOLVE Ukrainian group have taken part in bike maintenance and taking
part in a cycle trip on refurbished bikes and looking forward to the summer DofE
expedition training.  They also held a stall exhibiting their work with the Evolve
programme at the Resettlement Team’s Refugee event ‘Community as a
superhero’ in June at the Lagoon Centre.  The young people spoke to the families
and young people and recruited for their group They have gained the confidence
to host their own Folk and Art event in Paisley for young people and families. 
Activities included traditional Ukrainian arts and crafts: motanka doll making, clay
crafting, jewellery, badgemaking and T-shirt making.

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5.2  Team Up to Clean Up 
5.2.1  Team Up to Clean Up was recognised as having recorded the highest number of
litter picks during Keep Scotland Beautiful’s Big Spring Clean 2025 campaign. Of
the 2,763 litter picks carried out across Scotland by 34,027 participants, 262 took
place in Renfrewshire, with 312 local volunteers taking part. Keep Scotland
Beautiful’s Chief Executive visited Renfrewshire to present the award, which was
warmly welcomed on-site by the relevant personnel, and by the Team Up to Clean
Up online community. 
5.2.2 Renfrewshire also delivered its own Big Spring Clean from 22 April (following the
Easter school holidays) to 30 May. During this period, 601 volunteers took part in
505 events, collecting 1,587 bags of litter and vegetation. Participants included 23
schools and six local businesses. 
5.2.3  This year Team Up to Clean Up will launch a new alternative to Spotless
September, through a joint initiative with Renfrewshire’s Community Safety
Partnership aimed at reducing litter across the area. Working in partnership with
Keep Scotland Beautiful. 
___________________________________________________________________
Implications of the Report 
1. Financial – Any financial elements referenced in this report will be progressed
through the Council’s financial & budget planning process. 
2. HR & Organisational Development – None. 
3. Community/Council Planning – The report details a range of activities which
reflect local community and council planning themes. 
4. Legal – None. 
5. Property/Assets – None. 
6. Information Technology – None. 
7. Equality & Human Rights – The recommendations contained within this report
have been assessed in relation to their impact on equalities and human rights.  No
negative impacts on equality groups or potential for infringement of individuals’
human rights have been identified arising from the recommendations contained in
the report. If required following implementation, the actual impact of the
recommendations and the mitigating actions will be reviewed and monitored, and
the results of the assessment will be published on the Council’s website. 
8. Health & Safety – None. 
9. Procurement – None. 
10. Risk – None. 
11. Privacy Impact – None.

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12. Climate Risk – there are a range of actions and activities throughout the Service
Update Report which support the Council’s Plan for Net Zero. 
13. Children’s Rights – None. 
14. Cosla Policy Position – None. 
___________________________________________________________ 
List of Background Papers: None.    
_______                                                __________________________________ 
Author:          Gordon McNeil, Director of Environment, Housing & Infrastructure  
Email:            Gordon.mcneil@renfrewshire.gov.uk