Agenda Document Pack - Executive Committee - 26/06/2024
South Lanarkshire Council · 26 June 2024
Back to Executive Committee — 26 June 2024 and its agenda
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Council Offices, Almada Street Hamilton, ML3 0AA Tuesday, 18 June 2024 Dear Councillor Executive Committee The Members listed below are requested to attend a meeting of the above Committee to be held as follows:- Date: Wednesday, 26 June 2024 Time: 10:00 Venue: Hybrid - Council Chamber, Council Offices, Almada Street, Hamilton, ML3 0AA The business to be considered at the meeting is listed overleaf. Yours sincerely Paul Manning Chief Executive Members Joe Fagan (Chair/ex officio), Gerry Convery (Depute Chair), Alex Allison, John Anderson, Robert Brown, Andy Carmichael, Maureen Chalmers, Ross Clark, Margaret Cooper, Andrea Cowan, Maureen Devlin, Gladys Ferguson-Miller, Lynsey Hamilton, Susan Kerr, Eileen Logan, Katy Loudon, Hugh Macdonald, Ian McAllan, Catherine McClymont, Kenny McCreary, Lesley McDonald, Mark McGeever, Davie McLachlan, Richard Nelson, Mo Razzaq, Kirsten Robb, John Ross, David Shearer, Margaret B Walker Substitutes John Bradley, Walter Brogan, Poppy Corbett, Margaret Cowie, Elise Frame, Celine Handibode, Graeme Horne, Martin Hose, Ross Lambie, Elaine McDougall, Norman Rae, Graham Scott, David Watson 1
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BUSINESS 1 Declaration of Interests 2 Minutes of Previous Meeting Minutes of the meeting of the Executive Committee held on 8 May 2024 submitted for approval as a correct record. (Copy attached) 5 - 14 Monitoring Item(s) 3 Revenue Budget Year-End – 2023/2024 Report dated 3 June 2024 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources). (Copy attached) 15 - 26 4 Revenue Budget Monitoring for Period 2 - 1 April 2024 to 17 May 2024 Report dated 10 June 2024 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources). (Copy attached) 27 - 34 5 Capital Budget Monitoring Final Outturn – 2023/2024 Report dated 5 June 2024 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources). (Copy attached) 35 - 42 6 Capital Budget 2024/2025 and Monitoring for Period 2 - 1 April 2024 to 17 May 2024 Report dated 7 June 2024 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources). (Copy attached) 43 - 54 7 Additional Funding from Scottish Government and Other External Sources Report dated 4 June 2024 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources). (Copy attached) 55 - 58 8 Employee Workforce Monitoring Information - April 2023 to March 2024 Yearly Summary Report dated 23 May 2024 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources). (Copy attached) 59 - 82 Item(s) for Decision 9 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 Revenue Budget Strategy Report dated 6 June 2024 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources). (Copy attached) 83 - 100 10 South Lanarkshire Council Armed Forces Community Covenant Strategy Report dated 17 May 2024 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources). (Copy attached) 101 - 120 11 Recommendations Referred by Community and Enterprise Resources Committee Report dated 18 June 2024 by the Chief Executive. (Copy attached) 121 - 128 12 South Lanarkshire Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy (LHEES) Report dated 5 June 2024 by the Executive Director (Housing and Technical Resources). (Copy attached) 129 - 252 2
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13 South Lanarkshire's State of the Environment Report 2023 Report dated 7 June 2024 by the Executive Director (Community and Entreprise Resources). (Copy attached) 253 - 266 Item(s) for Noting 14 Strategic Environmental Assessment Progress 2023/2024 Report dated 6 June 2024 by the Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources). (Copy attached) 267 - 270 15 South Lanarkshire Local Housing Strategy Annual Review 2023/2024 Report dated 31 May 2024 by the Executive Director (Housing and Technical Resources). (Copy attached) 271 - 280 16 Resource Plans and Connect Reporting 2024/2025 Report dated 24 May 2024 by the Chief Executive. (Copy attached) 281 - 284 17 Amendments to Committee Memberships Report dated 7 June 2024 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources). (Copy attached) 285 - 286 Urgent Business 18 Urgent Business Any other items of business which the Chair decides are urgent. For further information, please contact:- Clerk Name: Tracy Slater Clerk Telephone: 07385 370089 Clerk Email: tracy.slater@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 3
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EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Minutes of meeting held via Confero and in Committee Room 1, Council Offices, Almada Street, Hamilton on 8 May 2024 Chair: Councillor Joe Fagan (ex officio) Councillors Present: Councillor Alex Allison, Councillor John Anderson, Councillor Robert Brown, Councillor Andy Carmichael, Councillor Maureen Chalmers, Councillor Ross Clark, Councillor Gerry Convery (Depute), Councillor Margaret Cooper, Councillor Poppy Corbett (substitute for Councillor Kenny McCreary), Councillor Andrea Cowan, Councillor Margaret Cowie (substitute for Councillor Maureen Devlin), Councillor Gladys Ferguson-Miller, Councillor Lynsey Hamilton, Councillor Martin Hose (substitute for Councillor Richard Nelson), Councillor Susan Kerr, Councillor Eileen Logan, Councillor Katy Loudon, Councillor Hugh Macdonald, Councillor Ian McAllan, Councillor Catherine McClymont, Councillor Lesley McDonald, Councillor Mark McGeever, Councillor Davie McLachlan, Councillor Mo Razzaq, Councillor Kirsten Robb, Councillor John Ross, Councillor David Shearer, Councillor Margaret B Walker Councillors' Apologies: Councillor Maureen Devlin, Councillor Kenny McCreary, Councillor Richard Nelson Attending: Chief Executive’s Service P Manning, Chief Executive; T Little, Head of Communications and Strategy Community and Enterprise Resources D Booth, Executive Director; A Brown, Head of Enterprise and Sustainable Development; C Park, Head of Roads, Transportation and Fleet Services; I Ross, Project Manager Finance and Corporate Resources J Taylor, Executive Director; M Milne, Head of Personnel Services; A Norris, Administration Assistant; T Slater, Administration Adviser; I Strachan, Head of Administration and Legal Services Housing and Technical Resources S Gibson, Executive Director; S Egan, Head of Housing Services: G McParland, Property Manager (Assets and Estates) Health and Social Care/Social Work Resources S Sengupta, Director, Health and Social Care 1 Declaration of Interests The following interest was declared:- Councillor(s) Item(s) Nature of Interest(s) Shearer Representation on Outside Bodies - Care and Repair in South Lanarkshire Chair of Care and Repair in South Lanarkshire Board 2 Minutes of Previous Meeting The minutes of the meeting of the Executive Committee held on 20 March 2024 were submitted for approval as a correct record. The Committee decided: that the minutes be approved as a correct record. 2 5
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3 Revenue Budget Monitoring for Period 1 April 2023 to 23 February 2024 and Probable Outturn A report dated 18 March 2024 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) was submitted on the overall financial position of the General Fund Revenue Account and the Housing Revenue Account for the period 1 April 2023 to 23 February 2024 and a projection for the year to 31 March 2024. The report:- summarised the previously reported probable outturn position for the Council’s General Fund Revenue Account to 31 March 2024 provided details of the forecast position on the Housing Revenue Account for the financial year provided details of the position on the General Fund Revenue Account and the Housing Revenue Account respectively to 23 February 2024 The outturn position for the General Fund, after proposed transfers to reserves totalling £14.985 million, resulted in an underspend of £9.000 million. Full details of the transfers to reserves had been reported to the meeting of the Executive Committee held on 24 January 2024. The forecast position before and after transfers to reserves was detailed in appendices 1 and 2 to the report. Appendix 2 included the probable outturn underspend of £9.000 million as a transfer to reserves, resulting in a breakeven position for the Council’s 2023/2024 probable outturn. At 23 February 2024, the position on the General Fund Revenue Account, after transfers to reserves, was an underspend of £1.760 million. Details on the probable outcome position were referred to in section 5.2 of the report. At 23 February 2024, the Housing Revenue Account showed a breakeven position and the forecast to 31 March 2024 on the Housing Revenue Account was also a breakeven position. The Committee decided: (1) that the Council’s breakeven probable outturn position after transfers to reserves, as detailed in section 4.1 of the report, be noted; (2) that the underspend of £1.760 million on the General Fund Revenue Account at 23 February 2024, as detailed in section 5.1 of the report, be noted; and (3) that the breakeven position on the Housing Revenue Account at 23 February 2024 and the forecast to 31 March 2024 of breakeven, as detailed in sections 6.1 and 6.2 of the report, be noted. [Reference: Minutes of 20 March 2024 (Paragraph 3)] 4 Capital Budget 2023/2024 and Monitoring for Period 12 - 1 April 2023 to 23 February 2024 A report dated 9 April 2024 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) was submitted on progress of the General Fund Capital Programme and the Housing Capital Programme for the period 1 April 2023 to 23 February 2024. At its meeting on 20 March 2024, the Committee had noted a General Fund Capital Programme for 2023/2024 totalling £78.296 million. A revised programme of £78.365 million was now anticipated which included proposed adjustments to the programme totalling a net increase of £0.069 million. The proposed adjustments were detailed in Appendix 1 to the report. The increase was in relation to the late distribution of 2023/2024 funding made available for Free School Meals. 6
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At 23 February 2024, £41.623 million had been spent on the General Fund Capital Programme, against a budget for the period of £42.242 million, resulting in spending being slightly behind programme in the sum of £0.619 million which was as a result of timing of spend on a number of projects. Actual funding received to 23 February 2024 totalled £71.833 million. The Housing Capital Programme 2023/2024, noted by the Executive Committee at its meeting on 20 March 2024, totalled £67.443 million. Programmed funding for the year also totalled £67.443 million and details of the position of the programme at 23 February 2024 were provided in Appendix 4 of the report. At 23 February 2024, the budget for the Housing Capital Programme amounted to £50.834 million. Expenditure for the period totalled £50.290 million and actual funding received to 23 February 2024 also amounted to £50.290 million. The Committee decided: (1) that the period 12 position at 23 February 2024 of the General Fund Capital Programme, as detailed in appendices 1 to 3 and the Housing Capital Programme, as detailed in Appendix 4 of the report, be noted; and (2) that the programmes be monitored by the Financial Resources Scrutiny Forum. [Reference: Minutes of 20 March 2024 (Paragraph 4)] 5 Additional Funding from Scottish Government and Other External Sources A report dated 18 March 2024 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) was submitted on additional funding, totalling £0.528 million, which had been made available to the Council by the Scottish Government and other external sources. The funding had been allocated as follows:- Revenue Funding Resource 2023/2024 (£m) Various 0.459 Total 0.459 Capital Funding Resource 2023/2024 (£m) Education 0.069 Total 0.069 Overall Total 0.528 The Committee decided: that the report be noted. [Reference: Minutes of 24 January 2024 (Paragraph 5)] 6 Transformation Fund Proposals and First Phase A joint report dated 15 March 2024 by the Executive Directors (Housing and Technical Resources) and (Community and Enterprise Resources) was submitted on the proposed first phase of investment from the Transformation Fund. 7
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The Corporate Asset Management Plan set out the approach to ensuring that the Council’s property portfolio was suitable for its needs in terms of scale, condition, location, suitability and corporate image. In light of the significant budgetary pressures facing local government and the challenges of net zero targets, consideration had been given to identifying what should be defined as the Council’s property estate and where focus for modernisation, capital investment, repairs and maintenance budgets should be. In recognition of the service delivery and community challenges arising from the transformation of the property estate managed by South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture (SLLC), the Council, at its meeting on 22 February 2023, had approved funding for capital investment to help modernise the leisure and culture estate, optimise use of assets and assist in the transition towards net zero. A Transformation Fund of £13 million had been included within the Council’s financial plans in the capital programme. Information was provided on:- the themes and criteria used to identify investment in property assets through the Fund projects proposed for the first phase of investment, as outlined in Appendix 1 to the report Officers responded to members’ questions on various aspects of the report. The Committee decided: (1) that the first phase of investment from the Transformation Fund, amounting to around £8.4 million, as detailed in Appendix 1 of the report, be approved; and (2) that it be noted that proposals for a further phase of investment would be prepared for consideration in Quarter 3 2024/2025. [Reference: Minutes of South Lanarkshire Council of 22 February 2023 (Paragraph 4)] 7 Recommendations Referred from Community and Enterprise Resources Committee A report dated 23 April 2024 by the Chief Executive was submitted on recommendations referred to this Committee by the Community and Enterprise Resources Committee at its meeting of 23 April 2024 in relation to:- Centre West Shopping Centre, East Kilbride – Transfer of Ownership to South Lanarkshire Council Glasgow City Region City Deal – Stewartfield Way/East Kilbride Town Centre The recommendations in relation to the Centre West Shopping Centre, East Kilbride – Transfer of Ownership to South Lanarkshire Council were as follows:- that the position in relation to the administration of Centre West Shopping Centre, East Kilbride and the associated risks to the Council be noted that entering into a Heads of Terms with Interpath for the transfer of Centre West Shopping Centre, East Kilbride to South Lanarkshire Council be approved that the appointment of a professional team to manage the transfer of ownership of Centre West Shopping Centre, East Kilbride to the Council, and the subsequent demolition of the site, be approved 8
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The recommendations in relation to the Glasgow City Region City Deal – Stewartfield Way/East Kilbride Town Centre were as follows:- that the proposed next steps in developing the Outline Business Case (OBC) and delivering the Stewartfield Way/East Kilbride Town Centre Infrastructure project be approved that a report be submitted to the Glasgow City Region Programme Management Office, following endorsement by the Community and Enterprise Resources Committee and approval by the Executive Committee, to seek permission to rescope the project and develop the OBC for a Stewartfield Way and East Kilbride Town Centre project Councillor Robb proposed an amendment to the recommendations in relation to the Glasgow City Region City Deal – Stewartfield Way/East Kilbride Town Centre project which failed to find a seconder. The Committee decided: (1) that the recommendations referred by the Community and Enterprise Resources Committee of 23 April 2024 in relation to the transfer of ownership to the Council of Centre West Shopping Centre, East Kilbride be approved; and (2) that the recommendations referred by the Community and Enterprise Resources Committee of 23 April 2024 in relation to the next steps of the Glasgow City Region City Deal – Stewartfield Way/East Kilbride Town Centre infrastructure project be approved. [Reference: Minutes of Community and Enterprise Resources Committee of 23 April 2024 (Paragraphs 9 and 10)] Councillor Ferguson-Miller joined the meeting during this item 8 Lanarkshire British Sign Language Plan 2018 to 2024 Update; Proposed Shared Lanarkshire British Sign Language Plan 2024 to 2030 A report dated 23 April 2024 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) was submitted providing an update on:- the progress of the shared Lanarkshire British Sign Language (BSL) Plan 2018 to 2024, which shared the long-term goals of the National BSL Plan, developed to meet the requirements of the British Sign Language (Scotland) Act 2015 the proposed shared Lanarkshire British Sign Language (BSL) Plan 2024 to 2030, attached as Appendix 1 to the report The Committee decided: (1) that the progress on the Lanarkshire BSL Plan 2018 to 2024 be noted; and (2) that the shared BSL plan 2024 to 2030, attached at Appendix 1 to the report, be approved. 9 Representation on Outside Bodies – Care and Repair in South Lanarkshire Advisory Committee A report dated 24 April 2024 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) was submitted requesting approval of the appointment of Councillor Walker as the Council’s representative on the Care and Repair in South Lanarkshire Advisory Committee. At its meeting on 29 June 2022, the Committee noted that, due to the large number of requests for elected member involvement from organisations, the Council was not in a position to accommodate every request. This included Care and Repair in South Lanarkshire. 9
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The Council was now in a position to appoint a representative to Care and Repair in South Lanarkshire Advisory Committee and Councillor Walker, as Chair of Social Work Resources Committee, had intimated her interest in an appointment to this organisation. The Committee decided: that Councillor Walker, as Chair of Social Work Resources Committee, be appointed as the Council’s representative on the Care and Repair in South Lanarkshire Advisory Committee. [Reference: Minutes of 29 June 2022 (Paragraph 8)] Councillor Shearer, having declared in interest in this item, withdrew from the meeting during its consideration 10 Strathclyde Regional Bus Strategy - Recommendations for Future Delivery of the Regional Bus Network A report dated 17 April 2024 by the Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) was submitted providing an update on the development of the Strathclyde Regional Bus Strategy (SRBS), together with an overview of the proposed Council response to the consultation. Information was provided:- on the background to the deregulation of bus services on the importance of bus provision and concerns about the current model outlining the Council’s proposed response to the consultation on the next steps that would be taken by Strathclyde Partnership for Transport following the consultation The Committee decided: that the contents of the report be approved which would form the Council’s response to the Strathclyde Regional Bus Strategy consultation. [Reference: Minutes of South Lanarkshire Council of 1 November 2023 (Paragraph 10)] In terms of Standing Order No 14, the Chair adjourned the meeting following this item of business at 11.25am. The meeting reconvened at 11.35am 11 South Lanarkshire Progressive Housing Framework A joint report dated 9 April 2024 by the Executive Director (Housing and Technical Resources) and Director, Health and Social Care was submitted on the South Lanarkshire Progressive Housing Framework. Progressive Housing was an approach that reflected the Council’s response to changing housing, support and care needs over the course of a person’s life. It aimed to promote independent living through the re-focusing of operating models in relation to the types of accommodation provided, the location of new housing sites, the way care was provided and the level of support delivered. The Framework was attached as Appendix 1 to the report. An officer responded to members’ questions on various aspects of the report. The Committee decided: (1) that the content of the South Lanarkshire Progressive Housing Framework, attached as Appendix 1 to the report, be noted; and 10
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(2) that arrangements for the implementation of the Progressive Housing Framework be noted. [Reference: Minutes of Housing and Technical Resources Committee of 8 November 2023 (Paragraph 8)] 12 Homelessness Pressures – Impact and Mitigation A report dated 26 March 2024 by the Executive Director (Housing and Technical Resources) was submitted on the unprecedented demand for statutory homeless services, particularly temporary accommodation and the actions being progressed to mitigate the continued challenges. At its meeting on 7 February 2024, the Housing and Technical Resources Committee noted a report on the unprecedented pressures currently facing homeless services in South Lanarkshire, highlighting that:- there was no sign of abatement the extremely challenging circumstances were being experienced nationally The report outlined:- the local and national context the current position in South Lanarkshire actions to mitigate the impact the future work that would be undertaken to continue to address the situation An officer responded to members’ question on various aspects of the report. The Committee decided: (1) that the scale and nature of the increase in demand for homelessness assistance, both nationally and locally, be noted; (2) that heightened pressure and impact within South Lanarkshire resulting from the increase, which exceeded the national experience, be noted; and (3) that the actions being progressed to mitigate the pressures, as detailed in the report, be noted. [Reference: Minutes of Housing and Technical Resources Committee of 7 February 2024 (Paragraph 11)] 13 Urgent Business There were no items of urgent business. 14 Exclusion of Press and Public The Committee decided: that, in terms of Section 50A(4) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following item(s) of business on the grounds that it was likely that there would be disclosure of exempt information in terms of Paragraph 2, 6 and 9 of Part I of Schedule 7A of the Act. 11
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15 Former Bairds Building, Hamilton A report dated 16 April 2024 by the Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) was submitted seeking approval to waive the Council’s pre-emption right over the former Bairds building in Hamilton to allow its sale to a third party. Information was provided on:- the background to the sale of the building the identification of the building as a key site to achieve the vision for the town centre In response to a member’s question in relation to guarantees about the development of the site, the Head of Administration and Legal Services advised that this would be limited to statutory and regulatory requirements. The Committee decided: (1) that the Council waive its pre-emption right over the former Bairds building to allow the sale of the building by J D Wetherspoon PLC to a third party and subsequent redevelopment of the site; and (2) that the Head of Administration and Legal Services be authorised to enter into such agreement to affect the discharge as was in the best interests of the Council. [Reference: Minutes of 13 February 2019 (Paragraph 11) and 21 February 2024 (Paragraph 6)] 16 Hamilton Master Plan - Newcross Centre, Hamilton A joint report dated 5 April 2024 by the Executive Directors (Housing and Technical Resources), (Community and Enterprise Resources) and (Finance and Corporate Resources) was submitted providing an update on:- the initial actions required in the implementation of the Hamilton Town Centre Masterplan the financial and property related performance of Newcross Shopping Centre, Hamilton, highlighting the risks associated with the continued operation and management of the Centre Newcross Centre, which was owned by the Council, had seen a marked and continued decline in recent years and was an ongoing financial liability. As well as there being a requirement for substantial investment to improve the fabric of the building, the retail market for covered shopping centres in town centre locations like Hamilton was now largely non-existent and, commercially, there was no future for the Centre in its current form. Information was provided on the impact of the Centre’s closure and exit strategy. Discussion would be entered into with existing tenants with a view to securing vacant possession of the Centre and the Council’s Enterprise and Sustainable Development Services would undertake further design and feasibility work and develop the scope of the demolition tender. An officer responded to members’ questions in relation to various aspects of the report. The Committee decided: (1) that discussions be entered into with existing tenants with a view to securing vacant possession of New Cross Shopping Centre; (2) that an exit strategy be implemented to limit ongoing risk and financial liability through the closure of the Centre as soon as practicable; 12
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(3) that redevelopment options be developed in line with the Hamilton Town Centre Masterplan; and (4) that Enterprise and Sustainable Development undertake further design/feasibility work and develop the scope for the demolition tender. [Reference: Minutes of 21 February 2024 (Paragraph 6)] 13
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 26 June 2024 Report by: Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) Subject: Revenue Budget Year-End – 2023/2024 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] advise the Committee of the overall financial position of the Council’s General Fund Revenue Account and Housing Revenue Account for the period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024 [1purpose] 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Committee is asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- [recs] (1) that across Resources, Corporate Items, Loan Charges and Council Tax, the year-end underspend of £0.128 million, after proposed Transfers to Reserves (section 4 and Appendix 1), be noted; (2) that an additional £0.174 million underspend in the element of the Adult and Older People budget delegated to the Integration Joint Board (IJB) (section 4.5), which the Council allows the IJB to retain within their reserves for future care costs, be approved; (3) that the underspend of £0.128 million is after the Probable Outturn Transfers to Reserves of £23.985 million previously approved by members at (Appendix 3), be noted; (4) that the requests for additional year-end Transfers to Reserves totalling £2.238 million (Appendix 4) be approved; (5) that the £0.128 million underspend after proposed Transfers to Reserves be set aside to assist in future Budget Strategies, including pay award requirements (section 4.11), resulting in a break-even position for the Council, be approved; and (6) that the break-even position on the Housing Revenue Account (section 5), be noted. 3. Background 3.1. This report will summarise the 2023/2024 year-end position for the Council’s General Fund Revenue Account and Housing Revenue Account. 3.2. Section 4 details the final position for the financial year, as well as the movement from the previously reported Probable Outturn position for the Council. The Housing Revenue position is shown in section 5. 3 15
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3.3. Appendix 1 to the report details the overall spend position for the current year. This position includes all Transfers to Reserves. The Transfers to Reserves approved at Probable Outturn totalling £23.985 million (Executive Committee, 24 January 2024) are shown in Appendix 3. There are no proposed changes to these Transfers at year- end. However, there are new Transfers to Reserves proposed, and these are shown in Appendix 4. 4. General Services – 2023/2024 Year-End Position 4.1. For reference, the Council’s overall Probable Outturn (including approved Transfers to Reserves totalling £23.985 million) (Executive Committee, 24 January 2024) was a forecast break-even position. This included the corporate Transfer to Reserves of £9.000 million. 4.2. The year-end outturn position is showing an underspend of £0.128 million. This is after proposed Transfers to Reserves at year-end. This is summarised in Table 1, along with the movement from the break-even position agreed at Probable Outturn. This is an improvement of £0.128 million (from the break-even at Probable Outturn to the underspend of £0.128 million at financial year-end). Table 1 – General Service Year-End 2023/2024 (After Transfers to Reserves) Probable Outturn £m Year-End £m Movement from Probable to Outturn £m Resource Position (Appendix 2, section 2 to 8) (0.511) (0.453) 0.058 Loan Charges (Appendix 2, section 9) 0.198 0.949 0.751 Corporate Items (Appendix 2, section 10) 6.051 5.403 (0.648) Corporate Items Strategy – Transfers to Reserves (Probable Outturn Underspend Transferred to Reserves) (9.000) (9.000) - Council Tax (Appendix 2, section 12) 3.262 3.229 (0.033) General Services Underspend 2023/2024 - 0.128 0.128 4.3. This report and appendices provide a detailed analysis of the Council’s financial position at the end of the year. Appendices 1 and 2 provide detail of the year-end position with a summary of the £0.128 million noted in sections 4.4 to 4.12. 4.4. Resources: The overspend position of £0.453 million is after taking into account the Transfers to Reserves agreed at the Probable Outturn, as well as the additional transfers being proposed by the Resources as part of the year-end position. This overspend in Resources is less than forecast at Probable Outturn by £0.058 million, and in the main reflects a minor reduction in spend in Finance and Corporate Resources. Further detail is noted in Appendix 2 (sections 1 to 8). The Transfers at Probable Outturn and year-end are detailed in Appendices 3 and 4, respectively. The Resources’ Transfers to Reserves agreed at Probable Outturn were £1.750 million. 4.5. Within Social Work Resources, the year-end position for Adult and Older People includes a £1.446 million commitment in relation to the element of the budget delegated to the Integrated Joint Board (IJB). This is an increase of £0.174 million on the £1.272 million predicted at Probable Outturn. This commitment reflects the agreed position at Probable Outturn where the Council allowed the IJB to retain this non- recurring underspend within their reserves, earmarked for future care costs, in line 16
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with the approach to integrating health and social care budgets. It is proposed that these monies are retained in the Council’s Balance Sheet and will be available for use by the IJB. 4.6. Loan Charges: There is an underspend of £0.949 million after the Transfers to Reserves approved at Probable Outturn (Appendix 3) and Transfers to Reserves proposed at year-end (Appendix 4). This is a favourable movement of £0.751 million from the position reported at Probable Outturn and reflects cash balances available to invest being higher than anticipated. There was also a slightly higher interest rate on deposits. There is also a benefit to the HRA. 4.7. Corporate Items: There is a net underspend of £5.403 million after Transfer to Reserves (Appendices 2 and 3). This is an adverse movement of £0.648 million from Probable Outturn. However, this position includes 3 notable movements since the Probable Outturn. These are shown in Table 2. Table 2: Notable Movements in Corporate Items Since Probable Outturn £m ALEO Baseline Excesses The anticipated financial detriment of ALEO Charitable Relief Baseline Excesses in 2023/2024 is £0.125 million. This reflects the movement in base properties utilised by the Council’s Arm’s Length External Organisation (ALEO) - (South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture SCIO) (0.125) Strathclyde Regional Council Intromissions Glasgow City Council have issued a bill for intromissions in relation to claims/litigation for the former Strathclyde authorities, for 2023/2024. The Council has received a payment request due by the end of June 2024. The Council’s portion of the overall liability is £0.730 million. (0.730) Non Domestic Rates Incentivisation Scheme (NDRIS) The Council has been advised of an anticipated financial benefit of NDRIS in 2023/2024, totalling £0.339 million. The Scottish Government sets annual targets for growth (buoyancy) and councils who achieve their target retain 50% of the additional income generated above the target. 0.339 Other Minor Movements (0.132) Revised Position (0.648) 4.8. Council Tax: The over recovery for the year is £3.229 million, representing a minor adverse movement of £0.033 million since the Probable Outturn. Further detail is provided in Appendix 2 (section 12). 4.9. Transfers to Reserves: The year-end underspend of £0.128 million includes total Transfers to Reserves of £26.223 million. This includes the Transfers to Reserves approved as part of the Probable Outturn (£23.985 million) (Appendix 3). 4.10. Additional Transfers to Reserves proposed at year-end total £2.238 million. This reflects the requested carry forward of funding in Reserves to allow committed areas of spend to be incurred in 2024/2025. Details of these additional proposed transfers are provided in Appendix 4. If agreed, this takes the total Transfers to Reserves at year-end to £26.223 million. 17
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4.11. The final underspend of £0.128 million is now confirmed and is proposed that this is set aside to assist in future Budget Strategies, including pay award requirements. 4.12. If this proposal is agreed, then these monies will be transferred to Reserves and will result in the Council returning a break-even position for financial year 2023/2024. 4.13. The transfer of the £0.128 million year-end underspend to Reserves will take the total Transfers to Reserves for the year to £26.351 million. 4.14. Year-end Accounting Adjustments: As part of the year-end process, expenditure is reviewed to identify whether it is Revenue or Capital spend. While these are not currently reflected in these monitoring figures, any spend that should be classed as capital will be removed before the closure of the Council’s Accounts. This will have no impact on the bottom-line position of the Resources. 4.15. 2023/2024 Pay Award: There were a number of entries required to manage the Scottish Government funding of the 2023/2024 Pay Award. These included the use of additional General Capital Grant of £7.116 million, which had to be transferred to the Revenue Account to pay for the increased costs experienced in year. The General Capital Grant has been routed through the Housing Accounts and transferred to the Revenue Account as cash balances. This approach follows the guidance in the Conditions of the General Capital Grant letter for 2023/2024, which allows us to use the General Capital Grant for Revenue spend. 4.16. A second Pay Award funding solution identified by the Scottish Government was an underspend in Pupil Equity Funding (PEF). The Council’s predicted underspend was assumed as Pay Award funding at Probable Outturn, however, a year end allocation from the Scottish Government was received and the PEF funding can now be carried forward in the usual way. This is included as one of the proposed Transfers to Reserves (Appendix 4). 4.17. Finally, the Council was asked to fund an element of the Pay Award by using Reserves which would be replenished by further funding being allocated in 2024/2025. The assumed Transfer from Reserves (£1.001 million) is included in the figures quoted in this report and will be replenished when funding is received in 2024/2025. 4.18. These Pay Award entries have no impact on the Council’s bottom-line. 5. Housing Revenue Account Year-End 2023/2024 5.1. As at 31 March 2024, the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) is showing a break-even position. 5.2. This break-even position is after a transfer to the HRA Reserve of £0.360 million. The HRA budget initially included a Transfer from Reserves of £4.907 million, but due to the implementation of the Loan Fund Review approved by Council in February 2024, the Probable Outturn position anticipated a Transfer from Reserves of £0.853 million. 5.3. Comparing the year-end Transfer to Reserves (£0.360 million) to the Probable Outturn Transfer from Reserves (£0.853 million) means a favourable movement of £1.213 million. This positive movement is the net result of a number of variances across the Service area but mainly additional rental income from new build and purchased Council housing being greater than anticipated, and a reduction in loan charges. These are offset by additional spend on repairs and maintenance. 18
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5.4. The details of the variances across the HRA are shown in Appendix 5. 5.5. As noted in section 4.14, the Scottish Government funding of the 2023/2024 Pay Award has been routed through the Housing Revenue Account in line with the Terms and Conditions of the General Capital Grant for this year only. This has no impact on the bottom-line position and reflects the accounting entries required to manage the use of Capital funding for Revenue spend. 6. Employee Implications 6.1. None. 7. Financial Implications 7.1. As detailed in sections 4 and 5 of the report. 8. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 8.1. There are no implications for climate change, sustainability or the environment in terms of the information contained in this report. 9. Other Implications 9.1. The main risk associated with the Council’s Revenue Budget is that there is an overspend. The risk has been assessed as low given the detailed budget management applied across the Resources. The risk is managed through four weekly Budget Monitoring Meetings at which any variance is analysed. In addition, the Probable Outturn exercise ensures early warning for corrective action to be taken where appropriate. 10. Equality Impact Assessment and Consultation Arrangements 10.1. This report does not introduce a new policy, function or strategy or recommend a change to an existing policy, function or strategy and, therefore, no impact assessment is required. 10.2. There is also no requirement to undertake any consultation in terms of the information contained in this report. Jackie Taylor Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) 3 June 2024 Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Accountable, effective, efficient and transparent Previous References None List of Background Papers Financial Ledger and budget monitoring results to 31 March 2024 Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact: Lorraine O'Hagan, Finance Manager (Strategy) Ext: 2601 (Tel: 01698 452601) E-mail: lorraine.o'hagan@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 19
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Appendix 1 SOUTH LANARKSHIRE COUNCIL Revenue Budget Monitoring Report (AFTER Transfers) Period Ended 31 March 2024 Committee Annual Budget Forecast Before Transfers Forecast After Transfers Annual Forecast Variance (After Transfers) Actual to 31/03/24 Before Transfers Variance Annual Budget To Actual Before Transfers Actual to 31/03/24 After Transfers Variance Annual Budget To Actual After Transfers Departments: £m £m £m £m £m £m £m £m Community and Enterprise Resources 138.189 137.949 138.189 0.000 137.522 0.667 138.189 0.000 Facilities Streets, Waste and Grounds 83.051 82.724 82.724 0.327 82.527 0.524 82.954 0.097 Fleet, Environmental and Projects 23.227 23.044 23.244 (0.017) 23.058 0.169 23.258 (0.031) Leisure and Culture Services 5.386 5.022 5.022 0.364 4.999 0.387 4.999 0.387 Planning and Economic Development 4.883 4.574 4.574 0.309 4.521 0.362 4.521 0.362 Roads 21.642 22.585 22.625 (0.983) 22.417 (0.775) 22.457 (0.815) Education Resources 440.131 440.426 440.426 (0.295) 439.938 0.193 440.417 (0.286) Education Resources 440.131 440.426 440.426 (0.295) 439.938 0.193 440.417 (0.286) Finance and Corporate Resources 47.842 48.058 48.058 (0.216) 48.007 (0.165) 48.007 (0.165) Finance Services - Strategy 2.505 2.471 2.471 0.034 2.397 0.108 2.397 0.108 Finance Services - Transactions 21.980 22.161 22.161 (0.181) 22.078 (0.098) 22.078 (0.098) Audit and Compliance Services 0.402 0.408 0.408 (0.006) 0.414 (0.012) 0.414 (0.012) Information Technology Services 6.903 6.903 6.903 0.000 7.159 (0.256) 7.159 (0.256) Communications and Strategy Services 2.955 2.955 2.955 0.000 2.920 0.035 2.920 0.035 Administration and Licensing Services 4.458 4.678 4.678 (0.220) 4.674 (0.216) 4.674 (0.216) Personnel Services 8.639 8.482 8.482 0.157 8.365 0.274 8.365 0.274 Housing and Technical Resources 17.943 16.433 17.943 0.000 16.436 1.507 17.946 (0.003) Housing Services 10.240 8.684 10.169 0.071 8.683 1.557 10.168 0.072 Property Services 7.703 7.749 7.774 (0.071) 7.753 (0.050) 7.778 (0.075) Social Work Resources 237.210 237.210 237.210 0.000 237.210 0.000 237.210 0.000 Performance and Support Services 6.395 6.210 6.210 0.185 6.062 0.333 6.062 0.333 Children and Family 46.692 46.982 46.982 (0.290) 47.160 (0.468) 47.160 (0.468) Adults and Older People 182.657 182.657 182.657 0.000 182.657 0.000 182.657 0.000 Justice and Substance Misuse 1.466 1.361 1.361 0.105 1.331 0.135 1.331 0.135 Joint Boards 2.053 2.053 2.053 0.000 2.052 0.001 2.052 0.001 Total Resources 883.368 882.129 883.879 (0.511) 881.165 2.203 883.821 (0.453) Annual Budget Forecast Before Transfers Forecast After Transfers Annual Forecast Variance (After Transfers) Actual to 31/03/24 Before Transfers Variance Annual Budget To Actual Before Transfers Actual to 31/03/24 After Transfers Variance Annual Budget To Actual After Transfers £m £m £m £m £m £m £m £m Total Resources 883.368 882.129 883.879 (0.511) 881.165 2.203 883.821 (0.454) CFCR 0.577 0.577 0.577 0.000 0.577 0.000 0.577 0.000 Loan Charges 38.796 29.340 38.598 0.198 27.409 11.387 37.847 0.949 Corporate Items (7.661) (14.695) (13.712) 6.051 (14.199) 6.538 (13.064) 5.403 Investments T/F to Reserves 2.994 0.000 2.994 0.000 0.000 2.994 2.994 0.000 Transfer of 23/24 Underspend to Reserves 0.000 0.000 9.000 (9.000) 0.000 0.000 9.000 (9.000) Total Expenditure 918.074 897.351 921.336 (3.262) 894.952 23.123 921.175 (3.100) Council Tax 179.102 182.394 182.394 3.292 182.361 3.259 182.361 3.259 Less: Council Tax Reduction Scheme (23.278) (23.308) (23.308) (0.030) (23.308) (0.030) (23.308) (0.030) Net Council Tax 155.824 159.086 159.086 3.262 159.053 3.229 159.053 3.229 General Revenue Grant 349.979 349.979 349.979 0.000 349.979 0.000 349.979 0.000 Non-Domestic Rates 341.536 341.536 341.536 0.000 341.536 0.000 341.536 0.000 Transfer from Reserves 70.735 70.735 70.735 0.000 70.735 0.000 70.735 0.000 Total Income 918.074 921.336 921.336 3.262 921.303 3.229 921.303 3.229 Net Expenditure / (Surplus) Before Transfers to Reserves 0.000 (23.985) 0.000 0.000 (26.351) 26.351 (0.128) 0.128 20
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Appendix 2 Detail of Year-End Position Across Resources and Centrally Held Budgets 1. Movement from Last Reported Position: The previously reported Probable Outturn position for General Services was a break-even position after corporate Transfers to Reserves of £9.000 million. At financial year-end, the position is an additional underspend of £0.128 million. This is made up of an improvement in Resources of £0.058 million, an improvement in the centrally held budgets of Corporate Items and Loan Charges (£0.103 million) and a decrease in the over-recovery of Council Tax / Council Tax Reduction Scheme (£0.033 million). Each of the individual areas of the Council’s General Services budgets are detailed in the remainder of this Appendix. 2. Resources and Centrally Held Budgets: Details of the Resource positions, including any assumptions are detailed below. These figures include the Transfers to Reserves approved at Probable (Appendix 3) as well as those proposed as part of the year-end position (Appendix 4). 3. Community and Enterprise Resources: At year-end, after Transfers to Reserves, the Resource is showing a break-even position. This is in line with the position reported at Probable Outturn and is after additional Transfers to Reserves of £0.427 million (Appendix 4). 4. Education Resources: The year-end position is an overspend of £0.286 million which is a favourable movement of £0.009 from the position reported at Probable Outturn. This is after further year-end Transfers to Reserves of £0.479 million (Appendix 4). 5. Finance and Corporate Resources: The year-end position is an overspend of £0.165 million, which represents a favourable movement of £0.051 million from the position reported at Probable Outturn (£0.216 million over). 6. Housing and Technical Resources: At year-end, after Transfers to Reserves, the Resource is showing a minor overspend of £0.003 million, compared to a break-even position reported at Probable Outturn. 7. Social Work Resources: The year-end position is break-even, in line with the Probable Outturn. This position includes an amount of specific funding received in relation to the IJB that will be retained in the Council’s Balance Sheet and will be available for use by the IJB (£1.446 million). 8. Joint Boards: There is a minor underspend of £0.001 million within Joint Boards (Lanarkshire Valuation Joint Board). The Probable Outturn position was break-even. 9. Loan Charges: The year-end position is an underspend of £0.949 million, a favourable movement of £0.751 million from the position reported at Probable Outturn. This reflects cash balances available to invest being higher than anticipated. There was also a slightly higher interest rate on deposits. There is also a benefit to the HRA. 10. Corporate Items: The year-end position is a net underspend of £5.403 million, after Transfers to Reserves. This position includes additional Transfers to Reserves proposed at year end, totalling £0.152 million, as detailed in in Appendix 4. This is an adverse movement of £0.648 million compared to Probable Outturn, as detailed in Table 2 of the report. 21
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11. Investments (Transfers to Reserves): After a Transfer to Reserves of £2.994 million approved at Probable Outturn for the underspend on Front Line First – Facilities, Waste and Grounds (£1.914 million) and Pre-School Clothing Grants (£1.080 million), there is a break-even position on this budget line. These transfers are included in in Appendix 3. 12. Council Tax including Council Tax Reduction Scheme (CTRS): Council Tax is showing an over recovery of £3.229 million, comprising an over recovery of Council Tax of £3.259 million and an overspend on CTRS of £0.030 million. This is a net decrease of £0.033 million on the position reported as part of the Probable Outturn. 13. The Council Tax over recovery of £3.259 is due to the following: • Empty Property charges - £0.186 million, • Arrears collection - £0.960 million • Additional in-year properties - £1.872 million • Income from Council Tax Second Homes - £0.241 million 14. The overspend of £0.030 million on the CTRS reflects current demand for these payments. 22
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Appendix 3 Transfers to Reserves – Included in the Probable Outturn Purpose / Description Resource Value £m Resources Investment Monies Investment monies allocated in 2023/2024 for Community Led Investments which will now spend in 2024/2025. Community and Enterprise 0.200 Fleet Sinking Fund Annual contribution to the Fleet sinking fund to maintain asset replacement programme. Community and Enterprise 0.025 Year 3 of Electric Vehicle Payback Ringfenced reserves used to manage purchase of electric vehicles in short term which have to be repaid over the next few years. Community and Enterprise 0.015 Total Community and Enterprise Resources 0.240 Ukraine Resettlement Funding This funding forms part of the 2023/2024 revenue grant redeterminations and will be carried forward for use in 2024/2025. Housing and Technical 1.485 Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategies (LHEES) Funding It is proposed that this external funding is carried forward to be utilised in 2024/2025. Housing and Technical 0.025 Total Housing and Technical Resources 1.510 Total Resource Transfers to Reserves 1.750 Loan Charges Loan Charges Underspend Underspend to be set aside to manage future overspends predicted in Loan Charges as previously advised to members (Council, 18 January 2023). Loan Charges 3.758 Loan Charges Underspend Underspend from Deposit Interest and Transformation Fund borrowing to be set aside as included in the 2024/2025 Budget Strategy. (Executive Committee, 22 November 2023). Loan Charges 5.500 Total Loan Charges Transfers to Reserves 9.258 Corporate Items Service Concessions Underspend on Loan Charges used manage anticipated overspends in future years. Corporate Items 0.437 Insurance Fund The Insurance Fund will require additional budget into 2024/2025. Corporate Items 0.300 Central Energy Efficiency Fund (CEEF) Resources are allocated funding from the CEEF Reserve to pay for spend to save projects which they repay over future years from the revenue savings generated by the project. This transfer represents the payback of savings from Resources and allows the Reserve to be regenerated for use on future projects. Corporate Items 0.246 Total Corporate Items Transfers to Reserves 0.983 Investments 2023/24 Front Line First – Facilities, Waste and Grounds From the total investment of £3 million, £1.086 million has been retained for spend in 2023/2024 with the remaining £1.914 million to be transferred to reserves for use in future years. The £1.914 million has been moved to the budget line 2023/2024 Investments – Transfers to Reserves and will be transferred to Reserves at the year-end. Investments 2023/24 (T/f to Reserves) 1.914 Pre-School Clothing Grants From the total investment of £1.350 million, an amount of £0.270 million has been retained for spend in 2023/2024 with the remaining £1.080 million to be transferred to reserves for use in the next 4 years. The £1.080 million has been moved to the budget line 2023/2024 Investments – Transfers to Reserves and will be transferred to Reserves at the year-end. Investments 2023/24 (T/f to Reserves) 1.080 Total Investments 2023/24 Transfer to Reserves 2.994 Additional Transfers to Reserves – Use of Probable Outturn Underspend Budget Pressures It is proposed that £3.000 million be transferred to reserves and be used to fund Budget pressures into 2024/2025. This proposal is to use this temporary funding to manage the timing of when permanent budget solutions are identified / delivered. Use of Probable Outturn Underspend 3.000 Contribution to Budget Strategy In addition, it is proposed that £6.000 million be transferred to reserves. These monies could be used in the Council’s Budget Strategy, bearing in mind the previously identified savings requirement of £95.8 million across the 4 years from 2024/2025. Use of Probable Outturn Underspend 6.000 Total Additional Transfers to Reserves – Use of Probable Outturn Underspend 9.000 Total Transfers to Reserves Approved at Probable Outturn 23.985 23
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Appendix 4 Transfers to Reserves – Additional Proposed Transfers at Year-End Purpose / Description Resource Value £m Resources Chatelherault Play Park A planned contribution to support the delivery of the upgrade to Chatelherault Play Park as part of the overall Capital project on play park improvement and the Chatelherault Masterplan. Due to timing, this project will complete in 2024/2025. Community & Enterprise 0.137 IT Modernisation Funding carried forward will be used in the development of a new Bereavement management system, linked to the long-term Bereavement strategy; to upgrade the CONFIRM system within Grounds; and for the introduction of handheld devices for staff. Due to timing, this project will complete in 2024/2025. Community & Enterprise 0.290 Total Community and Enterprise Resources 0.427 Pupil Equity Fund The funding received from the Government can be used up to the end of the school term (June 2024). The underspend reflects the element of the funding that will be utilised in April to June 2024. Education 0.323 School Support Assistant Training Funding was provided by the Scottish Government in February 2024 to support the training of support staff in schools, following the findings of the Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research (2023). Funding carried forward to 2024/2025 will allow training plans to be developed. Education 0.057 ELC Footwear and Clothing Grant Balance of Investment monies for the provision of Footwear & Clothing Grants to pre-school children (Early Years) in 2023/2024 to be carried forward. This underspend reflects the level of demand for Grants during the year and will be redirected to 2024/205 investments, as per the Budget Amendment approved in February 2024. Education 0.099 Total Education Resources 0.479 Total Resource Proposed Transfers to Reserves at Year-End 0.906 Loan Charges Interest on Revenue Balances transferred to Fund reserves. Loan Charges 1.180 Total Loan Charges Proposed Transfers to Reserves 1.180 Corporate Items Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) and Feed In Tariff (FIT) Income from RHI and FIT is received in-year and will be set aside for funding future capital spend. Corporate Items 0.152 Total Corporate Items Proposed Transfers to Reserves at Year-End 0.152 Total Proposed Transfers to Reserves at Year-End (Excluding Year-End Underspend) 2.238 Additional Transfers to Reserves – Use of Year-End Underspend Future Budget Strategies It is proposed that the outturn underspend of £0.128 million be transferred to Reserves for use in future Budget Strategies, including pay award requirements. Use of Year-End Underspend 0.128 Total Additional Transfers to Reserves – Use of Year-End Underspend 0.128 Total Proposed Transfers to Reserves at Year-End (Including Year-End Underspend) 2.366 24
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Appendix 5 SOUTH LANARKSHIRE COUNCIL Revenue Budget Monitoring Report Period Ended 31 March 2024 (No.15) Housing Revenue Account Annual Budget Forecast for Year Annual Forecast Variance Budget Proportion 31/03/24 Actual 31/03/24 Variance 31/03/24 % Variance 31/03/24 Notes Budget Category Employee Costs 15.310 15.401 (0.091) 15.310 15.369 (0.059) over (0.4%) Property Costs 49.282 54.963 (5.681) 49.282 55.322 (6.040) over (12.3%) 1 Supplies & Services 0.653 0.691 (0.038) 0.653 0.949 (0.296) over (45.3%) Transport & Plant 0.196 0.189 0.007 0.196 0.173 0.023 under 11.7% Administration Costs 5.570 5.597 (0.027) 5.570 5.663 (0.093) over (1.7%) Payments to Other Bodies 3.121 3.126 (0.005) 3.121 10.265 (7.144) over (228.9%) 2 Payments to Contractors 0.100 0.145 (0.045) 0.100 0.147 (0.047) over (47.0%) Transfer Payments 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 - 0.0% Financing Charges 27.229 27.229 0.000 27.229 20.178 7.051 under 25.9% 3 Total Controllable Exp. 101.461 107.341 (5.880) 101.461 108.066 (6.605) over (6.5%) Total Controllable Inc. (114.440) (115.268) 0.828 (114.440) (116.578) 2.138 over recovered 1.9% 4 Transfer to/(from) Balance Sheet (4.907) (0.853) (4.054) (4.907) 0.360 (5.267) under recovered (107.3%) 5 Net Controllable Exp. (17.886) (8.780) (9.107) (17.886) (8.152) (9.734) over (54.4%) Loan Charges 17.886 8.780 9.107 17.886 8.152 9.734 under (54.4%) 6 Net Controllable Exp. 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 - 0.0% Variance Explanations 1. Property Costs: The overspend reflects the volume and cost of repairs and maintenance, including additional costs for the internal contractor. 2. Payments to Other Bodies: The overspend reflects the release of HRA surplus to the General Fund in line with the General Capital Grant conditions where the funding for the pay award was to be routed through the Housing Accounts. The offset is an underspend in Capital Financed from Current Revenue (see 3 below). This has no impact bottom line. 3. Financing Charges: The underspend offsets the overspend in Payments to Other Bodies (see 2 above). 4. Income: The additional income is due to the favourable timing of new build and purchased Council housing units being available to rent, and greater than budgeted insurance income. 5. Transfers to/from Reserves: The year end position is a Transfer to Reserves, rather than the budgeted Transfer from Reserves. This positive movement is the net result of a number of variances across the Service area but mainly additional rental income from new build and purchased Council housing being greater than anticipated, and a reduction in loan charges. These are offset by additional spend on repairs and maintenance. 6. Loan Charges: The underspend is due to the utilisation of an in-year benefit from the Housing Revenue Account Loans Fund Review. Virements None. 25
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 26 June 2024 Report by: Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) Subject: Revenue Budget Monitoring for Period 2 - 1 April 2024 to 17 May 2024 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] advise Committee of the forecast for the year to 31 March 2025 for the Council’s General Fund Revenue Account and Housing Revenue Account, and the actual spend position for the period 1 April 2024 to 17 May 2024 [1purpose] 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Executive Committee is asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- [recs] (1) that the projected break-even position on the General Fund Revenue Account for 2024/2025, and the actual spend as at 17 May 2024 (section 4 and Appendix 1), be noted; (2) that the additional £3.710 million UK Government Consequentials be set aside as a contingency for higher than budgeted pay claims in 2024/2025 (sections 4.15 to 4.17), be approved; and (3) that the projected break-even position on the Housing Revenue Account for 2024/2025, and the actual spend as at 17 May 2024 (section 5 and Appendix 2 of the report), be noted. 3. Background 3.1. This overview report will summarise the projected outturn for 2024/2025 for both the Council’s General Fund (section 4) and for the Housing Revenue Account (section 5). It will also provide the actual spend as at 17 May 2024. 3.2. The Council has adopted a new Financial Management System, Oracle Fusion, which integrates a number of business processes, including HR and Procurement/Payables data. In a financial management context, this will allow us to forecast budget information, and therefore means a change in format in relation to the reports provided to the Executive Committee. This is reflected in the monitoring statements in Appendices A and B. 4. General Services 2024/2025 Projected Outturn as at 17 May 2024 4.1. As at 17 May 2024, the projected outturn position for 2024/2025 on the General Services budget is break-even (Appendix 1). 4.2. Section 4.3 onwards provides detail on a number of key budget areas. 4 27
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4.3. 2024/2025 Investments - Transfer to Reserves: The investment monies for 2024/2025 included an amount of £0.500 million for the Central Energy Efficiency Fund, and £0.150 million for the Net Zero Innovation Fund. As part of the budget setting process for 2024/2025, these monies were allocated Corporately, pending allocation to Housing and Technical Resources. However, the Resource has now profiled these investments, with spend expected to occur beyond the current financial year. Budget of £0.250 million for the Central Energy Efficiency Fund and £0.075 million for the Net Zero Innovation Fund (total £0.325 million) has therefore been moved to the budget line 2024/2025 Investments – Transfers to Reserves (Appendix 1). 4.4. Teacher Numbers: As teacher numbers were maintained as part of the census exercise, there was no impact on the grant funding and the £2.934 million initially held back by the Scottish Government was eventually received in 2023/2024. 4.5. In relation to 2024/2025, the Council has now received notification that the allocation of funding for teacher numbers of £145.5 million for 2024/2025 will be distributed via Specific Resource Grants, and those grants will be conditional on councils agreeing at the outset to maintain teacher numbers. It has been made clear by the Scottish Government that if we do not sign the letter, then no payments will be made to councils, and we will not receive our share of the £145.5 million funding (£9.379 million). Scottish government have indicated that they will consider mitigations presented by councils for reducing teacher numbers due to council’s pupil roll and with regard to the Scottish Attainment Challenge Funding for Challenge Authorities (SLC was not a Challenge Authority), but that we will not know if mitigation will be acceptable until much later in the year. 4.6. Additionally, Scottish Government have indicated that any reduction in funding will be proportionate for the actual number of teachers reduced against the baseline, rather than losing the full amount. Discussions are ongoing with all local authorities, COSLA and the Scottish Government in terms of the impact of this position at this time. Revised grant letters have been issued for each authority however whilst the grant letter has not yet been signed, a letter has been sent to the Scottish Government outlining the projected 2024/2025 teacher numbers position as it is expected that the teacher numbers will not be maintained at the same level as 2023/2024. 4.7. This is due to two main areas. The first is a reduction in teacher numbers due to the end of the Council investment in Early Level Teachers, around 46 FTE, which were recruited for a two-year fixed term period from August 2022. These posts were funded using temporary council funding to support early years transition to primary school following the pandemic, and this staffing was in place prior to the 2022 census and the teacher numbers commitment. These temporary arrangements have now ended as the temporary funding has been used and therefore our teacher numbers will reduce. Secondly, there is a national reduction in Newly Qualified Teachers (NQTs) compared to last year which has a current impact of 28 FTE less NQTs available for the Council. These issues were raised repeatedly during 2023, and councils were told that they would get a view on this post the 2023 census exercise, however no clarity was received. This remains the same position for 2024 with assessment of mitigations being pushed back until after the teachers census data is published in December 2024. 28
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4.8. Normal practice would dictate that we reduce our teaching establishment in line with falling pupil rolls. In turn, in normal circumstances, for 2024/2025 this would lead to us reducing teacher numbers. At present, given the concerns around losing funding if we reduce teacher numbers, we are not proposing to do that. Senior officers are engaging with the Scottish Government on these areas and further updates will be provided in due course. 4.9. Employers Pension Contribution Increase (Teachers): As of 1 April 2024, the Council’s pension contribution for Teachers’ Pensions was increased from 23% to 26% of basic pay. The cost to the Council is an estimated £5.5 million however, the Council has not yet been notified of funding to support this increase. That said, the Scottish Government expect to receive funding for this from the UK Government and have committed to passing this on to councils. 4.10. Employers Pension Contribution Reduction (Non-Teachers): In November 2023, the Executive Committee approved the reduction in Employer Contribution rates (from 19.3% to 6.5%) for use in the Budget Strategy. A temporary saving of £22.600 million was expected to be realised in 2024/2025. This has now been revised to £22.965 million. This excludes any saving in Pension Contributions for the budget delegated to the IJB (refer section 4.12). 4.11. The predicted underspend in Resource budgets (£22.965 million) has been transferred to the Employer Contribution - Transfers to Reserves line, for use in line with the Strategy. These transfers are reflected in Appendix 1. This will continue to be monitored to identify any further underspends and Members will be advised accordingly. 4.12. Children and Families: As reported through Social Work Resources Committee, budget pressures within Children and Families are continuing into 2024/2025 in relation to statutory duties of continuing care and increased costs and requirements for residential placements, fostering and kinship care. 4.13. As an interim solution, while further options are being progressed to bring spend in line with budget, it was noted in the 2024/2025 Budget report to Council (21 February 2024) that £7.7 million of unrequired budget as a result of reduced pension contributions (refer section 4.9), has been re-directed to Children and Families Services from the delegated IJB budget (Adult and Older People Services). In addition, £2.3 million of one-off central funding carried forward from 2023/2024, is available to support these residual pressures in 2024/2025. 4.14. The Social Work Resources position as at 17 May 2024 assumes the funding is available and will be drawn down later in the financial year, as required. 4.15. UK Government Consequentials: As noted previously (Council, 27 March 2024), correspondence from the Scottish Government, advised that following the Spring Budget, the UK Government identified £48 million of funding for Scottish Local Government and that they would pass that funding through to councils. The correspondence also stated that the Scottish Government will make the decisions in year which are necessary to top that up to the £62.7 million, for those who have agreed to freeze their Council Tax. On 3 May 2024, the Council was formally advised of its share of these monies which total £3.710 million. 29
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4.16. As advised through previous Budget reports to Council (21 February 2024), recent pay claims presented have identified a risk that any pay deal for 2024/2025 will exceed the pay funding that has been included in the Council’s Budget Strategy. In the 2024/2025 Budget update report to Council on 27 March 2024, following receipt of the Local Government Finance (Scotland) Order 2024, it was suggested that “it would be prudent, when an allocation is made, that members consider holding this as a contingency against higher than budgeted costs of pay”. 4.17. Recent correspondence from the Deputy First Minister (DFM) reiterated the Government’s commitment to achieving a fair and affordable outcome of negotiations for Scotland’s public sector workforce, but also set out the “the challenging fiscal outlook” faced by the Scottish Government. In short, it gives no indication of further funding to support pay claims therefore it is proposed that the additional £3.710 million be set aside as a contingency for higher than budgeted pay claims in 2024/2025 (see section 2.1, recommendation 2). 4.18. Transfer of Employability Service to Community and Enterprise Resources: The Council’s Employability Service has operationally transferred to Community & Enterprise Resources from Finance & Corporate Resources and Education Resources, following approval in March 2024. The budgets in Appendix 1 reflect these transfers. 4.19. School Meal Debt: A national School Meal debt fund of £1.500 million was announced by the First Minister in May 2024 to support Local Authorities to cancel School Meal debt. Local Authorities will have the opportunity to bid for one-off funding based on their decision to write off debt at a local level. Funding is available to support retrospective debt prior to April 2024 and applications are to be submitted by 1 August 2024. Officers are considering a bid submission, and Members will be updated on the bid and its outcome later in the year. 4.20. Loan Charges: As previously reported to the Executive Committee (22 November 2023), there is a budgeted underspend of £2.000 million in Loan Charges in 2024/2025 due to greater than budgeted deposit interest. This underspend is part of the £6.000 million corporate solution approved by the Committee where £2.000 million would be used each year from 2024/2025 to 2026/2027 to reduce the budget gap. The £2.000 million underspend has been used as planned in 2024/2025. 4.21. Loans Fund Review: The proposal to implement a Loans Fund Review was part of the Revenue Budget Strategy paper presented to Executive Committee on 24 June 2020. The Committee agreed to implement the Loans Fund Review and noted that the benefit each year will be realised through an underspend in Loan Charges which would be taken to Reserves for use in future years budget strategies. Through the changes introduced as part of the Loans Fund Review, the Loan Charges underspend in 2024/2025 is £14.309 million in 2024/2025 and this will be used in the Budget Strategy as planned. 5. Housing Revenue Account Position 5.1. As at 17 May 2024, Appendix 2 of the report shows a break-even position on the Housing Revenue Account. 6. Employee Implications 6.1. None. 30
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7. Financial Implications 7.1. As detailed in sections 4 to 5 of the report. 8. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 8.1. There are no implications for climate change, sustainability or the environment in terms of the information contained in this report. 9. Other Implications 9.1. The main risk associated with the Council’s Revenue Budget is that there is an overspend. The risk has been assessed as low given the detailed budget management applied across the Resources. The risk is managed through four weekly Budget Monitoring Meetings at which any variance is analysed. In addition, the probable outturn exercise ensures early warning for corrective action to be taken where appropriate. 9.2. There are no implications for sustainability in terms of the information contained in this report. 10. Equality Impact Assessment and Consultation Arrangements 10.1. This report does not introduce a new policy, function or strategy or recommend a change to an existing policy, function or strategy and therefore no impact assessment is required. 10.2. There is also no requirement to undertake any consultation in terms of the information contained in this report. Jackie Taylor Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) 10 June 2024 Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Accountable, Effective, Efficient and Transparent Previous References None List of Background Papers Financial Ledger and budget monitoring results to 17 May 2024 Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact: Lorraine O'Hagan, Head of Finance (Strategy) Ext: 2601 (Tel: 01698 452601) E-mail: lorraine.o'hagan@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 31
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Appendix 1 Revised Projected Projected % Note Year to Date Annual Outturn Outturn Actual Budget Variance Resources: £m £m £m £m Community and Enterprise Resources 124.139 124.139 0.000 0.00% 12.810 Facilities Waste and Grounds 75.527 75.332 0.195 0.26% 5.955 Leisure and Culture 21.738 21.738 0.000 0.00% 3.921 Planning and Regulatory Services 4.540 4.496 0.044 0.97% 0.292 Enterprise and Sustainable Development 5.672 5.662 0.010 0.18% 0.466 Roads, Transportation and Fleet 16.662 16.911 (0.249) (1.49%) 2.176 Education Resources 451.422 451.422 0.000 0.00% 49.142 Education 451.422 451.422 0.000 0.00% 49.142 Finance and Corporate Resources 37.821 37.821 0.000 0.00% 9.855 Finance Services - Strategy 1.858 1.858 0.000 0.00% 0.295 Finance Services - Transactions 16.922 16.922 0.000 0.00% 4.078 Audit and Compliance Services 0.320 0.320 0.000 0.00% 0.062 Information Technology Services 5.904 5.904 0.000 0.00% 2.503 Communications and Strategy Services 2.386 2.386 0.000 0.00% 0.123 Administration and Licensing Services 4.075 4.075 0.000 0.00% 2.338 Personnel Services 6.356 6.356 0.000 0.00% 0.456 Housing & Technical Resources 13.302 13.302 0.000 0.00% 5.958 Housing Services 8.434 8.384 0.050 0.59% 0.739 Property Services 4.868 4.918 (0.050) (1.03%) 5.219 Social Work Resources 234.191 234.191 0.000 0.00% 27.459 Performance and Support Services 6.092 6.092 0.000 0.00% 0.528 Children and Families 46.653 46.653 0.000 0.00% 5.397 Adults and Older People 180.637 180.637 0.000 0.00% 21.575 Justice and Substance Misuse 0.809 0.809 0.000 0.00% (0.041) Joint Boards 1.902 1.902 0.000 0.00% 0.293 862.777 862.777 0.000 0.00% 105.517 Revised Projected Projected Year to Date Annual Outturn Outturn Actual Budget Variance Summary: £m £m £m £m Resources Total 862.777 862.777 0.000 0.00% 105.517 CFCR 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 Loan Charges 39.589 39.589 0.000 0.00% 0.000 Corporate Items 20.538 20.538 0.000 0.00% 0.287 Employers Contribution - T/f to Reserves 22.965 22.965 0.000 0.00% 0.000 Investments - 23-24 T/f to Reserves 0.325 0.325 0.000 0.00% 0.000 Total Expenditure 946.194 946.194 0.000 0.00% 105.804 Council Tax 181.587 181.587 0.000 0.00% 27.936 Less: Council Tax Reduction Scheme (23.544) (23.544) 0.000 0.00% (3.622) 158.043 158.043 0.000 0.00% 24.314 General Revenue Grant 385.417 385.417 0.000 0.00% 59.295 Non Domestic Rates 364.911 364.911 0.000 0.00% 56.140 Transfer from Reserves 37.823 37.823 0.000 0.00% 0.000 Total Income 946.194 946.194 0.000 0.00% 139.749 Net Expenditure 0.000 0.000 0.000 (33.945) Period Ended 17 May 2024 (No.2) Revenue Budget Monitoring Report SOUTH LANARKSHIRE COUNCIL 32
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Appendix 2 Revised Projected Projected Year to Date Annual Outturn Outturn % Note Actual Budget Variance Budget Category £m £m £m £m Employee Costs 13.780 13.780 0.000 0.00% 1.523 Property Costs 59.201 59.201 0.000 0.00% 2.906 Supplies and Services 1.545 1.545 0.000 0.00% 0.034 Transport and Plant 0.196 0.196 0.000 0.00% 0.009 Administration 5.595 5.595 0.000 0.00% 0.059 Payment to Other Bodies 2.974 2.974 0.000 0.00% 0.379 Payment to Contractors 0.100 0.100 0.000 0.00% 0.010 Transfer Payments 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.00% 0.000 Financing Charges 33.573 33.573 0.000 0.00% 5.156 Total Controllable Exp. 116.964 116.964 0.000 0.00% 10.076 Total Controllable Inc. (123.396) (123.396) 0.000 0.00% (11.530) Transfer to/(from) Balance Sheet (4.229) (4.229) 0.000 0.00% (0.197) Net Controllable Exp. (10.661) (10.661) 0.000 0.00% (1.651) Loan Charges 10.661 10.661 0.000 0.00% 1.651 Net Controllable Exp. 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.00% 0.000 Variance Explanations No significant variances. Virements None. SOUTH LANARKSHIRE COUNCIL Revenue Budget Monitoring Report Period Ended 17 May 2024 (No.2) Housing Revenue Account 33
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 26 June 2024 Report by: Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) Subject: Capital Budget Monitoring Final Outturn – 2023/2024 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] advise Committee of the outturn position of the General Services and Housing Capital Programmes for the year ended 31 March 2024 advise of the projects expressed in financial terms, which have been carried forward into year 2024/2025 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Executive Committee is asked to approve the following recommendations:- [recs] (1) that the outturn on the 2023/2024 General Services Programme of £64.244 million (section 5.1), be noted; (2) that the £14.121 million of General Services Capital Programme be carried forward into 2024/2025 (section 5.9), be approved; (3) that the outturn on the 2023/2024 Housing Capital Programme of £62.240 million (section 5.11), be noted; (4) that the £5.203 million of Housing Capital Programme be carried forward into future years’ (section 5.12), be approved; and (5) that the level of overall spend anticipated in 2024/2025, for both the General Services and Housing Capital Programmes is the subject of a separate report to this Committee (sections 5.10 and 5.14), be noted. 3. Background 3.1. The General Services Capital Programme for 2023/2024 totalled £78.365 million. This revised programme consists of the base budget plus carry forward projects and adjustments which have been agreed by the Executive Committee up to and including its meeting on 8 May 2024. 3.2. The Housing Capital Programme for 2023/2024 totalled £67.443 million. This was approved by the Executive Committee on 8 May 2024. 3.3. Section 4 of this report will provide a final outturn position on the 2023/2024 General Services and Housing Capital Programmes and will update members on the carry forward into the new financial year. 4. Employee Implications 4.1. There are no employee implications as a result of this report. 5 35
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5. Financial Implications 5.1. General Services: Appendix 1 shows the total expenditure of £64.244 million on the General Fund Capital Programme for year 2023/2024. This is compared to the budget of £78.365 million and results in an underspend of £14.121 million. This underspend relates to projects within Community and Enterprise Resources (£11.241m), Finance and Corporate Resources (£0.684m) and Housing and Technical Resources (£3.771m) with greater spend than anticipated achieved within Education Resources (£1.257m) and Social Work Resources (£0.318m). 5.2. Overall, the programme underspend reflects the timing of spend across financial years. The main projects responsible for the overall programme underspend of £14.121 million are detailed in Appendix 2. This appendix provides a list of the continuing projects into 2024/2025, along with their estimated completion dates. 5.3. These underspends have been partially offset by a few projects where there have been budget overspends this financial year. For these projects, again, this is primarily a timing issue only with funding for the overall spend already identified into the next financial year. This will be included as part of the update on the 2024/2025 Capital Programme, which is also being reported to this Committee. 5.4. Year End and Accounting Adjustments: Accounting Regulations mean that adjustments are required to report spend correctly as either Capital or Revenue for the purposes of publishing our Annual Accounts. This includes where spend from the Capital Programme is on assets that are not owned by the Council (for example Shawfield Industrial Estate spend) or where spend must be classed as Revenue due to the nature of the spend. This adjustment has no physical impact on projects – it is an accounting entry only. 5.5. From reviewing the Council’s Revenue and Capital spend, £6.311 million of capital spend is required to be recorded as Revenue spend. 5.6. Conversely, £0.161 million of revenue spend should be recorded as Capital. These transfers mean that for the purpose of publishing our Annual Accounts only, there is capital spend of £58.094 million. The funding sources for this spend are detailed in Appendix 1. 5.7. 2023/2024 Pay Award: As advised to members previously (22 February 2023), part of the Council’s Capital funding package for the year included £7.116 million which was allocated by the Scottish Government to fund the 2023/2024 Pay Award. In order to facilitate this, the General Capital Grant has been routed through the Housing Accounts with a subsequent transfer to the General Services Revenue Account. This is permitted in the Grant Conditions of the General Capital Grant letter for 2023/2024 which the Scottish Government have changed for this year only, and which allows councils to use the General Capital Grant for Revenue spend. 5.8. The figures presented in the Housing Capital Outturn in Appendix 3 reflect the transfer of General Capital Grant and the reduced use of CFCR to facilitate the funding ultimately being transferred to the General Services Revenue account to pay for the Pay Award. This has no impact bottom-line and is just the accounting arrangements required for routing the monies to the General Services Revenue account. 36
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5.9. Carry Forward to 2024/2025: As noted in 5.2, the year-end underspend is £14.121 million. This £14.121 million will carry forward into financial year 2024/2025. 5.10. The overall base programme for 2024/2025 including this carry forward of £14.121 million will be included in a further report to this Committee. This separate report will propose the programme for the coming year by focussing on the overall level of spend achievable. 5.11. Housing Programme: Appendix 3 shows the budget for the year of £67.443 million. The actual expenditure on the Housing programme was £62.240 million, a net underspend of £5.203 million. This is due to the timing of the purchase of land at sites within the East Kilbride Community Growth Area and Brackenhill Farm, Hamilton, with these settling early in the new financial year. In addition, there were access issues with a significant number of central heating systems upgrades and windows and doors projects. 5.12. Carry Forward to 2024/2025: Taking into account the year-end underspend position, means a carry forward of £5.203 million which will fall into future financial years. Further analysis of this budget confirms that £3.418 million is required in 2024/2025, with the remainder being carried forward into future years. 5.13. In addition, the Scottish Government’s Affordable Housing grant for 2024/2025 has now been confirmed. For South Lanarkshire, this will result in a reduction of £3.473 million in the 2024/2025 approved programme. 5.14. The approved Capital Programme for 2024/2025 was £77.303 million (South Lanarkshire Council, 21 February 2024). As a result of the adjustments noted at Sections 5.12 and 5.13, a revised programme for 2024/2025 of £77.248 million is presented to this Committee for approval. 6. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 6.1. There are no implications for climate change, sustainability or the environment in terms of the information contained in this report. 7. Other Implications 7.1. The main risk associated with the Council’s Capital Programme is an overspend. The risk has been assessed as low given the detailed project management plans prepared and monitored for each project. The risk of overspend is managed through four weekly Investment management meetings. 8. Equality Impact Assessment and Consultation Arrangements 8.1 This report does not introduce a new policy, function or strategy or recommend a change to existing policy, function or strategy and, therefore, no impact assessment is required. 8.2. There was also no requirement to undertake any consultation in terms of the information contained in this report. Jackie Taylor Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) 5 June 2024 37
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Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Accountable, Effective, Efficient and Transparent Previous References South Lanarkshire Council, 21 February 2024 Executive Committee, 8 May 2024 List of Background Papers Capital Ledger prints to 31 March 2024 Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact: Lorraine O’Hagan, Head of Finance (Strategy) Ext: 2601(Tel: 01698 452601) E-mail: lorraine.o’hagan@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 38
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APPENDIX 1 SOUTH LANARKSHIRE COUNCIL CAPITAL EXPENDITURE 2023/2024 GENERAL FUND PROGRAMME FOR PERIOD 1 APRIL 2023 TO 31 MARCH 2024 Expenditure 2023/2024 Revised Budget 2023/2024 Actual to 31/03/24 £m £m General Fund Programme (Section 5.1) 78.365 64.244 Accounting Adjustments (Sections 5.4 and 5.5): Less: Transfers to Revenue (6.311) Add: Year End Transfers to Capital 0.161 2023/2024 Outturn Position (Accounting Basis only) 78.365 58.094 Income 2023/2024 Actual to 31/03/24 £m Prudential Borrowing 18.919 Developer Contributions 3.071 Partners (Including SPT, REF, Clyde Wind Farm and Energy Saving Trust) 2.966 Scottish Government: - Capital Grant (excl. £7.116m transferred to HRA) 22.900 - Cycling, Walking and Safer Routes 2.283 - Vacant and Derelict Land 0.032 - Regeneration Capital Grant - - Place Based Investment Programme 1.536 - Inspiring Spaces 0.223 - Road Safety Improvement Fun 0.440 Glasgow City Region City Deal 3.995 Specific Reserves 1.153 Revenue Contribution 0.576 TOTAL FUNDING 58.094 39
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APPENDIX 2 (Page 1) SOUTH LANARKSHIRE COUNCIL CAPITAL EXPENDITURE 2023/2024 GENERAL FUND PROGRAMME FOR PERIOD 1 APRIL 2023 TO 31 MARCH 2024 Projects with Underspends in 2023/2024 which will Carry Forward into 2024/2025 Project Name Project Type Completion Date Community and Enterprise Resources SLLC – Booking and Admission System IT Infrastructure March 2025 Phillipshill Cemetery – Extension Infrastructure June 2024 Ash Die Back Woodland Management September 2024 Langlands Boardwalk Infrastructure January 2025 Bin Storage Areas Infrastructure September 2024 Play Parks – Larkhall, Rutherglen and Cambuslang Areas Infrastructure October 2024 Nature Restoration Fund Woodland Management July 2025 Greenhall Replacement Bridge – Design Infrastructure June 2025 White Bridge Replacement, Chatelherault Country Park – Design Infrastructure June 2024 Larkhall Leisure Centre – Design New Build March 2025 Former Ballgreen Hall Demolition Demolition June 2024 TACT Hall - Heating Replacement Refurbishment June 2024 Priory Changing Pavilion, Blantyre Refurbishment March 2025 Calderglen Country Park – One Way System & Infrastructure Infrastructure July 2024 Rural Development Centre – Lanark Racecourse Regeneration November 2024 2023/2024 Place Based Investment Fund – Various Regeneration September 2024 SLC Industrial Infrastructure - Energy Efficiency Regeneration June 2025 Carnwath Community and Business Enterprise HUB Regeneration March 2025 Carluke High Mill Community Facility Regeneration March 2026 Vacant & Derelict Land – Cuningar Allotments Regeneration September 2024 Vacant & Derelict Land – Clyde Cycle Park Phase 2 Regeneration August 2024 City Deal Community Growth Areas – Woodfoot Road / Wellhall Road, Hamilton Infrastructure March 2025 City Deal – Calderside Academy Adaptations Autumn 2026 City Deal – Holy Cross High Adaptations Autumn 2026 City Deal – Lanark Road Signalisation Infrastructure August 2024 City Deal – Cathkin Bypass – Grant Payments Only Grants Throughout 2024/25 40
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APPENDIX 2 (Page 2) SOUTH LANARKSHIRE COUNCIL CAPITAL EXPENDITURE 2023/2024 GENERAL FUND PROGRAMME FOR PERIOD 1 APRIL 2023 TO 31 MARCH 2024 Projects with Underspends in 2023/2024 which will Carry Forward into 2024/2025 Project Name Project Type Completion Date Community and Enterprise Resources (Cont) City Deal – Greenhills Road - Landscaping etc Infrastructure August 2024 Roads Investment Programme - Clydesdale Infrastructure December 2024 Roads Structures Infrastructure August 2024 Footpaths and Roads Improvement Fund Infrastructure December 2024 Cycle Shelters at Schools Infrastructure September 2024 Lanark Interchange Infrastructure Ongoing discussions on funding Electric Vehicle Expansion Infrastructure March 2025 Switched on Fleet Infrastructure March 2025 National Strategy for 20mph Infrastructure March 2025 Education Resources Woodside Primary School - Adaptations Adaptations August 2024 Uddingston Nursery Expansion Adaptations August 2024 Crawforddyke Primary School - Toilet Adaptations Adaptations April 2024 Stonelaw High School - Adaptations Adaptations Summer 2024 Wooddean Early Learning Centre (formerly Clyde Terrace Nursery) New Build April 2024 First Steps Community Nursery Extension June 2024 Free School Meals Expansion Adaptations Throughout 2024/25 and beyond Secondary Schools – St. Andrews and St. Brides Adaptations Throughout 2024/25 and beyond Schools ICT Infrastructure Throughout 2024/25 and beyond Finance and Corporate Resources IT Infrastructure Refresh Infrastructure Throughout 2024/2025 Oracle Fusion Infrastructure August 2024 Housing and Technical Resources Prioritised Urgent Investment Refurbishment Throughout 2024/25 Lifecycle Replacement Schools Refurbishment Throughout 2024/25 Communities Facilities Fund Refurbishment Throughout 2024/25 Council Offices – Brandon Gate Adaptations April 2024 CEEF Programme Refurbishment June 2024 Public Space CCTV – Phase 2 Infrastructure March 2025 Social Work Resources SWIS Plus Replacement IT Infrastructure October 2024 41
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APPENDIX 3 SOUTH LANARKSHIRE COUNCIL CAPITAL EXPENDITURE 2023/2024 HOUSING PROGRAMME FOR PERIOD 1 APRIL 2023 TO 31 MARCH 2024 2023/2024 Annual Budget 2023/2024 Actual to 31/03/24 £m £m EXPENDITURE 2023/2024 Budget Incl. carry forward from 2023/24 67.443 62.240 2023/2024 Actual to 31/03/24 £m INCOME Capital Receipts 1.901 Capital Receipts – Land Sales 0.065 Capital Funded from Current Revenue (after transfer to General Services Revenue) 20.046 Prudential Borrowing 14.533 General Capital Grant (being the transfer from General Services Capital) 7.116 Scottish Government Specific Grant: – New Build 9.228 – Open Market Purchase Scheme 8.563 – Mortgage to Rent 0.288 Miscellaneous Income 0.500 TOTAL FUNDING 62.240 42
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 26 June 2024 Report by: Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) Subject: Capital Budget 2024/2025 and Monitoring for Period 2 - 1 April 2024 to 17 May 2024 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- consolidate the capital budget monitoring to give a Council-wide summary of the 2024/2025 Capital Programme including 2023/2024 carry forward. It includes information on two programmes: the General Fund Programme (being Education, Social Work, Roads and Other General Services) and the Housing Investment Programme, which covers all investment in relation to the Council’s Housing stock update Committee of progress on the Capital Programme for the period 1 April 2024 to 17 May 2024 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Committee is asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- (1) that the position of the General Fund Capital Programme detailed in (section 4) and the Housing Capital Programme (section 5), be approved; (2) that the Council borrows £2 million, on a short-term basis, to fund the balance of the Hairmyres Station Park and Ride project spend, as detailed in Section 4.10, be agreed; (3) that the adjustments to the General Fund programme, listed at Appendix 1, be approved; and (4) that the revised programmes be monitored by the Financial Resources Scrutiny Forum. 3. Background 3.1. South Lanarkshire Council (21 February 2024) approved a General Services base budget of £49.512 million for financial year 2024/2025. Since the approval of this programme, the financial year-end and additional funding received will mean an adjustment to the 2024/2025 Capital Programme set. 3.2. A total Housing Capital Programme budget for 2024/2025 was also approved by Council in February 2024. This included funding carried forward from previous years and gave a total programme of £77.303 million. 6 43
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3.3. This report provides an update on the Capital programmes as well as a summarised monitoring position as at 17 May 2024 (Period 2). Spending has been split into two separate sections below: General Fund Capital Programme (which includes Education, Social Work, Roads and Other General Services) (Section 4) Housing Capital Programme (Section 5) 4. 2024/2025 Capital Programmes 4.1. General Services – 2024/2025 Budget: Section 3.1 notes that the base programme for General Services is £49.512 million, as approved by Council in February 2024. This base budget is affected by the adjustments detailed in sections 4.2 to 4.10 and summarised in Table 1. 4.2. 2023/24 Carry Forward: As reported in the Final Outturn Report for 2023/2024, a separate report to this meeting, a carry forward total of £14.121 million will ensure sufficient budget is available to conclude ongoing projects within the General Fund Capital Programme. Increase to Budget: £14.121 million 4.3. Net Additional Funding (2023/2024): At the end of 2023/2024, additional funding was received and used to fund expenditure incurred in that year. This has been offset by budget reductions – where externally funded projects have completed under budget, or funding is unable to be carried forward e.g. SPT funded projects such as Lanark Interchange. The net total of this income is an increase to the programme of £0.217 million and this needs to be added to the overall expenditure budget being carried into 2024/2025. Increase to Budget: £0.217 million 4.4. Previous Approvals: The Finance and Corporate Resources Committee, at its meeting on the 1 September 2021, approved funding of £1 million from Reserves towards the Oracle HR/Finance Replacement project. The spend profile means that this will be required in financial year 2024/2025. Increase to Budget: £1.000 million 4.5. Leisure and Culture Transformation Fund: As part of the 2023/2024 Revenue Budget, members approved an allocation of £1.182 million to pay for the cost of borrowing £13 million of capital investment for a Leisure and Culture Transformation Fund. The fund will help modernise the leisure and culture estate, optimise use of assets and assist in the transition towards net zero. 4.6. The Council’s Executive Committee (8 May 2024) approved the first phase of investment from this Fund totalling around £8.4 million. The 2024/2025 programme will be increased to facilitate spend on these projects. Increase to Budget: £8.400 million 44
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4.7. General Capital Grant: In May 2024, the Scottish Government revised our 2024/2025 General Capital Grant allocation to £20.156 million. This is an increase of £0.880 million and reflects the distribution of the previously expected 2024/2025 Renewal of Play Parks allocation of £0.896 million. However, as there is already a allocation of £1.109 million in the 2024/2025 Programme for Play Parks reflecting funding carried forward, no increase to the current year programme is proposed at this stage. This will be added to the 2025/2026 Capital Programme. Should the funds be required in 2024/2025, the budget will be adjusted accordingly. No impact on Budget 4.8. Hairmyres Station Park and Ride: The estimated cost of completing the new park and ride facility at Hairmyres Station is £4.6 million, funded from Glasgow City Region City Deal (£2.000m) and Developer Contributions from the East Kilbride Community Growth Area (£0.600m). The balance of £2 million was originally anticipated from Strathclyde Passenger Transport (SPT) however due to funding reductions to their 2024/2025 budget, this was not added to the original programme. 4.9. Following extensive discussions, Transport Scotland have agreed to provide a letter of comfort stating that they will reimburse the Council in future financial years, if the Council agree to forward fund the £2 million shortfall in funding (through additional borrowing) to allow the project to progress. This letter of comfort is being finalised through Transport Scotland/South Lanarkshire Council discussions before final sign off. Based on this letter of comfort, it is proposed that the Council borrows on a short-term basis, to fund the balance of the project spend (£2 million). This borrowing will be repaid when the funding is received from Transport Scotland. Because the money from Transport Scotland is a future funding stream, the Council is not liable to make any principal repayments on this borrowing until the income is received. The Council will however be liable for interest on the outstanding amount until such times as the balance is repaid. This is estimated at £0.090 million per annum. It is expected that Transport Scotland will provide the funding by 2026/2027. 4.10. The 2024/2025 Capital Programme includes an allocation of £1.979 million for this project, funded by City Deal. It is proposed that the budget be increased by a further £2.6 million to include the additional borrowing (£2 million) as outlined at section 4.10, as well as the developer contributions (£0.600 million). However, because of the anticipated profile of spend, the additional borrowing will be slipped into 2025/2026. When the results of the tender exercise and a programme of works is known, this may be reprofiled. Increase to Budget: £2.6 million Slippage: (£2.0 million) 45
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4.11. 2024/2025 General Services Base Budget Position: Taking into account the movements noted in sections 4.2 to 4.10, the General Services Programme for 2024/2025 is now £73.850 million. This is the base budget for the financial year. This is summarised in Table 1 and is shown in detail, in Appendix 2 to this report. Table 1 – 2024/2025 General Services Base Budget 2024/25 £m Approved Programme – 21 February 2024 (Section 3.1) 49.512 2023/2024 Carry Forward (Section 4.2) 14.121 2023/2024 Additional Funding Received (Section 4.3) 0.217 Previous Approvals (Section 4.4) 1.000 Leisure and Culture Transformation Fund (Section 4.6) 8.400 General Capital Grant (Sections 4.7) - Hairmyres Station Park and Ride (Sections 4.8-4.10) 0.600 2024/2025 General Services Base Budget 73.850 4.12. General Fund – Period 2 Position: Since the budget was approved in February 2024, Resources have submitted amendments to the programme totalling £8.790 million. Based on the profile of spend, £2 million of the £6.795 million Levelling Up Funding for the Three Rivers / Clydesdale Way project will be required in 2024/2025, along with £5.4 million towards the Shawfield Remediation and Development project. In addition, Transport Scotland have advised an increase in the Active Travel Tier 1 Funding allocation in 2024/2025, of which our share will be £0.682 million. Furthermore, funding from Central Energy Efficiency Fund (£0.700m) and the Shared Prosperity Fund (£0.008m) is also required to be added to the 2024/2025 programme. A detailed breakdown of these proposals is included in Appendix 1. If these proposals are approved, the total budget for the year will be revised to £82.640 million. 4.13. The programme spend and funding for the General Fund is summarised in Appendix 3. As noted in Section 4.12 the total Capital Programme for the year is £82.640 million. Budget for the period is £2.020 million and spend to the 17 May 2024 is also £2.020 million. 4.14. Actual funding received to 17 May 2024 is £40.989 million. Relevant officers will continue to closely monitor the generation of all income including receipts. 5. 2024/2025 Housing Programme 5.1. Housing Programme – 2024/2025 Budget: Section 3.2 notes that the total approved Housing Capital programme for the year is £77.303 million. The Final Outturn report for financial year 2023/2024 noted a carry forward of £5.203 million into future years. Further analysis of this budget confirms that £3.418 million is required in 2024/2025, with the remainder being carried forward into future years. 46
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5.2. In addition, the Scottish Government’s Affordable Housing grant for 2024/2025 has now been confirmed. For South Lanarkshire, this will result in a reduction of £3.473 million in the 2024/2025 approved programme. The impact of this is a reduction of 60 in the number of units purchased on the Market Purchase Scheme (down to 60 units from 120, a reduction of £3.000 million). The remaining £0.473m will be met from the reprofiling of spend into future years with discussions ongoing with Scottish Government on the projects that will be grant funded in 2024/25. Future year Affordable Housing grant funding, beyond 2024/2025, has still to be confirmed by the Scottish Government. 5.3. It is noted that the Scottish Government have advised that council’s will receive a share of the £40 million funding for the National Acquisition Programme in 2024/2025. The Council has not been advised of its share of these monies, but this may allow 30 of the 60 units from the Market Purchase Scheme to be reinstated (refer section 5.2). Once this is confirmed, the programme will be amended accordingly. 5.4. As a result of the 2023/2024 carry forward position noted at Section 5.1 and the adjustment at 5.2, a revised programme of £77.248 million is presented for approval for 2024/2025. Programme funding for the year also totals £77.248 million. Appendix 4 summarises the position on the Housing programme as at 17 May 2024. 5.5. Housing Programme – Period 2 Position: Budget for the period is £5.050 million and spend to 17 May 2024 amounts to £5.050 million. As at 17 May 2024, £5.050 million of funding had been received. 6. Employee Implications 6.1. There are no employee implications as a result of this report. 7. Financial Implications 7.1. The General Services and Housing Programme Programmes and their spend position to 17 May 2024 are detailed in sections 4 and 5 respectively. 7.2. Regular monitoring of both the General Fund Programme and the Housing Programme will be carried out in detail by the Financial Resources Scrutiny Forum and reported on a regular basis to this Committee. 8. Other Implications 8.1. The main risk associated with the Council’s Capital Programme is an overspend. The risk has been assessed as low given the detailed project management plans prepared and monitored for each project. The risk of overspend is managed through four weekly Investment management meetings. 9. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 9.1. There are no implications for climate change, sustainability or the environment in terms of the information contained in this report. 10. Equality Impact Assessment and Consultation Arrangements 10.1. This report does not introduce a new policy, function or strategy or recommend a change to existing policy, function or strategy and, therefore, no impact assessment is required. 47
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10.2. There was also no requirement to undertake any consultation in terms of the information contained in this report. Jackie Taylor Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) 7 June 2024 Link(s) to Council Vision/Priorities/Values Accountable, Effective, Efficient and Transparent Previous References ▪ Finance and Corporate Resources Committee, 1 September 2021 ▪ South Lanarkshire Council, 21 February 2024 List of Background Papers Capital Ledger prints to 17 May 2024 Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact: Lorraine O’Hagan, Head of Finance (Strategy) Ext: 2601 (Tel: 01698 452601) E-mail: lorraine.o’hagan@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 48
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Appendix 1 Proposed Adjustments Community and Enterprise Resources Three Rivers / Clydesdale Way The Three Rivers/Clydesdale Way project, which is being led by Dumfries and Galloway Council, is progressing well. Based on the most recent projections, £2 million will be spent in financial year 2024/2025, with the balance of £5.550 million required in 2025/2026. Approval is therefore sought to increase the 2024/2025 Capital Programme by £2 million. This will be funded from the Levelling Up Funding (total £6.795 million). The remaining £4.795 million will be required in financial year 2025/2026 along with the Council’s match funding contribution of £0.755 million. This contribution was approved by the Council previously and moved to financial year 2025/2026 as part of the 2024/2025 Capital Programme Update (February 2024). £2.000m Shawfield Remediation and Development Levelling Up Funding totalling £14.638 million was also awarded to the Shawfield Remediation and Development project, which is being led by Clyde Gateway Urban Regeneration Company (URC). This funding will be paid directly to South Lanarkshire on the basis of biannual claims, which will then be released to Clyde Gateway. Due to the scale of this project, it is considered appropriate to include this significant project in the Capital Programme for monitoring purposes. Both the spend and funding will be transferred to revenue at the end of the financial year, to comply with accounting guidelines. Based on the most recent spend profile received from Clyde Gateway URC, £5.4 million of expenditure will be incurred up to the end of this financial year, with the remaining £9.238 million in 2025/2026. Approval is sought to increase the 2024/2025 Capital Programme by £5.400 million. £5.400m Active Travel Infrastructure Fund (previously Cycling Walking and Safer Routes) The Active Travel Infrastructure grant allocation from the Scottish Government for 2024/2025 has now been confirmed as £2.122 million. This is an increase of £0.682 million from the funding advised previously and included in the 2024/2025 Capital Programme (Cycling, Walking and Safer Routes £1.440 million – approved 21 February 2024). This will be used to deliver active travel interventions that enhance safety and accessibility of existing infrastructure or introduce new provision to travel safely and more conveniently. Projects include new controlled junctions / crossings to facilitate active travel to a public transport interchange, road safety schemes which also enhance active travel and new walking and cycling infrastructure. £0.682m Housing and Technical Resources Central Energy Efficiency Fund (CEEF) The CEEF is a revolving fund. The fund is used to pay for energy efficiency projects each financial year. The fund is then replenished by savings achieved from these projects across an agreed payback period for each project. A new wave of projects is included in the capital programme each financial year. Approval is sought to add energy efficiency projects totalling £0.700 million into the 2024/25 Capital Programme. Projects to be carried out include the installation of £0.700m 49
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photovoltaic panels at a number of primary schools (£0.505 million) along with the Fleet Services Depot (Vista Point), Blantyre (£0.157 million). Furthermore, an additional funding bid of £0.152 million has been submitted to the Scottish Power Energy Networks Transmission Net Zero Fund for a PV installation at Rigside Hall. The Council will be required to contribute 20% match funding, therefore an allocation of £0.038 million has also been included in the 2024/2025 programme, subject to the bid being successful. These works will be funded from the CEEF Fund (£0.200 million) along with an additional one-off contribution from reserves of £0.500 million which was approved as an amendment to the 2024/2025 Council Revenue budget. Minor Adjustments £0.008m TOTAL ADJUSTMENTS £8.790m 50
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APPENDIX 2 SOUTH LANARKSHIRE COUNCIL CAPITAL EXPENDITURE 2024/25 GENERAL FUND PROGRAMME FOR PERIOD 1 APRIL 2024 TO 17 MAY 2024 £m Total Base Budget (including carry forward from 2023/2024) 73.850 Proposed Adjustments – Period 2 8.790 Total Revised Budget 82.640 2024/25 Budget Period 2 Proposed Adjustments Revised 2024/25 Budget Resource £m £m £m Community & Enterprise 50.574 8.090 58.664 Education 8.234 - 8.234 Finance & Corporate 3.086 - 3.086 Housing & Technical 10.929 0.700 11.629 Social Work 1.027 - 1.027 TOTAL CAPITAL PROGRAMME 73.850 8.790 82.640 51
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APPENDIX 3 SOUTH LANARKSHIRE COUNCIL CAPITAL EXPENDITURE 2024/25 GENERAL FUND PROGRAMME FOR PERIOD 1 APRIL 2024 TO 17 MAY 2024 2024/25 Original Estimate inc C/F 2024/25 Revised Budget 2024/25 Budget to 17/05/24 2024/25 Actual to 17/05/24 Expenditure £m £m £m £m General Fund Programme 73.850 82.640 2.020 2.020 Income 2024/25 Budget 2024/25 Revised Budget 2024/25 Actual To 17/05/24 £m £m £m Prudential Borrowing 32.262 32.262 32.262 Developers Contributions 8.800 8.800 0.000 Partners (Including Scotland’s Public Sector Heat Decarbonisaton Fund, Cycling Scotland, Transport Scotland and Wind Farms) 0.891 0.891 0.128 Scottish Government: - Capital Grant 20.156 22.278 3.359 - Cycling, Walking and Safer Routes (now included in General Capital Grant) 1.440 0.000 0.000 - Vacant and Derelict Land 1.793 1.793 1.369 - Regeneration Capital Grant 2.170 2.170 0.993 - Place Based Investment Programme 1.319 1.319 0.921 Shared Prosperity Fund 2.422 2.430 0.000 Levelling Up Fund 0.000 7.400 0.000 Capital Receipts 1.340 1.340 0.000 Specific Reserves 1.257 1.957 1.957 Revenue Contribution 0.000 0.000 0.000 TOTAL FUNDING 73.850 82.640 40.989 52
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APPENDIX 4 SOUTH LANARKSHIRE COUNCIL CAPITAL EXPENDITURE 2024/25 HOUSING PROGRAMME FOR PERIOD 1 APRIL 2024 TO 17 MAY 2024 2024/25 Annual Budget 2024/25 Budget to 17/05/24 2024/25 Actual to 17/05/24 £m £m £m Expenditure 2024/25 Budget 77.248 5.050 5.050 2024/25 Annual Budget 2024/25 Actual to 17/05/24 £m £m INCOME Capital Receipts 0.000 0.053 Capital Receipts – Land Sales 0.000 0.000 Capital Funded from Current Revenue 33.506 4.829 Prudential Borrowing 23.677 0.000 Scottish Government Specific Grant: - New Build 16.945 0.000 - Open Market Purchase Scheme 3.000 0.000 - Mortgage to Rent 0.120 0.000 Other Income 0.000 0.168 77.248 5.050 53
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 26 June 2024 Report by: Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) Subject: Additional Funding from Scottish Government and Other External Sources 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] advise Members of additional funding that has been made available to the Council by the Scottish Government and other external sources since the last report to Committee [1purpose] 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Committee is asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- [recs] (1) that the additional funding totalling £3.320 million, detailed in appendices 1 and 2, be noted. 3. Background 3.1. The Council is periodically advised of additional funding which is made available from the Scottish Government and other sources to enable various initiatives to be undertaken. 3.2. Additional funding may either be paid through the General Revenue / Capital Grant mechanism or by the completion of appropriate grant claims. 3.3. Details of the additional funding are attached in appendices 1 and 2 of the report. The report details additional funding that has been reported by Resources as part of the additional resources notification process, as well as any additional funding that has increased the Council’s budget by more than £0.100 million. 4. Employee Implications 4.1. None. 5. Financial Implications 5.1. Additional Revenue funding of £0.542 million has been identified for 2024/2025. These are detailed in Appendix 1. 5.2. Additional Capital funding of £2.778 million has been identified for 2024/2025. This is detailed in Appendix 2. 5.3. The total additional funding is therefore £3.320 million, and Resource budgets have been updated to reflect this additional funding as required. Where appropriate, details of spending plans will be presented to Resource Committees for approval. 7 55
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6. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 6.1. There are no implications for climate change, sustainability or the environment in terms of the information contained in this report. 7. Other Implications 7.1. There are no other implications in terms of the information contained in this report. 8. Equality Impact Assessment and Consultation Arrangements 8.1. This report does not introduce a new policy, function or strategy or recommend a change to existing policy, function or strategy and, therefore, no impact assessment is required. 7.2. There was also no requirement to undertake any consultation in terms of the information contained in this report. Jackie Taylor Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) 4 June 2024 Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Accountable, Effective, Efficient and Transparent Previous References Executive Committee on 8 May 2024 List of Background Papers Additional Funding Reports 5 May to 6 June 2024 Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact: Lorraine O’Hagan, Head of Finance (Strategy) Ext: 2601 (Tel: 01698 452601) E-mail: lorraine.o’hagan@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 56
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Appendix 1 Additional Revenue Funding Resource Description 2024/2025 £m Total £m Method Finance and Corporate Discretionary Housing Payments – Tranche 2 2023/2024 – national underspends allocated to councils for use in 2024/2025. 0.347 0.347 Scottish Government – General Revenue Grant Community and Enterprise Employability Child Poverty Co-ordinator posts for 2024/2025. 0.195 0.195 Scottish Government – General Revenue Grant TOTAL REVENUE FUNDING 0.542 0.542 57
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Appendix 2 Additional Capital Funding Resource Description 2024/2025 £m Total £m Method Education Public Sector Heat Decarbonisation Fund Grant funding allocation of £1.2 million has been received from Salix to contribute towards retrofitting the heating system at Our Lady of Lourdes Primary School, East Kilbride. 1.200 1.200 Salix – Public Sector Heat Decarbonisation Fund Community & Enterprise Active Travel – Tier 1 Funding 2024/2025 The full award is £2.122 million, however, £1.440 million of Cycling, Walking and Safer Routes funding, was already advised and is now rolled up into the Active Travel award. £0.682 million is the net increase. 0.682 0.682 Transport Scotland (via General Capital Grant) Community & Enterprise Capital Grant for Play Parks This is the Council’s allocation of the fourth annual national funding for playparks. 0.896 0.896 General Capital Grant TOTAL CAPITAL FUNDING 2.778 2.778 58
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 26 June 2024 Report by: Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) Subject: Employee Workforce Monitoring Information - April 2023 to March 2024 Yearly Summary 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] provide employment information relating to the Council for the period April 2023 to March 2024 [1purpose] 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Committee is asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- [recs] (1) that the following employment information for April 2023 to March 2024 relating to the Council be noted:- attendance statistics occupational health accidents/incidents discipline, grievance and Dignity at Work employee development labour turnover/analysis of leavers and exit interviews recruitment monitoring Staffing Watch as at 9 March 2024 [1recs] 3. Background 3.1. As part of the Council’s performance management arrangements, the following monitoring information is submitted to the Executive Committee. This report for the Council provides information on the position for the period April 2023 to March 2024. 4. Attendance Statistics 4.1. Information on absence statistics for April 2023 to March 2024 for the Council and each Resource is provided in Appendices 1 – 8. Points to note are: the Council’s average absence rate for April 2023 to March 2024 was 5.4%, a decrease of 0.3% when compared to the previous year the APT&C average absence rate for April 2023 to March 2024 was 5.4%, this figure remains unchanged when compared to the previous year the teaching staff average absence rate for April 2023 to March 2024 was 3.3%, a decrease of 0.1% when compared with the previous year the manual workers’ average absence rate for April 2023 to March 2024 was 7.2%, a decrease of 0.9% when compared with the previous year 8 59
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In comparison to April 2023 to March 2024 (Appendix 8): psychological and musculoskeletal conditions are the main reasons for absence total days lost due to musculoskeletal conditions have increased by 1,967 days total days lost due to psychological conditions have increased by 1,868 days total days lost due to stomach, bowel, blood and metabolic disorders have decreased by 496 days total days lost due to respiratory conditions have decreased by 11,101 days 5. Occupational Health 5.1. Information on Occupational Health for the period April 2023 to March 2024 is provided in Appendix 9:- over the year musculoskeletal and psychological conditions were the main reasons for medical referrals; this remains unchanged from the previous year during the year there were a total of 1,493 employees referred for a medical examination and when compared to the previous year this represents an increase of 4 employees being referred during the period, a total of 1,998 employees attended physiotherapy treatment, which is an increase of 71 when compared to the previous year. Of the 1,998 employees referred, 67% remained at work whilst undertaking treatment over the year 1,903 employees were referred to the Employee Support Officer, an increase of 90 when compared to the previous year. Of those referrals made during the period, 87% related to personal issues during the year there were 719 referrals for counselling, this represents an overall increase of 119 referrals when compared with the same period last year over the year a total of 31 employees were referred for Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, an increase of 15 when compared to the same period last year 6. Accidents/Incidents 6.1. The accident/incident report for the period April 2023 to March 2024 is contained in Appendix 10:- the number of accidents/incidents recorded for the year was 1,879, an increase of 137 when compared to April 2022 – March 2023 the number of specified injuries/incidents recorded was 9, this is an increase of 3 when compared to April 2022 – March 2023 the number overall of minor accidents/incidents recorded for the year April 2023- March 2024 is 1,820 this in an increased by 138 when compared with April 2022 – March 2023 the number of accidents resulting in an absence lasting over 3 days recorded for the period April 2023 – March 2024 is 7, this is a decrease by 2 when compared with April 2022 – March 2023 the number of accidents resulting in an absence lasting over 7 days recorded for the period April 2023 - March 2024 is 43, this is a decrease of 2 when compared with April 2022 – March 2023 60
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7. Discipline, Grievance, Dignity at Work 7.1. Information on Disciplinary, Grievance Hearings and Dignity at Work for the period April 2023 to March 2024 is contained in Appendices 11 and 12:- during the period, a total of 175 disciplinary hearings were held across Resources within the Council, which represents an increase of 9 when compared to April 2022 to March 2023. Action was taken in 161 of these cases. There were 2 Resource appeals raised against the outcomes our target is to convene disciplinary hearings within 6 weeks. During the period 83% of hearings met this target which represents an increase of 10% when compared to the same period last year during the year, 14 appeals were submitted to the Appeals Panel, of which 1 was upheld in part and 9 were not upheld. Four appeals were withdrawn during the year at the end of March 2024, 3 Appeals Panels were pending overall, 18 grievances were raised during the year, this figure remains unchanged when compared with the previous year there were 11 Dignity at Work incidents raised this year, an increase of 3 when compared with the previous year during the period, 5 referrals for mediation were submitted, this figure remains unchanged when compared with the previous year 8. Employee Development 8.1. Information on Employee Development for the period April 2023 to March 2024 is contained in Appendices 13 and 13a:- the Council is committed to ensuring that every employee is provided with the opportunity to undertake learning and development which relates to their job during this period there were 12,010 attendances at classroom learning and development events. There were 4,396 attendances at virtual classroom learning and development events as our Learn on Line continues to develop, employees have successfully completed 125,325 e-learning packages covering a wide variety of subjects 9. Labour Turnover/Analysis of Leavers and Exit Interviews 9.1. Labour Turnover Information on the number of leavers and exit interviews for the period April 2023 – March 2024 is contained in Appendix 14. Exit interviews are conducted with leavers who leave voluntarily. The Council’s labour turnover figure for April 2023 to March 2024 is 4.7% and this figure has decreased by 0.3% when compared to the same period last year. 9.2. Analysis of Leavers and Exit Interviews during April 2023 to March 2024 there were 713 leavers eligible for an exit interview, a decrease of 41 when compared with April 2022 to March 2023 there were 224 Exit interviews carried out in April 2023 to March 2024 which represents 31% of leavers, this is a decrease of 56 Exit interviews which represents a decrease of 6% of leavers when compared with April 2022 to March 2023 61
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9.3. Managers are asked to identify whether they intended to replace the employee who had left the Council. If they indicated that they did not intend to replace the employee, they were asked to select from five options:- plan to hold for savings leave post vacant pending a savings / service review fill on a fixed term basis pending savings transfer budget to another post end of fixed term contract 9.4. During April 2023 - March 2024, 1,754 employees (1270.47 FTE) left employment and managers indicated that 1,587 posts (1157.24 FTE) would be replaced. 44 posts (10.92 FTE) were being filled on a temporary basis, 1 post (0.95 FTE) was planning to transfer the budget to other post, 78 posts (67.12 FTE) were due to the end of fixed term contracts, 37 posts (29.11 FTE) were being left vacant pending a savings or service review and 7 posts (5.13 FTE) were to be removed for savings. 10. Recruitment Monitoring 10.1. Information on Recruitment Monitoring for the period April 2023 to March 2024 is contained within Appendix 15. From an analysis of Equal Opportunities Monitoring Forms, the main points to note are:- 96% of applicants completed an Equal Opportunities Monitoring Form, which is a decrease of 1% when compared with April 2022 to March 2023 of the 529 applicants who declared themselves as disabled, 284 were shortleeted for interview and 35 were appointed. This compares to 296 applicants the previous year, of which 176 applicants were shortleeted and 39 were appointed of the 1,900 applicants from a black/ethnic background, 538 were shortleeted for interview and 57 were appointed. This compares to 634 applicants the previous year, of which 217 were shortleeted and 39 were appointed of the 161 applicants who declared themselves as a Veteran, 82 were shortleeted for interview and 3 were appointed. This compares to 148 applicants the previous year, of which 90 were shortleeted and 1 was appointed 11. Staffing Watch 11.1. Details of the number of employees in post at 9 March 2024 are contained in Appendix 16. There were 14,969 employees in post as at 9 March 2024 compared to 14,983 as at 11 March 2023, a decrease of 14 employees. 12. Employee Implications 12.1. There are no implications for employees arising from the information presented in this report. 13. Financial Implications 13.1. All financial implications are accommodated within existing budgets. 14. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 14.1. There are no Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications arising from the information presented in this report. 62
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15. Other Implications 15.1. There are no implications for sustainability or risk in terms of the information contained within this report. 16. Equality Impact Assessment and Consultation Arrangements 16.1. This report does not introduce a new policy, function or strategy or recommend a change to an existing policy, function or strategy and, therefore, no impact assessment is required 16.2. There was no requirement to undertake any consultation in terms of the information contained in this report. Jackie Taylor Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) 23 May 2024 Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Accountable, effective, efficient and transparent Fair, open and sustainable Ambitious, self aware and improving Excellent employer Focused on people and their needs Working with and respecting others Previous References 21 June 2023 List of Background Papers monitoring information provided by Resources Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact:- Elaine Maxwell, HR Business Manager Ext: 4647 (Tel: 01698 454647) E-mail: Elaine.Maxwell@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 63
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2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 % % % % % % % % % % % % April 4.1 5.2 5.2 April 2.5 2.7 2.8 April 6.2 8.8 7.0 April 4.3 5.6 5.1 May 4.7 5.0 5.1 May 3.2 3.6 3.2 May 6.7 7.6 6.2 May 4.9 5.4 5.1 June 4.4 5.0 4.9 June 2.6 2.6 2.2 June 7.0 8.1 6.5 June 4.7 5.3 4.7 July 4.1 4.5 4.0 July 1.1 1.4 1.1 July 6.3 7.4 5.8 July 4.0 4.6 3.8 August 4.6 4.3 4.2 August 2.0 1.4 1.3 August 7.3 7.4 6.2 August 4.7 4.4 4.1 September 6.1 5.2 5.2 September 4.4 2.8 2.9 September 8.5 8.0 7.6 September 6.4 5.4 5.3 October 6.0 5.7 5.2 October 4.1 3.4 2.7 October 8.7 8.1 7.1 October 6.3 5.8 5.1 November 6.5 6.3 6.1 November 5.6 4.7 4.3 November 8.7 8.6 8.1 November 6.9 6.5 6.2 December 6.2 6.7 6.7 December 6.1 5.3 4.8 December 8.8 8.9 7.8 December 6.9 7.0 6.6 January 6.7 5.2 5.8 January 3.9 4.3 4.8 January 10.1 8.0 7.8 January 7.0 5.8 6.1 February 6.5 5.7 6.3 February 3.7 4.1 4.9 February 9.5 7.9 8.0 February 6.6 5.9 6.4 March 8.0 6.2 6.3 March 4.3 4.6 4.1 March 11.3 8.3 8.1 March 7.9 6.4 6.3 Annual Average 5.7 5.4 5.4 Annual Average 3.6 3.4 3.3 Annual Average 8.3 8.1 7.2 Annual Average 5.9 5.7 5.4 7673 3983 4409 16065No of Employees at 31 March 2024 Appendix 1 Absence Trends - 2021/2022, 2022/2023 & 2023/2024 Council Wide APT&C Teachers No of Employees at 31 March 2024 No of Employees at 31 March 2024 Manual Workers Council Wide No of Employees at 31 March 2024 64
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2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 % % % % % % % % % % % % April 2.3 4.4 3.6 April 5.7 7.3 6.3 April 5.2 6.9 6.0 April 4.3 5.6 5.1 May 2.7 3.9 3.7 May 6.4 6.8 6.3 May 5.9 6.3 5.9 May 4.9 5.4 5.1 June 2.8 3.5 4.3 June 6.6 7.2 5.9 June 6.0 6.7 5.7 June 4.7 5.3 4.7 July 2.9 3.9 2.3 July 5.3 5.9 4.6 July 4.9 5.6 4.3 July 4.0 4.6 3.8 August 2.9 3.4 3.0 August 6.4 6.6 5.2 August 5.9 6.1 4.9 August 4.7 4.4 4.1 September 3.4 3.1 2.5 September 8.2 7.9 7.1 September 7.5 7.1 6.4 September 6.4 5.4 5.3 October 3.8 5.1 2.0 October 7.9 7.5 7.0 October 7.3 7.1 6.3 October 6.3 5.8 5.1 November 3.5 4.2 2.6 November 8.0 8.3 8.1 November 7.3 7.7 7.3 November 6.9 6.5 6.2 December 4.2 3.7 3.0 December 8.0 8.8 7.5 December 7.4 8.0 6.8 December 6.9 7.0 6.6 January 3.6 2.6 3.6 January 9.6 7.4 7.4 January 8.6 6.7 6.9 January 7.0 5.8 6.1 February 4.4 3.6 4.0 February 9.5 7.4 7.8 February 8.7 6.9 7.2 February 6.6 5.9 6.4 March 6.0 3.9 3.2 March 11.0 7.9 7.9 March 10.2 7.3 7.2 March 7.9 6.4 6.3 Annual Average 3.5 3.8 3.2 Annual Average 7.7 7.4 6.8 Annual Average 7.1 6.9 6.2 Annual Average 5.9 5.7 5.4 527 2805 3332 16065 Appendix 2 Absence Trends - 2021/2022, 2022/2023 & 2023/2024 Community and Enterprise Resources APT&C Council WideManual Workers Resource Total No of Employees at 31 March 2024 No of Employees at 31 March 2024 No of Employees at 31 March 2024 No of Employees at 31 March 2024 65
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2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 % % % % % % % % % % % % April 4.8 5.5 5.0 April 2.5 2.7 2.8 April 3.5 4.0 3.8 April 4.3 5.6 5.1 May 5.7 5.5 5.4 May 3.2 3.6 3.2 May 4.4 4.5 4.2 May 4.9 5.4 5.1 June 4.7 5.1 4.8 June 2.6 2.6 2.2 June 3.5 3.7 3.4 June 4.7 5.3 4.7 July 3.4 3.8 3.4 July 1.1 1.4 1.1 July 2.1 2.5 2.2 July 4.0 4.6 3.8 August 3.8 3.6 4.0 August 2.0 1.4 1.3 August 2.8 2.4 2.5 August 4.7 4.4 4.1 September 6.4 5.8 5.9 September 4.4 2.8 2.9 September 5.3 4.1 4.3 September 6.4 5.4 5.3 October 6.6 6.5 5.5 October 4.1 3.4 2.7 October 5.2 4.8 4.0 October 6.3 5.8 5.1 November 8.0 7.9 7.1 November 5.6 4.7 4.3 November 6.7 6.2 5.6 November 6.9 6.5 6.2 December 8.0 8.5 8.1 December 6.1 5.3 4.8 December 7.0 6.8 6.3 December 6.9 7.0 6.6 January 8.1 6.1 6.6 January 3.9 4.3 4.8 January 5.8 5.1 5.6 January 7.0 5.8 6.1 February 7.2 6.8 7.2 February 3.7 4.1 4.9 February 5.3 5.4 6.0 February 6.6 5.9 6.4 March 9.5 7.0 7.5 March 4.3 4.6 4.1 March 6.7 5.7 5.7 March 7.9 6.4 6.3 Annual Average 6.4 6.0 5.9 Annual Average 3.6 3.4 3.3 Annual Average 4.9 4.6 4.5 Annual Average 5.9 5.7 5.4 3542 3983 7525 16065No of Employees at 31 March 2024 No of Employees at 31 March 2024 No of Employees at 31 March 2024 No of Employees at 31 March 2024 Appendix 3 Absence Trends - 2021/2022, 2022/2023 & 2023/2024 Education Resources Council WideAPT&C Teachers Resource Total 66
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2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 % % % % % % % % % % % % April 2.6 2.8 3.6 April 0.0 0.0 0.0 April 2.6 2.8 3.6 April 4.3 5.6 5.1 May 3.3 3.2 3.9 May 0.0 0.0 0.0 May 3.3 3.2 3.9 May 4.9 5.4 5.1 June 3.5 4.0 4.2 June 0.0 0.0 0.0 June 3.5 4.0 4.2 June 4.7 5.3 4.7 July 3.3 3.9 3.5 July 0.0 0.0 0.0 July 3.3 3.9 3.5 July 4.0 4.6 3.8 August 3.6 4.1 3.8 August 0.0 0.0 0.0 August 3.6 4.1 3.8 August 4.7 4.4 4.1 September 4.0 3.6 3.9 September 0.0 0.0 0.0 September 4.0 3.6 3.9 September 6.4 5.4 5.3 October 3.6 3.8 3.2 October 0.0 0.0 0.0 October 3.6 3.8 3.2 October 6.3 5.8 5.1 November 4.3 3.4 3.5 November 0.0 0.0 0.0 November 4.3 3.4 3.5 November 6.9 6.5 6.2 December 3.8 4.3 3.3 December 0.0 0.0 0.0 December 3.8 4.3 3.3 December 6.9 7.0 6.6 January 3.8 4.3 2.8 January 0.0 0.0 0.0 January 3.8 4.3 2.8 January 7.0 5.8 6.1 February 3.4 3.8 3.5 February 0.0 0.0 0.0 February 3.4 3.8 3.5 February 6.6 5.9 6.4 March 3.4 3.8 2.6 March 0.0 0.0 0.0 March 3.4 3.8 2.6 March 7.9 6.4 6.3 Annual Average 3.6 3.8 3.5 Annual Average 0.0 0.0 0.0 Annual Average 3.6 3.8 3.5 Annual Average 5.9 5.7 5.4 879 0 879 16065 Manual Workers No of Employees at 31 March 2024 Resource Total No of Employees at 31 March 2024 Appendix 4 Absence Trends - 2021/2022, 2022/2023 & 2023/2024 Finance and Corporate Resources No of Employees at 31 March 2024 No of Employees at 31 March 2024 APT&C Council Wide 67
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2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 % % % % % % % % % % % % April 3.2 5.5 5.7 April 3.6 10.6 6.9 April 3.3 7.6 6.2 April 4.3 5.6 5.1 May 2.9 4.5 4.9 May 4.2 8.1 6.1 May 3.4 6.0 5.4 May 4.9 5.4 5.1 June 3.5 4.9 5.4 June 6.2 8.5 6.8 June 4.6 6.4 6.0 June 4.7 5.3 4.7 July 4.0 5.5 5.0 July 5.7 8.9 8.1 July 4.7 6.9 6.2 July 4.0 4.6 3.8 August 4.9 4.7 5.1 August 7.9 7.1 8.5 August 6.2 5.7 6.4 August 4.7 4.4 4.1 September 5.8 4.5 4.7 September 8.1 6.3 7.8 September 6.8 5.2 6.0 September 6.4 5.4 5.3 October 5.2 4.3 4.9 October 9.0 7.8 5.2 October 6.8 5.8 5.0 October 6.3 5.8 5.1 November 5.7 4.6 4.8 November 9.2 7.8 6.7 November 7.2 5.9 5.6 November 6.9 6.5 6.2 December 4.6 4.4 5.1 December 9.5 7.2 7.4 December 6.7 5.6 6.0 December 6.9 7.0 6.6 January 5.2 4.5 4.4 January 8.8 5.5 6.0 January 6.7 4.9 5.0 January 7.0 5.8 6.1 February 6.4 4.4 5.2 February 8.5 6.2 6.3 February 7.3 5.1 5.6 February 6.6 5.9 6.4 March 7.8 5.3 5.3 March 10.7 6.8 7.2 March 9.0 5.9 6.1 March 7.9 6.4 6.3 Annual Average 4.9 4.8 5.0 Annual Average 7.6 7.6 6.9 Annual Average 6.1 5.9 5.8 Annual Average 5.9 5.7 5.4 875 565 1440 16065No of Employees at 31 March 2024No of Employees at 31 March 2024 No of Employees at 31 March 2024 No of Employees at 31 March 2024 Appendix 5 Housing & Technical Resources Resource Total Absence Trends - 2021/2022, 2022/2023 & 2023/2024 APT&C Manual Workers Council Wide 68
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2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 2021 / 2022 2022 / 2023 2023 / 2024 % % % % % % % % % % % % April 4.5 6.2 6.5 April 9.6 12.6 9.4 April 6.2 8.3 7.4 April 4.3 5.6 5.1 May 5.0 5.7 5.8 May 9.3 10.1 8.4 May 6.5 7.1 6.6 May 4.9 5.4 5.1 June 3.9 5.9 5.5 June 7.6 11.3 8.6 June 5.2 7.6 6.5 June 4.7 5.3 4.7 July 6.1 6.0 5.4 July 10.3 11.8 8.8 July 7.5 7.9 6.5 July 4.0 4.6 3.8 August 7.3 6.0 4.8 August 10.2 10.8 8.6 August 8.2 7.5 6.0 August 4.7 4.4 4.1 September 7.6 5.9 5.6 September 10.3 9.6 9.3 September 8.5 7.1 6.8 September 6.4 5.4 5.3 October 6.9 5.8 6.5 October 11.3 10.4 8.5 October 8.4 7.3 7.1 October 6.3 5.8 5.1 November 6.2 6.0 7.3 November 10.8 10.4 9.0 November 7.7 7.4 7.8 November 6.9 6.5 6.2 December 5.5 6.4 7.4 December 11.1 10.6 9.5 December 7.3 7.7 8.1 December 6.9 7.0 6.6 January 7.4 5.2 7.0 January 13.0 12.0 10.3 January 9.2 7.4 8.1 January 7.0 5.8 6.1 February 7.5 5.8 7.0 February 10.1 11.0 9.9 February 8.3 7.5 7.9 February 6.6 5.9 6.4 March 8.0 7.0 7.1 March 12.8 10.9 9.4 March 9.5 8.2 7.9 March 7.9 6.4 6.3 Annual Average 6.3 6.0 6.3 Annual Average 10.5 11.0 9.1 Annual Average 7.7 7.6 7.2 Annual Average 5.9 5.7 5.4 1850 1039 2889 16065No of Employees at 31 March 2024 No of Employees at 31 March 2024 No of Employees at 31 March 2024 No of Employees at 31 March 2024 Appendix 6 Absence Trends - 2021/2022, 2022/2023 & 2023/2024 Social Work Resources APT&C Council WideResource TotalManual Workers 69
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Appendix 7 Community and Enterprise 2.2 4.0 6.2 Education 1.6 2.8 4.5 Finance and Corporate 1.3 2.2 3.5 Housing & Technical 2.0 3.8 5.8 Social Work 2.4 4.9 7.2 Council Overall for April 2023 - March 2024 1.9 3.5 5.4 Absence by Long and Short Term From: 1 April 2023 - 31 March 2024 Resource Total Long Term % April 2023 - March 2024 Total Short Term % Resource Total Absence % 70
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Appendix 8 Reason Total Work Days Lost % of Work Days Lost Psychological 72326 36 Musculoskeletal 44456 21 Respiratory 27859 13 Stomach 19375 9 Others 44385 21 Total Days Lost 208401 100 Reason Total Work Days Lost % of Work Days Lost Psychological 70458 32 Musculoskeletal 42489 19 Respiratory 38960 18 Stomach 19871 9 Others 47532 22 Total Days Lost 219310 100 Absence Monitoring Absence Classifications From 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024 From 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023 71
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FROM: 1 April 2023 - 31 March 2024 comparison with 1 April 2022 - 31 March 2023 Teachers Others 419 169 216 48 229 412 422 130 194 84 227 432 RESOURCE Apr-Mar 2022/23 Apr-Mar 2023/24 RESOURCE Apr-Mar 2022/23 Apr-Mar 2023/24 RESOURCE Apr-Mar 2022/23 Apr-Mar 2023/24 Community and Enterprise 475 531 Community and Enterprise 383 414 Community and Enterprise 0 0 Education (Teachers) 307 277 Education 757 798 Education 7 9 Education (Others) 375 385 Finance and Corporate 96 94 Finance and Corporate 0 0 Finance and Corporate 87 91 Housing and Technical 128 146 Housing and Technical 0 3 Housing and Technical 210 249 Social Work 449 451 Social Work 1 6 Social Work 473 465 Total 1813 1903 8 13 Total 1927 1998 Total 16 31 M S M S M S M S M S M S Total (Apr-Mar 2023/24) 140 0 0 0 359 0 94 0 126 0 719 0 Total (Apr-Mar 2022/23) 134 0 0 0 398 0 10 0 58 0 600 0 719 600 M = Management Referral S = Self Referral Appendix 9 Total Referrals (Apr-Mar 2023/24) Total Referrals (Apr-Mar 2022/23) Analysis of Counselling Referrals by Cause Reason Work Stress Addiction Personal Anxiety/ Depression Bereavement Total Total (Apr-Mar 2023/24) 1493 Total (Apr-Mar 2022/23) 1489 No of Employees Referred For Physiotherapy No of Employees Referred To Employee Support Officer No of Employees Referred For Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Not Disclose Occupational Health Reports Medical Referrals Community and Enterprise Education Finance and Corporate Housing & Technical Social Work Totals 72
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2022/23 2023/24 2022/23 2023/24 2022/23 2023/24 2022/23 2023/24 2022/23 2023/24 2022/23 2023/24 Specified Injury 1 3 2 4 0 0 0 0 3 2 6 9 Violent Incident: Physical 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Specified Injury* 1 3 2 4 0 0 0 0 3 2 6 9 Over 7-day 23 24 6 6 0 0 8 4 8 9 44 43 Violent Incident: Physical 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Violent Incident: Verbal 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Over 7-day** 23 24 6 6 0 0 8 4 8 9 45 43 Over 3-day 1 1 4 2 0 0 1 1 3 3 9 7 Violent Incident: Physical 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Violent Incident: Verbal 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Over 3-day** 1 1 4 2 0 0 1 1 3 3 9 7 Minor 81 97 63 78 3 3 17 17 69 64 233 259 Near Miss 17 25 7 15 0 0 4 3 3 4 31 47 Violent Incident: Physical 14 31 1208 1253 0 0 1 0 45 65 1268 1349 Violent Incident: Verbal 15 15 105 127 1 1 7 5 22 17 150 165 Total Minor*** 127 168 1383 1473 4 4 29 25 139 150 1682 1820 Total Accidents/Incidents 152 196 1395 1485 4 4 38 30 153 164 1742 1879 *A Specified Injury is any fracture (other than to the fingers, thumbs or toes), amputation, loss of sight, serious burns, crushing injury, scalping, loss of consciousness caused by asphyxiation/ head injury, a chemical or hot metal burn to the eye or penetrating injury as defined by the HSE. **Over 3 day / over 7day absence is an injury sustained outwith major injury category that results in a period of absence of absence as defined by the HSE. *** A minor injury is an injury not covered by " Over 7-day", "Over 3-day" or "Specified". Analysis of Accidents/Incidents Appendix 10 Comparison Cause of Accidents/Incidents to Employees Community and Enterprise Education Finance and Corporate Housing & Tech Social Work TOTAL FROM: 1 April 2023 - 31 March 2024 comparison with 1 April 2022 - 31 March 2023 73
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APT&C Manual / Craft Teachers Total APT&C Manual / Craft Teachers Total Community and Enterprise 1 98 N/A 99 0 4 N/A 4 1 94 N/A 95 64 19 16 84% Education 7 13 12 32 0 5 3 8 7 8 9 24 18 5 9 72% Finance and Corporate 4 2 N/A 6 0 0 N/A 0 4 2 N/A 6 4 1 1 83% Housing and Technical 4 6 N/A 10 0 1 N/A 1 4 5 N/A 9 6 4 0 100% Social Work 3 25 N/A 28 0 1 N/A 1 3 24 N/A 27 17 7 4 86% Total (Apr-Mar 2023/24) 19 144 12 175 0 11 3 14 19 133 9 161 109 36 30 83% Total (Apr-Mar 2022/23) 20 141 5 166 2 15 1 18 18 126 4 148 86 36 44 73% APT&C Manual/ Craft Teachers Total APT&C Manual/ Craft Teachers Total APT&C Manual/ Craft Teachers Total Total (Apr-Mar 2023/24) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total (Apr-Mar 2022/23) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 *Resources nil responses are not included in figures Appeal's Panel FROM: 1 April 2023 - 31 March 2024 Appeal's Panel 4-6 Upheld in Part Not Upheld Total Appendix 11 Withdrawn 6+ % Held within 6 Weeks Upheld in Part Record of Disciplinary Hearings No of weeks to convene Disciplinary Hearing Total Manual/ Craft Upheld N.B. Non-White employees refers to those employees who have indicated that they are:- Any other mixed background, Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Chinese, Any other Asian background, Caribbean, African and any other black background. No Action Outcome of Disciplinary Hearings Teachers 3 RESOURCE APT&C Action Taken 0 1 9 10 Upheld Outcome of Appeals RESOURCE Total No of Appeals APT&C Not Upheld 34 Appeals Pending FROM: 1 April 2023 - 31 March 2024 comparison with 1 April 2022 - 31 March 2023 Appeals pending to date No of Disciplinary Hearings Manual/ Craft Teachers 74
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Record of Grievances Grievances No of Grievances No Resolved at Stage 1 No Resolved at Stage 2 No Resolved at Stage 3 Still in Process Community and Enterprise 6 0 5 0 1 Education 5 2 3 0 0 Finance and Corporate 0 0 0 0 0 Housing and Technical 5 0 5 0 0 Social Work 2 0 2 0 0 Total (Apr-Mar 2023/24) 18 2 15 0 1 Total (Apr-Mar 2022/23) 18 2 13 3 0 Dignity at Work Dignity at Work No of Incidents No Resolved at Informal Stage No Resolved at Formal Stage No of Appeals Appeals in Process Still in Process Community and Enterprise 2 0 2 0 0 0 Education 0 0 0 0 0 0 Finance and Corporate 0 0 0 0 0 0 Housing and Technical 7 0 7 0 0 0 Social Work 2 0 1 0 0 1 Total (Apr-Mar 2023/24) 11 0 10 0 0 1 Total (Apr-Mar 2022/23) 8 0 8 0 0 0 FROM: 1 April 2023 - 31 March 2024 comparison with 1 April 2022 - 31 March 2023 FROM: 1 April 2023 - 31 March 2024 comparison with 1 April 2022 - 31 March 2023 Appendix 12a 75
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Referrals for Workplace Mediation Workplace Mediation Apr-23 May-23 Jun-23 Jul-23 Aug-23 Sep-23 Oct-23 Nov-23 Dec-23 Jan-24 Feb-24 Mar-24 No of Referrals 0 2 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 *No of Successful Cases 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 *No of Unsuccessful Cases 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 No of cases unsuitable for mediation 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Workplace Mediation Apr-22 May-22 Jun-22 Jul-22 Aug-22 Sep-22 Oct-22 Nov-22 Dec-22 Jan-23 Feb-23 Mar-23 No of Referrals 0 0 1 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 *No of Successful Cases 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 *No of Unsuccessful Cases 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 No of cases unsuitable for mediation 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 *successful/unsuccessful case outcomes may be shown outwith the month they were referred. Appendix 12b As at March 2024 76
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Attended classroom based training Community and Enterprise 2810 Education 4264 Finance and Corporate 100 Housing and Technical 1117 Social Work 3719 Total 12,010 Attended training delivered virtually Community and Enterprise 86 Education 2176 Finance and Corporate 310 Housing and Technical 241 Social Work 1583 Total 4,396 Courses Completed / Passed Community and Enterprise 25837 Education 48211 Finance and Corporate 5079 Housing and Technical 13590 Social Work 32608 Total 125,325 Employee Development 1 April 2023 - 31 March 2024 Appendix 13 77
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Percentage (%) Count Male 30.5% 6294 Female 69.5% 14334 Disabled 1.1% 217 Not Disabled 78.0% 15764 Not Disclosed 4.4% 893 Not Entered 16.5% 3330 White - Scottish 72.3% 14910 White - Other British 2.4% 488 White - Irish 0.4% 82 White - Any other Background 0.7% 146 Asian - Pakistani 0.2% 30 All Others 24.1% 4973 21 Years 1.2% 246 21-29 Years 23.6% 4870 30-39 Years 19.6% 4035 40-49 Years 20.4% 4203 50-59 Years 23.4% 4824 60-65 Years 9.2% 1907 Over 65 Years 2.6% 544 Finance and Corporate Resources Appendix 13a Employee Development Monitoring Stats for all Training - 1 April 2023 - 31 March 2024 78
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Appendix 14 Exit Interviews (Apr-Mar 2023/24) Reason for leaving Community and Enterprise Education Finance and Corporate Housing & Technical Social Work Total % Career Advancement 15 43 7 12 28 105 47% Personal Reasons 3 15 3 4 8 33 15% Moving outwith area 2 7 2 2 3 16 7% Disatisfaction with terms and conditions 6 3 1 2 1 13 6% Poor relationship with managers / colleagues 7 1 1 2 1 12 5% Travelling difficulties 1 1 0 1 4 7 3% Further Education 0 4 0 0 2 6 3% Child Caring / Caring Responsibilities 2 0 1 0 3 6 3% Other 15 5 0 0 6 26 12% Number of exit interviews conducted 51 79 15 23 56 224 Total no. of leavers per Resource eligible for an exit interview 187 279 37 57 153 713 % of leavers interviewed 27% 28% 41% 40% 37% 31% Exit Interviews (Apr-Mar 2022/23) Number of exit interviews conducted 34 121 14 22 89 280 Total no. of leavers per Resource eligible for an exit interview 176 280 54 50 194 754 % of leavers interviewed 19% 43% 26% 44% 46% 37% * Note these totals include temporary employees Analysis of Leavers and Exit Interviews 79
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Resource Total FTE* Total H/C** FTE H/C FTE H/C FTE H/C FTE H/C FTE H/C FTE H/C Community & Enterprise 337.79 541 271.96 469 3.63 5 0.00 0 57.74 61 4.46 6 0.00 0 Education 539.33 674 522.05 652 4.48 5 0.00 0 4.03 5 7.24 10 1.53 2 Finance & Corporate 67.48 87 62.08 81 1.00 1 0.00 0 0.00 0 3.40 4 1.00 1 Housing & Technical 100.64 125 95.93 119 0.00 0 0.00 0 2.11 3 2.00 2 0.60 1 Social Work 225.23 327 205.22 266 1.81 33 0.95 1 3.24 9 12.01 15 2.00 3 Total 1270.47 1754 1157.24 1587 10.92 44 0.95 1 67.12 78 29.11 37 5.13 7 Cumulative Grand Total 1270.47 1754 1157.24 1587 10.92 44 0.95 1 67.12 78 29.11 37 5.13 7 Appendix 14a April 2023 - March 2024 Number of leavers Replace Employee Filling on a temp basis Plan to transfer this budget to another post End of fixed term post Leave vacant pending savings or service review Plan to remove for savings 80
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Appendix 15 Applied Interviewed Appointed % of Applicants interviewed % of Applicants appointed % of Interviewees appointed 14979 5346 1235 36% 8% 23% 4963 1598 344 32% 7% 22% 9986 3335 829 33% 8% 25% 529 284 35 54% 7% 12% 11558 3773 869 33% 8% 23% 3686 1266 307 34% 8% 24% 12896 4516 1125 35% 9% 25% 1900 538 57 28% 3% 11% 161 82 3 51% 2% 4% Applied Interviewed Appointed % of Applicants interviewed % of Applicants appointed % of Interviewees appointed 11427 5953 1974 52% 17% 33% 3543 1929 475 54% 13% 25% 7836 3908 1369 50% 17% 35% 296 176 39 59% 13% 22% 9215 4699 1457 51% 16% 31% 2079 1078 379 52% 18% 35% 10647 5551 1783 52% 17% 32% 634 217 39 34% 6% 18% 148 90 1 61% 1% 0% Total No of applicants aged over 50 Total No of White applicants Total No of Black/Ethnic minority applicants* Total No of Veteran applicants *Black/Ethnic Minority applicants includes Mixed, Asian, Black and other backgrounds. Gender / Disability / Age Total EO Forms Received Total No of Male Applicants Total No of Female Applicants Total No of Disabled Applicants Total No of applicants aged under 50 Total Number of Equal Opportunities Monitoring forms received: 11427 (97%) Total Number of posts recruited for: 2393 Total Number of appointments: 2050 Total No of Black/Ethnic minority applicants* Total No of Veteran applicants *Black/Ethnic Minority applicants includes Mixed, Asian, Black and other backgrounds. From : 1 April 2022 - 31 March 2023 Total Number of applications received: 11771 Total No of Male Applicants Total No of Female Applicants Total No of Disabled Applicants Total No of applicants aged under 50 Total No of applicants aged over 50 Total No of White applicants Total Number of posts recruited for: 1931 Total Number of appointments: 1453 Gender / Disability / Age Total EO Forms Received Recruitment Monitoring Analysis of Gender, Disability, Ethnicity and Age From : 1 April 2023 - 31 March 2024 Total Number of applications received: 15592 Total Number of Equal Opportunities Monitoring forms received: 14979 (96%) 81
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Resource Total F/T P/T F/T P/T Total Chief Officer Grade 1 Grade 2 Grade 3 Grade 4 Grade 5 Grade 6 Fixed SCP Teacher Community & Enterprise Resources 2993 1112 273 198 1410 2074.37 5.00 1412.35 348.58 244.59 43.55 15.30 0.00 5.00 0.00 Education - Others 3311 128 101 661 2421 2416.53 4.96 1179.23 962.79 146.09 46.00 10.60 0.00 62.06 4.80 Education - Teachers 3880 696 80 2181 923 3492.85 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 1.00 0.00 6.60 3485.25 Finance & Corporate Resources 816 192 15 387 222 743.11 6.00 97.71 353.48 210.14 52.78 23.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 Housing & Technical 1273 787 24 330 132 1213.09 3.00 188.11 630.82 352.56 29.60 9.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 Social Work Resources 2696 202 203 994 1297 2359.33 3.00 327.92 1441.30 496.46 56.30 34.35 0.00 0.00 0.00 8806.43 (excluding Teachers) Total All Staff 14969 3117 696 4751 6405 12299.28 21.96 3205.32 3736.97 1449.84 228.23 93.25 0.00 73.66 3490.05 ** Change to report this is now run electronically which allows us to report on grade. Resource Total F/T P/T F/T P/T Total Director Grade 1 Grade 2 Grade 3 Grade 4 Grade 5 Grade 6 Fixed SCP Teacher Community & Enterprise Resources 3017 1176 235 201 1405 2109.86 1.00 1432.36 372.02 234.43 44.05 17.00 4.00 5.00 0.00 Education - Others 3296 137 96 683 2380 2424.23 1.00 1182.76 959.29 148.36 46.00 13.00 3.96 62.26 7.60 Education - Teachers 3834 676 73 2227 858 3469.50 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 1.00 0.00 6.60 3461.90 Finance & Corporate Resources 873 207 19 414 233 791.40 2.00 124.78 358.72 219.55 58.05 22.30 6.00 0.00 0.00 Housing & Technical 1297 817 27 326 127 1237.80 1.00 207.47 634.50 352.23 29.60 11.00 2.00 0.00 0.00 Social Work Resources 2666 204 186 948 1328 2332.00 1.00 1105.28 633.47 523.69 36.80 29.76 2.00 0.00 0.00 8895.29 (excluding Teachers) Total All Staff 14983 3217 636 4799 6331 12364.79 6.00 4052.65 2958.00 1478.26 214.50 94.06 17.96 73.86 3469.50 ** Change to report this is now run electronically which allows us to report on grade. Female Salary Band Total Number of Employees Full-Time Equivalent Male Female Salary Band QUARTERLYJOINT STAFFING WATCH RETURN : NUMBER EMPLOYED ON 11 MARCH 2023 Male QUARTERLYJOINT STAFFING WATCH RETURN : NUMBER EMPLOYED ON 9 MARCH 2024 Analysis by Resource Appendix 16 Analysis by Resource Total Number of Employees Full-Time Equivalent 82
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 26 June 2024 Report by: Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) Subject: 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 Revenue Budget Strategy 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- advise the Council on the Budget Strategy for 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Council is asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- (1) that the Revenue Budget position for 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 (detailed in section 4, Table 1) is a Budget Gap of £77.275 million, be approved; (2) that the Transformational Change Programme detailed in Section 5, be noted; (3) that the Summary and Next Steps at section 6, including the Timeline provided in Table 2, be noted; (4) that a Reserves Strategy will be presented to Members in Autumn 2024 (section 7.4), and an update on Financial Resilience will be reported to the Risk and Audit Scrutiny Committee in September (section 8.3), be noted; and (5) that the risks detailed in the Other Implications Section (section 14.3), be noted. 3. Background 3.1. A report titled Update on the Budget Strategy for 2024/2025 was presented to Council in January 2024. While this paper focussed on the 2024/2025 Budget particularly, it also included a reminder of the Budget Gap in the coming years – £75.1 million across the years 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 (refer section 4 for an update). 3.2. The Outlook for Scottish Public Finances is not positive. The Scottish Fiscal Commission (SFC) estimates that the overall Scottish Budget will have an average budget gap of over 10 percent each year over the next 50 years. They believe that these financial pressures will build as the population ages and as the cost of delivering services increases. 3.3. Alongside that, we know that population trends are not making things any better. The number of older people is expected to increase but the number of younger people is anticipated to reduce. Put simply, the demand for services from the older population will increase, but the number of young people to provide those services and to pay through their taxes for all public services, will fall. 3.4 In short, it is anticipated that our costs will continue to increase and that our Grant Settlements will not match those cost increases – leaving a Budget Gap. 9 83
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3.5 A recent report prepared by Audit Scotland and released by the Accounts Commission (Local government budgets 2024/25 | Audit Scotland) reaffirms that Scottish councils are facing a significant gap between the money needed to deliver local services and the money they have available. Together, all 32 councils have a gap of £585 million for 2024/2025. This is estimated to increase to £780 million by 2026/2027. 3.6. The scale of the financial challenge is greater than ever. Given the magnitude of the Budget Gap, there requires to be a fundamental re-think of what public services in Scotland can do moving forward. That includes what the Council can deliver by way of services to the public. This will require us to reconsider the things we do as a Council, how we do them and where we deliver them from. 3.7. Usually at this time of the year, we turn our attention to setting the Budget Strategy for the year ahead. However, given the financial horizon, there is a need to look at the picture not just for the year ahead but for the medium-term. This is the starting point for the Medium-Term Strategy from 2025/2026 to 2027/2028. This is the Strategy timeframe that will be covered in this report. 3.8. Section 4 of this report will set the scene and present a Medium-Term Strategy. It will look at the current Budget Gap across the coming years from 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 and will explain how this has moved since setting the Budget for 2024/2025. 3.9. The paper will go on to discuss options to reduce the Budget Gap so that a balanced budget can be set for each year and will include reference to Council Tax levels (Band D and Property Numbers), and a Transformational Change Programme. 3.10. This report will focus on the years 2025/2026 to 2027/2028, and will cover the following: Budget Strategy 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 (section 4) The Transformational Change Programme (section 5) 3.11. A Summary, Next Steps and a Timeline for consideration will be provided in section 6. Section 7 will cover Reserves whilst section 8 will provide information in relation to the CIPFA FM Code and Financial Resilience. 3.12. Section 10 will note the consultation and communication process and section 11 will acknowledge the Council’s legal obligations around how budget decisions are made. 4. Revenue Budget Strategy Items 4.1. There are a number of items that make up the Budget Gap across 2025/2026 to 2027/2028. These include provision for increases in expenditure items which the Council would typically face as well as anticipated movements in Government Grant and the impact of previously adding new properties. 4.2. These items form the normal items that we would expect to cover as budget pressures and, also include ‘one off’ solutions from previous years that require to be reinstated. There are also reductions to be reflected, including the use of Reserves and Property Number increases which generate additional Council Tax Income. These are included in Appendix 1 and summarised in Table 1. It is noted that there are changes to the previous Strategy and these are summarised in section 4.4 to 4.7. 84
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Table 1 – Summary of Budget Strategy Items 2025 / 2026 £m 2026 / 2027 £m 2027 / 2028 £m Pay and Pension Items (Appendix 1, para 2.1 – 2.7) Includes assumed pay award for teachers and non-teachers as well as the permanent reduction in Pension Contributions in 2026/2027. 8.820 5.609 8.079 Grant Movement (Appendix 1, para 3.1 – 3.7) The grant assumption into 2025/2026 is Flat Cash with an injection into 2026/2027 and then flat cash again into 2027/2028. This also includes the delayed impact of new properties on grant received because we are collecting more Council Tax from more properties. 1.600 (3.868) 1.200 Reinstatement / Impact of Prior Year Budget Decisions (Appendix 1, para 4.1 – 4.14) This includes the need to reinstate budget to cover one-off savings from previous years and the benefit of previous year decisions. 11.515 21.100 19.700 Contract Impacts / Other Inflation (Appx 1, para 5.1 – 5.9) Includes typical inflationary increases on non-domestic rates, the secondary schools’ modernisation contract (PPP), school transport, utilities, social care for children and families and waste. 0.678 2.596 2.426 Revenue Consequences of Capital (Appx 1, para 6.1 – 6.2) This includes the revenue impact of approved capital projects. 1.142 0.378 - Council Tax – Property Numbers (Appendix 1, para 7.1 to 7.3) Reflects the increase in property numbers being experienced in the later part of 2023/2024 and a projection of a further increase into 2024/2025 and the 3 years of the Strategy. (1.400) (1.300) (1.000) Total Budget Strategy Items 22.355 24.515 30.405 Total Budget Strategy Items for 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 77.275 4.3. Table 1 shows the core Budget Strategy expenditure items and gives a Budget Gap of £77.275 million. 4.4. This is an increase on the previously reported Budget Gap of £75.1 million (February 2024) and is mainly attributed to the impact of decisions taken when setting the 2024/2025 Budget, recent higher than budgeted pay awards and changes in assumptions re utilities’ pricing. These are detailed in 4.5 to 4.7 below. 4.5. 2024/2025 Budget Decisions: As part of the 2024/2025 Budget Setting process (February 2024), £2.530 million of Reserves were used on a one-off basis to meet two approved Education Savings: EDR08 (Mentoring and Learner Journey Reserves, £2.150 million) and M&O06 (Early Learning and Childcare Reserves, £0.380 million). This added £2.530 million to the Budget Strategy into 2025/2026 and is included in the Budget Gap of £77.275 million. 85
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4.6. Pay Awards: The increase in pay award budget required over the period of the Budget Strategy is £3.8 million. In the main, this increase reflects the full year impact into 2025/2026 of the estimated 2024/2025 teachers pay uplift in August 2024. It also includes the impact of a higher base budget for pay, resulting from the 2022/2023 and 2023/2024 Pay Awards. 4.7. Utilities: Recent information has suggested a downward trend in prices into 2024/2025. This allows us to benefit the Strategy by an estimated £2.000 million. The Council is a member of the buying consortium who purchase wholesale energy in advance, on behalf of ourselves and other public sector bodies. The price indications specifically for electricity purchased for the next couple of years indicates further price reductions beyond that assumed for 2024/2025. As only a small proportion of the required units are purchased for the year 2026/2027 and 20207/2028, the benefit of this cannot be accurately quantified however, based on what has been purchased so far, this could be substantial. This will be noted as a risk item (see section 14.3) and as more wholesale units are purchased during the year, further information will be provided to Members as part of the November 2024 Budget Strategy update. 4.8. The Strategy includes two key assumptions in terms of Income: Government Grant and Council Tax. Each is taken in turn. 4.9. Government Grant: The grant assumption across the 3 years of the Strategy mirrors the pattern highlighted in the Scottish Government’s Spending Review published on 31 May 2022: it maintains the level of General Revenue Grant, Non-Domestic Rates Income and Specific Resource Grants between 2023/2024 and 2025/2026 (flat cash), with an amount of £100m added nationally in 2026/2027 (a share of the national £100 million is assumed). No increase has then been assumed into 2027/2028. An update to the Scottish Government’s Medium Term Financial Strategy is anticipated by 20 June 2024, and was not yet available at the time of writing this report. The approach taken is the same as the previous Budget Strategy and will be updated following receipt of the Scottish Government’s MTFS. 4.10. Council Tax: Members will be aware that a lever available to the Council in managing its overall budget position and any Budget Gap is the ability to increase Council Tax. Each 1% increase in Band D would generate successive amounts of £1.580 million. It should be noted that in arriving at the budget gap of £77.275 million, no account has been taken of any potential increase in council tax. 4.11. It should be noted that South Lanarkshire continues to have the lowest level of Band D council tax in mainland Scotland at £1300.81. The average for mainland Scotland is £1428.36. 5. Transformational Change 5.1. At a level of £77.275 million, the Budget Gap across the years 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 remains substantial. To address this, consideration will be required to what services the Council can afford to continue to deliver and how these services are provided. Difficult decisions will need to be made to balance the Council’s budget. We will need to significantly change what we deliver over the next 3 years with the focus being on statutory services. There will likely be areas where we will need do consider whether we can continue to deliver services and if so, what those services will actually look like. 86
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5.2. In order to deliver a balanced budget, it is acknowledged that we need to have a programme of change. This will build on the work undertaken over many years, where service reviews have taken place and which have fed into the savings options that Members have considered. A Transformational Change programme will drive continuous improvement as well as efficiencies, and will feed into the Budget Strategy. 5.3. The foundation of this Transformational Change Programme will be a series of Cross- Cutting Reviews. These Cross-Cutting Reviews are listed below along with a brief description of what each Review will consider. These Cross-Cutting Reviews are not focussed on one Resource, but on Council-wide activities. • Charging – looking at options for full cost recovery where possible. • Procurement – further consideration of procurement practices/options. • Overtime – Personnel led review of overtime practices and spend. • Management Structure – Personnel led review to ensure correct balance between management and the staff they oversee. • Digital Transformation / Customer Contact – a review of the use of technology will impact on all Reviews, and will focus on how the Council and its customers interact. • Property – looking at our Corporate footprint with a focus on the need to right size our use of property which will be key if we are to look to meet Net Zero targets (section 5.4). • Consideration of in-house and procured services. • Loans Fund – consideration of any further benefits that can be realised through Loans Fund accounting. • Depot Rationalisation – a review of the use/users of the deports, with a view to rationalising the number across Resources/Services. • Fleet Reduction – looking at the number of vehicles used by Resources, and reducing this where efficiencies can be identified. 5.4. Property Review: The Council owns and manages a vast estate of properties. There are challenging targets around moving to Net Zero and the Council is looking at how we can progress towards this. The Review to look at the Council’s use of property will be far reaching, covering all Resources and South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture, and all areas of Service delivery. The condition, running costs, quality, performance, location, and use of Council assets will all be considered. The challenge is to consider the right portfolio of buildings, creating an affordable, efficient, fit-for-purpose and sustainable core estate that supports the move to net zero, improves service quality, is people centred and is service driven. The cost of achieving the Net Zero targets is significant and there is no additional funding being made available for this at this point in time. 5.5. All buildings will be reviewed for co-location opportunities with a view to being multi- functional, flexible, and adaptable to meet the combined needs of services and service users and promote joint working. This is likely to reduce the number of properties the Council has. Where practical, the location of assets will reflect the principles of the 20-minute neighbourhood, and provide the right properties, in the right place, to meet current and future service needs. 5.6. These Cross-Cutting Reviews will start in 2024/2025, and it is anticipated that they will deliver savings across the term of this Budget Strategy, 2025/2026 to 2027/2028. 87
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5.7. It is intended that the progress on each Cross-Cutting Review will be presented to the Performance and Review Scrutiny Forum (PRSF). Any Review that requires approval, will then be presented to Committee. 5.8. Alongside the Cross-Cutting Reviews, Resources are considering their own Service areas, and a programme of Reviews will also take place to inform savings for the coming year. As these Resource Reviews progress, proposals will be presented to Members for approval as part of the Budget setting process. 6. Summary and Next Steps 6.1. As detailed in Table 1, the Council’s Budget gap over the years 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 is £77.275 million. This Budget Gap is based on the assumptions and estimates included in section 4. Officers will continue to refine these budget estimates over the coming months, and we will provide updates to Members in future reports. 6.2. The magnitude of the Budget Gap is considerable and will require reconsideration of what the Council does for its communities, as well as potentially difficult decisions. 6.3. As noted in section 5, a Transformational Change Programme is key to continuous improvement and the delivery of efficiencies which will reduce the Budget Gap over the 3 years of the Budget Strategy. The foundation of this Transformational Change programme is a series of Cross-Cutting Reviews (listed in section 5.3) which will focus on Council-wide activities and which will report to the PRSF and onto Committee where appropriate. 6.4. Alongside the Cross-Cutting Reviews, Resources are also considering their own Service areas, and a programme of Reviews will also take place to inform savings for the coming year. As these progress, proposals will be presented to Members for approval as part of the Budget setting process. 6.5. Timeline: A proposed timeline for the Budget process, commencing with this refresh of the Budget Strategy, is detailed in Table 2. Table 2 – Proposed Timeline Timeline Present Refreshed Budget Strategy for 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 to Members 26 June 2024 (Executive Committee) Members Seminar August 2024 Budget Consultation September 24 – February 25 Budget Update Paper for Committee End November 2024 Receive Local Government Settlement for 2025/2026 End December 2024 Update the Budget Strategy for Members (post Settlement) January 2025 Set Council Budget for 2025/2026 and Strategy for 2026/2027 and 2027/2028 February 2025 6.6. Reinstatement of Temporary Funding: The Budget Strategy across the years 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 includes a number of solutions which are temporary in nature and will require to be re-instated in future years of the Strategy period. 88
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6.7. Table 3 shows the year of reinstatement. Importantly, as the reinstatements fall within the years 2026/2027 and 2027/2028, then they are included in the Budget Gap of £77.275 million noted in Table 1 and section 4.3. Table 3: Temporary Solutions Year of Adjustment 2026 / 2027 £m 2027 / 2028 £m 2028 / 2029 £m 2025/2026 Corporate Solutions Service Concessions One-off use of Reserves (2025/2026) Reinstated into 2026/2027 (Executive Committee, November 2022) 15.100 - - Reduction in Employers’ Pension Contribution Reinstated into 2026/2027 (Executive Committee, November 2023) Offset by further use of Reserves in 2026/2027 (reinstated in 2027/2028) 23.500 (17.700) - 17.700 - 2024/2025 to 2026/2027 Solutions Use of 2023/2024 Probable Outturn Monies £6.000 million used across 2024/2025 to 2026/2027 at £2.000 million per annum (Executive Committee, November 2023) - 2.000 - Reduction in LVJB Requisition Reinstatement in 2027/2028 of temporary reduction. - 0.200 - Total Temporary Solutions 20.900 19.900 - 6.8. Table 3 shows the requirement to reinstate budget of £15.100 million in 2026/2027 following the use of the remaining reserves from Service Concessions in 2025/2026. Table 3 also shows that there is a requirement to reinstate budget of £23.500 million in 2026/2027 following the use of Reserves resulting from the reduction in Employers Pension Contributions in 2025/2026, but this is offset by a further use of Reserves (£17.700 million). This is then reinstated into 2027/2028. Finally, the table shows the requirement to reinstate £2.000 million in 2027/2028 to reflect the use of £2.000 million each year from 2024/2025 to 2026/2027, and £0.200 million in 2027/2028 for the temporary reduction in LVJB Requisition payments. 6.9. Table 3 shows that the last year of reinstatement is 2027/2028 – there is no requirement to reinstate temporary solutions beyond the period of this financial strategy. 7. Reserves – Future Strategy 7.1. As part of a budget strategy, it can be good practice to include a Reserves strategy. Councils can hold reserves for a number of reasons. Some reserves are earmarked for identified expenditure which will, or may occur over the short, medium or longer term. In addition to these reserves, there are Uncommitted Reserves which help manage unforeseen circumstances. 89
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7.2. The Local Authority Accounting Panel (LAAP) provide guidance to the Council’s Section 95 Officer (the Executive Director of Finance and Corporate Resources), on the establishment and maintenance of local authority reserves and balances. The LAAP Bulletin does not prescribe a minimum level of reserves which should be held by a council. It is for the Council to consider an appropriate level of reserves taking cognisance of strategic, operational and financial risks facing the authority at a local level. It does however say that Reserves should not be held without a clear purpose. 7.3. Based on the guidance above, Local Authorities, on the advice of the Chief Finance Officer, should make their own judgements taking into account local circumstances. It is therefore the responsibility of the Executive Director, Finance and Corporate Resources to advise the Council of the level of reserves it should hold and to ensure that their use is properly controlled. 7.4. It is proposed that a Reserves Strategy is presented to the Finance and Corporate Resources Committee in Autumn 2024, following completion of the Annual Accounts for 2023/2024. 8. Financial Management and Resilience 8.1. The Chartered Institute of Finance and Public Accountancy (CIPFA) introduced a Financial Management Code (the FM Code) for implementation by 31 March 2021. The FM Code provides “guidance for good and sustainable financial management in local authorities. By complying with the principles and standards within the code, authorities will be able to demonstrate their financial sustainability”. A key goal of the FM Code is to improve and evidence the financial resilience of organisations by embedding enhanced standards of financial management. 8.2. In last year’s Annual Audit Report, it was acknowledged that given the scale of the challenges there is an opportunity to enhance focus on financial resilience, including greater emphasis on reserves, clear financial resilience indicators and measures, and alignment to risks ensuring there is a clear financial strategy to support a resilient council. 8.3. Through consideration of the level of reserves, and the financial planning and management shown in the Budget Strategy, the Council already demonstrates it has an understanding of the Budget pressures it faces and that it mitigates as far as possible against unforeseen costs and pressures. A fuller report on resilience will be presented to the Risk and Audit Scrutiny Committee in September. 9. Communications, Engagement with Elected Members and Public Consultation 9.1. The financial challenges being faced by the Council and the operational changes that transformational change will bring mean that clear communication is essential. The communication and consultation process for the 2024/2025 Budget worked well, and we would look to build on that work to ensure the Council’s financial challenges are understood. 10. Equalities – Protection Against Legal Challenge 10.1. When making decisions, there are a number of considerations and processes which we must complete to assess the implications of those decisions. Officers will undertake all necessary assessments, and these will be shared with members before any budget decisions are made. 11. Employee Implications 11.1. There are no direct employee implications from this report. 90
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12. Financial Implications 12.1. The financial implications are summarised within the report. 13. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 13.1. As part of the budget process, an environmental impact assessment of any decisions taken in relation to the budget will be carried out. This assessment will be updated as the budget process continues and at this stage members are not being asked to approve the budget. Elements feeding into this current budget strategy are anticipated to reflect increases in cost of current activity, rather than any change to existing practices and therefore should have no direct environmental impact change as a result. This will be considered in the relevant Sustainability Impact Assessments. 13.2. Climate Change targets will have an impact on the Council’s future financial strategies. This will be included in future Budget Strategy papers as appropriate. 14. Other Implications 14.1. The financial strategy is a way of managing a number of key risks which directly impact on the money available to deliver Council objectives. As detailed in the report, there is no certainty on the level of funding that will be received over the life of this Strategy. This Strategy is based on economic information and advice we have to date. However, it is accepted that these are assumptions. 14.2. The main risk area, where the Council has made assumptions which have a significant impact on the budget estimates going forwards, are on the level of grant which we will receive, as well as any general pay, demand or price increases / inflation assumptions currently unknown. These have been estimated, as far as possible. Also, the level of new build properties and, therefore, Council Tax Income generation is based on best information at the time of writing. Any movement in these assumptions would be a risk to the Strategy. 14.3. Specific risks for the budget are: Pay Awards: The Strategy includes an assumption for both teaching and non- teaching staff in 2025/2026 and beyond, as well as the full year effect of an estimated Teachers’ Pay Award from August 2024 (into 2025/2026). The pay deal for non-Teachers is set for 2023/2024 only and there has been no agreement of what the pay award will be beyond financial year 2023/2024. For teaching staff, there is no pay deal beyond August 2024. This is therefore a risk to the financial Strategy. In addition, while the 2024/2025 budget includes an estimated pay award for both groups of staff for that year, the fact that the 2024/2025 pay award is itself not agreed, means that depending on the level agreed, there is a risk that there could also be an impact into 2025/2026. Children and Families: Pressures associated mainly with external placements have been reported. The current estimated pressure that will be managed on a temporary basis in 2024/2025 is £10.6 million. The Service has an approved budget recovery plan in place with the identification of next steps options to further bring spend in line with budget. This includes the commissioning of new Intensive Family Support Services to address high-cost residential placements, ongoing reviews of policies and procedures, service reviews and a review and update of contracts. Updates will be provided to Social Work Resources Committee during 2024/2025. 91
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Utilities: As noted in section 5.6, there is a downward trend in the price for utilities, specifically electricity. Account has been taken of the impact into 2025/2026 for the known purchase of units for 2024/2025. However, there has been no account taken of any future price reductions beyond 2024/2025 due to the relatively small amount of energy purchased for the years 2025/2026 and 2026/2027. Based on what has been purchased so far, the benefit to the Strategy could be substantial. This will continue to be monitored as further purchases are made during the year. Information will be provided to Members as part of the November 2024 Budget Strategy update. Insurance: The Council operates an Insurance Fund to manage claims and liabilities arising from normal business. An amount has been included in the Budget Strategy to allow the Fund to balance on an annual basis, however, this may be insufficient if the level of claims experienced increases. Teachers’ Pension: The Council’s contribution rate into 2024/2025 has increased from 23% to 26% as of 1 April 2024. No funding has been received to date however, it is anticipated to be forthcoming as a result of Budget Consequentials from the UK Government. Scottish Government have committed to passing over funds as they receive them. Persistent Ongoing Pollutants (POPs): Scottish Government Legislation enacted in February 2024 has meant additional costs to the Council estimated at £0.500 million per annum. This has not been assumed in the Budget Strategy as funding is expected to follow the legislative requirements. COSLA are lobbying the Scottish Government for funding. Net Zero / Property: The Council owns and manages a vast estate of properties. There are challenging targets around moving to Net Zero and the Council is looking at how we can progress towards this. There are significant cost implications associated with the Net Zero targets and no new funding at this point. There are risks to our ability to achieve these targets without funding, therefore in order to work towards achieving these targets, we need to consider what our property estate will look like going forwards. 14.4. Job Evaluations: As part of normal council processes, Job Evaluation exercises continue across a number of services, and at the time of writing this paper there are currently 2 reviews at appeal stage which, if successful, may have financial implications on recurring costs for the council. Any back pay implications would be dependent on the outcome of these appeals. If all appeals were successful, the costs of back pay could be significant however at this point in time no funding has been included for these costs given the outcome of the appeals are not known and that the original outcome of the Job Evaluations concluded that there was no change to grade. These outcomes from these current appeals are expected to be known by August 2024. 14.5. Level of Support Provided to the Integration Joint Board (IJB) and South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture SCIO (SLLC): The Council’s Budget Strategy for 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 at this stage assumes no additional allocation of monies from the Council to the IJB or SLLC. It is for the IJB and SLLC to produce their own balanced budgets. 92
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15. Equality Impact Assessment and Consultation Arrangements 15.1. This report does not introduce a new policy, function or strategy or recommend a change to an existing policy, function or strategy and, therefore, no impact assessment is required. 15.2. There is no requirement to undertake any consultation in terms of the information contained in this report. However, as the progress of Transformational Change Programme and the identification of savings continues, proposals will be presented to Members later in the year and stakeholder consultation and equality impact assessments will be carried out. The results will be provided to members to inform their decision-making process. Jackie Taylor Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) 6 June 2024 Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Accountable, Effective, Efficient and Transparent Previous References South Lanarkshire Council - 21 February 2024 List of Background Papers None Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact: Jackie Taylor, Executive Director, Finance and Corporate Resources Ext: 4637 (Tel: 01698 454637) E-mail : jackie.taylor@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 93
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Appendix 1 2024/2025 to 2027/228 Budget Strategy: Budget Strategy Items This Appendix details the Budget Strategy Items included in the 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 Budget Strategy (Table 1 of main report). 1. Budget Strategy Expenditure Assumptions 1.1. In arriving at the expenditure assumptions, a number of factors are taken into account including the reinstatement of previous year solutions, demographics, economic conditions and ongoing commitments of the capital programme. These are each taken in turn with the high-level figures quoted covering the 3 years from 2025/2026 to 2027/2028. 2. Pay Items (net cost of £22.508 million) 2.1. Pay Award (inc. Apprenticeship Levy): An assumption had been made regarding the potential increase for both teaching and non-teaching staff beyond 2024/2025, as well as the full year effect of an estimated Teachers’ Pay Award from August 2024 (into 2025/2026). Taking account of the reinstatement of a higher level of Pension contributions for non-teaching staff from 2026/2027 (after the reduction in years 2024/2025 and 2025/2026), the Pay Award requirements across the 3 years are estimated at a cost of £8.820 million into 2025/2026, £8.909 million into 2026/2027, and £8.079 million into 2027/2028. 2.2. The pay deal for Non-Teachers is set for 2023/2024 only. There has been no agreement of what the pay award will be beyond financial year 2023/2024. For teaching staff, there is no pay deal beyond August 2024. 2.3. These assumptions will be updated as more information becomes available. This excludes pay award for the Integrated Joint Board and the South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture SCIO. 2.4. As noted above, the pay award for 2024/2025 is not yet settled for either group of staff. While the 2024/2025 budget includes an estimate for these awards, depending on the award agreed, there is a risk that there could be an impact into 2025/2026. 2.5. Local Government Pension Scheme: The last actuarial review carried out on the Strathclyde Pension Fund (March 2020) resulted in reduction in Pension Contributions from the previous 19.5% down to 6.5% for the years 2024/2025 and 2025/2026. It will then rise back up to 17% from 2027/2028. The impact of this was reported to members as part of the 2024/2025 Revenue Budget and Savings Proposals which detailed the use of the temporary benefit in reduced contributions for the first 2 years (refer section 4.9), and the permanent reduction of £3.3 million accounted for in 2026/2027. 2.6. Teachers’ Pension Scheme: The latest actuarial valuation of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme resulted in an increase in Pension Contributions from 1 April 2024. The previous 23% of Pensionable Pay was increased to 26%. The full year cost to the Council in 2024/2025 is £5.5 million. This was not assumed in the 2024/2025 Budget Strategy however, the Scottish Government expect to receive funding for this from the UK Government, and have committed to passing this on to councils. 94
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2.7. The total cost impact of the Pay Items on the 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 Strategy is £22.508 million. 3. Government Grant (net benefit of £1.068 million) 3.1. Local Government budgets are affected by both changes in the UK Government Budget and the subsequent Scottish Government Budget. 3.2. The Scottish Governments Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) which was published in May 2022, maintained the level of funding for Local Government at flat cash levels between 2023/2024 and 2025/2026, with an amount of £100m added nationally in 2026/2027. A further MTFS was published in late May 2023. That Strategy pointed towards significant budget gaps within the Scottish budget with solutions still to be found. Therefore, despite suggestions within the MTFS of inflationary increases for Local Government, at this stage, given the budget gap faced by the Scottish Government, it would be premature to assume the actual Settlement for South Lanarkshire would increase. A Flat Cash Government Grant position has therefore been assumed into 2025/2026 with a proportionate increase of £5.868 million into 2026/2027 (the Council’s usual share of the national £100 million), and then Flat Cash into 2027/2028. The next MTFS to be published by the Scottish Government is due by 20 June 2024 and was not available at the time of writing. 3.3. Consequence of Council Tax Increases on Grant (Properties): As noted in previous Budget Strategies, increases in Council Tax due to increased property numbers, does not give a permanent benefit to the Council as there will be a reduction in Government Grant in future years – an estimated 80% Grant Reduction for every additional £1 of Council Tax. 3.4. The impact on grant of additional properties is incurred 2 years after the new properties are built. In relation to 2025/2026 to 2027/2028, the consequent reduction in Government Grant (80% reduction after 2 years) reflects the new properties added in 2023/2024 to 2025/2026 and totals an estimated reduction in Grant Income of £1.600 million for 2025/2026, £2.000 million for 2026/2027, and £1.200 million for 2027/2028. 3.5. In addition, there may also be changes in how grant is distributed to councils, based on their share of population numbers. 3.6. In previous years, the Council has experienced both increases and decreases in grant as a result of the funding quantum and the way in which the funding is distributed. Movement in grant is wholly dependent on the distribution methodology used. It is proposed that the prudent approach is to not assume any grant increase due to population changes, and that if there is new money, it is likely this will have a policy intent attached and therefore no impact to the Council’s Budget Gap. 3.7. The total positive impact of Government Grant changes on the 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 Strategy is £1.068 million. 4. Reinstatement / Impact of Prior Year Budget Decisions (£52.315 million) 4.1. A number of budget strategy solutions approved for the previous year budgets were temporary in nature. These must be re-instated into 2025/2026, 2026/2027 and 2027/2028. These are taken in turn below and summarised in Table A. 95
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4.2. Spend to Save: The 2021/2022 Budget Strategy agreed that Capital money could be used to support the purchase of previously leased vehicles, therefore reducing the cost to the Revenue Budget and benefitting the Strategy for the next 3 years. As these assets now need replaced, and will be replaced by new lease arrangements, then the Revenue Budget must be reinstated 2025/2026 at a cost of £1.8 million. 4.3. Lanarkshire Valuation Joint Board Requisition Payments: Over the 3 year period, there is a need to reinstate two amounts of money in relation to temporary requisition payment savings in respect of the Council’s funding of the Joint Board. These monies are required as follows: £0.085 million in 2025/2026 and £0.200 million in 2026/2027. 4.4. 2023/2024 Underspend: In the 2024/2025 Revenue Budget and Savings report to Executive Committee (November 2023), it was agreed that an underspend of £6.000 million would be used to support the Strategy with £2.000 million in each year over the period 2024/2025 to 2026/2027. This temporary solution needs to be reinstated into 2027/2028 at a cost of £2.000 million. 4.5. Loans Fund Review: The Budget Strategy for 2024/2025 included the use of Reserves generated from the Loans Fund Review. The £14.000 million used temporarily in 2024/2025 requires to be re-instated into 2025/2026. This adds £14.000 million to the budget strategy in 2025/2026 only. 4.6. Interest on Loan Charges: As detailed to members in June 2020, implementation of the Loans Fund Review (and its significant up-front benefits) means that additional interest costs will be incurred as a result of paying back the debt over a longer period of time. It was noted that future budget strategies would need to include incremental increases to meet these costs and that the requirement of £1.746 million would be added incrementally to the Loans Fund budget from 2022/2023. As a result, £0.200 million requires to be added to the 2025/2026 Strategy only. 4.7. Service Concessions: Implementation of the Service Concessions accounting arrangements has meant a retrospective benefit in the form of available Reserves to support the budget over three years. The £27.500 million used temporarily in the 2024/2025 Budget Strategy requires to be re-instated into 2025/2026 but will be offset by the planned use of Service Concession Reserves in that year (£15.100 million). This adds a net £12.400 million to the 2025/2026 Budget Strategy. 4.8. Similarly, the £15.100 million used temporarily in 2025/2026 requires to be re- instated into 2026/2027. This adds £15.100 million to the Budget Strategy in 2026/2027 only. 4.9. 2024/2025 Savings Funded by Reserves: Decisions taken as part of the Budget Setting process for 2024/2025 had an impact on the future year Budget Gap. Specifically, one-off use of £2.530 million of Reserves to meet two approved Education Savings: EDR08 (Mentoring and Learner Journey Reserves, £2.150 million) and M&O06 (Early Learning and Childcare Reserves, £0.380 million). This adds £2.530 million to the Budget Strategy in 2025/2026 only. 96
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4.10. Reduction in Pension Contributions: As noted in section 2.5, the Council’s Budget will benefit from a reduction in Pension Contributions from the previous 19.5% down to 6.5% for the years 2024/2025 and 2025/2026. It was agreed as part of the 2024/2025 Revenue Budget and Savings Proposals report to members that the in- year underspends totalling an estimated £45.200 million would be transferred to Reserves, and used to support the Budget Strategy in years 2024/2025 to 2026/2027. 4.11. The £4.000 million that temporarily benefitted the 2024/2025 Budget Strategy requires to be re-instated into 2025/2026 but will be offset by the planned use of Pension Contribution Reserves in that year (£23.500 million). This benefits the 2025/2026 Budget Strategy by a £19.500 million. 4.12. Similarly, the £23.500 million used temporarily in 2025/2026 requires to be re- instated into 2026/2027 but will be offset by the planned use of Pension Contribution Reserves in that year (£17.700 million). This adds a net cost of £5.800 million to the 2026/2027 Budget Strategy. 4.13. Finally, the planned use of Pension Contribution Reserves in 2026/2027 needs to be reinstated in 2027/2028. This adds £17.700 million of costs to the Budget Strategy in 2027/2028 only. 4.14. The total impact of Reinstatements / Prior Year Budget Decisions on the 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 Strategy is £52.315 million. These are summarised in Table A. Table A – Reinstatement / Prior Year Budget Decisions 2025 / 2026 £m 2026 / 2027 £m 2027 / 2028 £m The Loans Fund Review impact of using one-off Reserves in 2024/2025 (£14.000 million) reinstated in 2025/2026 (2021/2022 Budget Report to Council, 24 June 2020). 14.000 - - £0.200 million additional Loan Charges Budget as a result of the Loans Fund Review (Council, June 2020). 0.200 - - £2.530m use of Reserves to make 2024/2025 Savings (Council meeting, February 2023). 2.530 - - Service Concessions – net impact of using one-off reserves each year, reinstated the next. Reinstatement offset by further use of reserves until completion in 2026/2027. (Executive Committee, November 2022) 12.400 15.100 - Pension Contribution Reserves – net impact of using one-off reserves each year, reinstated the next. Reinstatement offset by further use of reserves until completion in 2027/2028 (2024/2025 Revenue Budget and Savings report to Executive Committee, November 2023). (19.500) 5.800 17.700 Reinstate budget required following the temporary reduction in requisition payments to the Valuation Joint Board. 0.085 0.200 - Reinstate budget for previous Spend to Dave exercise to reflect revenue budget required for lease payments. 1.800 - - Previous use of 2023/2024 underspend used for the 3 years to 2026/2027, reinstated in 2027/2028 (2024/2025 Revenue Budget and Savings report to Executive Committee, November 2023). - - 2.000 Total 11.515 21.100 19.700 97
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5. Contract Impacts / Other Inflation (£7.700 million) 5.1. Education - Secondary Schools’ Modernisation Contract / School Transport: An allocation of £1.200 million has been added to the Budget Strategy for each of the three years 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 (total £3.600 million). In previous years, the allocation of anticipated inflationary increases was made to the Secondary Schools Modernisation Contract only, however it is proposed that given the pressures resulting from school transport costs, £0.900 million per annum is allocated to the Schools Modernisation Contract and £0.300 million per annum is allocated to help manage inflation on School Transport contracts. 5.2. Non-Domestic Rates: The 2024/2025 Budget Strategy included an allocation for to accommodate the impact of property revaluation and rate poundage increases into 20204/2025. It is likely that the poundage will increase into 2025/2026 and beyond, however any impact would be the result of Scottish Government changes to bandings and these are not available until the Local Government Settlement is issued later in the calendar year. In order to prepare for the change in poundage, an inflationary increase is included, similar to previous increases experienced. This would add £0.460 million to the Budget Strategy for 2025/2026, £0.469 million for 2026/2027 and 0.479 million for 2027/2028. 5.3. Waste: The Council has a number of significant contracts for waste collection and disposal. Taking account of estimated inflationary increases each year, as well as £0.150 million pa to allow the service to manage the increasing number of properties, the following is included in the Budget Strategy for the next 3 years: £0.518 million, £0.527 million and £0.547 million respectively. 5.4. Social Care: In previous years, the Strategy assumed increases in prices reflecting the ongoing commitments for Children and Families Social Care contracts held by the Council (excluding Adults and Older People contracts). Given the work being carried out to review the overall costs included in Children and Families, it is assumed that this Service will be back on budget, and an inflationary increase only is required. This equates to £0.200 million for each year into 2025/2026, 2026/2027 and 2027/2028 (total £0.600 million). 5.5. Strathclyde Passenger Transport: In previous years, SPT had adjusted their requisitions to reflect the movement in the local government grant to councils. The Strategy for 2024/2025 assumes no change in the requisition payment, reflecting the assumption that there will be no change in grant levels. This will be updated as more information becomes available. 5.6. Insurance Fund: The Council’s Insurance Fund is projecting an annual shortfall from 2025/2026 and a budget increase of £0.300 million is required in that year and £0.200 million into 2026/2027. This includes a small annual allowance for pre-fund liabilities. 5.7. Utilities: Recent information has suggested a downward trend in utility prices into 2024/2025. The Council is a member of the buying consortium who purchase wholesale energy in advance, on behalf of public sector bodies in Scotland. The price indications for electricity specifically purchased beyond 2024/2025, indicate further price reductions, however, as only a small proportion of the required units are purchased, the benefit of this cannot be accurately quantified. As further wholesale units are purchased during the year, this should become clearer. Information will be provided to Members in the Strategy Update in November 2024. 98
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5.8. The Council can take advantage of these price reductions to offset some of the Strategy pressures detailed in this appendix (Appendix 1). The estimated Budget reduction based on best information at the time of writing, is a benefit of £2.000 million in 2025/2026. 5.9. The total impact of Contract / Other Inflation on the 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 Strategy is £5.700 million. 6. Revenue Consequences of Capital (£1.520 million) 6.1. The assumptions in this Strategy continue to include provision for the revenue consequences of the opening/extension of new primary schools and other approved capital projects including Our Lady of Lourdes, the full year cost of the new Jackton Primary school, and the expansion of 4 secondary schools (Calderside Academy, Holy Cross High School, St Andrew’s and St Bride’s High School and Uddingston Grammar). 6.2. The impact across the years is £1.142 million in 2025/2026 and £0.378 million in 2026/2027 (totalling £1.520 million across the years of the Strategy). 7. Council Tax Properties (£3.700 million) 7.1. The South Lanarkshire Housing Land Audit (2023) details new houses anticipated in 2024/2025 and beyond. Based on Band D properties and net of Council Tax Reduction Scheme (CTRS), the increase in Council Tax Income for 2025/2026 has been assumed at (£1.400 million) (Council Tax less CTRS). This reflects the full year implication of new build houses experienced in 2024/2025 and an estimate for 2025/2026. 7.2. Moving into 2026/2027 and 2027/2028, the Land Audit suggests further new properties in excess of 1,000 pa. Again, assuming Council Tax Band D, this is estimated to would generate net income of £1.300 million for 2026/2027 and £1.000 million for 2027/2028. 7.3. While there remains a risk that development will not progress as originally anticipated, housebuilding continues to progress in sites across the Council area. The position will continue to be monitored during 2024/2025. The impact of new houses on the Government Grant is detailed in Appendix 1, section 3.3. 8. Total Budget Strategy Items (2025/2026 to 2027/2028): The total of these items is £77.275 million. 99
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 26 June 2024 Report by: Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) Subject: South Lanarkshire Council Armed Forces Community Covenant Strategy 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- seek approval for a new Armed Forces Community Covenant Strategy which builds on the Council’s work carried out to date supporting the Armed Forces Community Covenant and the statutory Armed Forces Covenant Duty seek approval on the Armed Forces Community Covenant Strategy Action Plan to implement the Strategy [1purpose] 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Committee is asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- (1) that the Council’s Armed Forces Community Covenant Strategy be approved; (2) that the Armed Forces Community Covenant Strategy Action Plan for the period 2024 – 2027 be approved; (3) that it be noted an annual report on the Council’s work in promoting the Armed Forces Community Covenant will be reported to South Lanarkshire Council in January 2025. 3. Background 3.1. Previous reports were presented to South Lanarkshire Council on 26 June 2019 - Support For Veterans and 31 January 2024 - Armed Forces Community Covenant Duty. These respectively detailed:- the range of supports provided to Veterans and their families in South Lanarkshire the support that may be developed through the work of the Council working with partners on the Lanarkshire Firm Base including assessing the arrangements that other Scottish Local Authorities have in place an update on the creation of a guaranteed interview scheme for ex-armed forces personnel, this was a motion agreed by the Council on 19 December 2018 an update on the Armed Forces Covenant Duty (the Covenant Duty), a legal duty introduced by the Armed Forces Act 2021 which came into effect on 22 November 2022 the annual report on employment of veterans the Local Authority Armed Forces and Veterans Champion Role Description 10 101
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3.2. The Council signed up to the Armed Forces Community Covenant with a range of partners from the NHS, the Military and voluntary and charity sectors on 5 March 2012, this document was signed by the Leader and Chief Executive on behalf of the Council. 3.3. The original covenant document was set up as a statement of mutual support between the civilian community and its local Armed Forces Community. This was intended to complement the Armed Forces Covenant, which outlined the moral obligation between the Nation, the Government, and the Armed Forces at a local level. 3.4. The specific aims of the Armed Forces Community Covenant were to: encourage local communities to support the armed forces community in their areas nurture public understanding and awareness amongst the public of issues affecting the armed forces community recognise and remember the sacrifices made by the armed forces community encourage activities which help to integrate the armed forces community into local life encourage the armed forces community to help and support the wider community, whether through participation in events and joint projects, or other forms of engagement 3.5. A local group was set up under the co-ordination of the Army originally entitled the Lanarkshire Firm Base and now renamed the Lanarkshire Armed Forces Community and Veterans Covenant Group which brought together a range of organisations including North and South Lanarkshire Councils, the NHS, the Military, voluntary sector groups, appropriate charitable organisations and other Community Planning partners to work together to improve services and support to local veterans and their families by progressing the terms of the Covenant. 3.6. To underline and raise awareness of the Covenant, the Council recommitted to the Armed Forces Community Covenant by signing an updated version of the Covenant document at the Council’s Armed Forces Day Flag Raising Event on 23 June 2018. 3.7. As reported to the Council on 31 January 2024, the Armed Forces Act 2021 further established the commitments in the Covenant, with the creation of the statutory Armed Forces Covenant Duty. As reported at Council, the new Covenant duty, requires organisations delivering local services to pay ‘due regard’ to the Covenant principles when exercising functions in the areas of housing, education, and healthcare. ‘Due regard’ means informed decision making and means that the Council should think about and place appropriate weight on the principles of the Covenant when they consider factors relevant to how they conduct functions which fall within the scope of the Covenant, the principles that need to be considered being:- • the unique obligations of, and sacrifices made by, the armed forces; • the principle that it is desirable to remove disadvantages arising for service personnel from membership, or former membership, of the armed forces; and • the principle that special provision for service personnel may be justified by the effects on such people of membership, or former membership, of the armed forces. 102
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4. Current Position 4.1. The Armed Forces Covenant Duty does not mandate what organisations must do, only that they must consider the Armed Forces community alongside other legal requirements. It means that decisions about the development and delivery of certain services must be made with conscious consideration of the needs of the Armed Forces community. 4.2. Further to this, officers have now developed the South Lanarkshire Council Armed Forces Community Covenant Strategy for 2024 – 2027, aligned to the Council Connect Plan. 4.3. Council Officers have consulted with members of the Lanarkshire Armed Forces Community and Veterans Covenant Group, including the Council’s Armed Forces Champion, in developing the Strategy which is attached as Appendix 1 to this report, and which the Committee is asked to approve. 4.4 The Council Strategy is aligned to the Lanarkshire Armed Forces Community and Veterans Covenant Group Handbook, link detailed below, which was prepared and published through the Lanarkshire Armed Forces Community and Veterans Covenant Group. CC_2023_00572 Lanarkshire Armed Forces booklet.pdf (northlanarkshire.gov.uk) 4.5 The Duty and the implementation of this Strategy means that the Armed Forces community will receive a fair assessment when their cases are considered. In particular, the following Council services areas are covered by the Act:- Housing and Technical Resources:- Allocations policy for social housing Homelessness Disabled Facilities Grants Education Resources:- Admissions Educational attainment and curriculum Child wellbeing Transport Attendance Additional needs support Health and Social Care Local authority delivered health and social care services, including drug and alcohol misuse services Co-operation between bodies and professionals 4.6 The Council Action Plan, detailed at the end of the Strategy provides more information on the work the Council will carry out to meet the requirements of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty. 5. Next Steps 5.1. To publish the Strategy and advise the Lanarkshire Armed Forces Community and Veterans Covenant Group of the Strategy. 103
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5.2. To form a cross-service officer group to drive forward delivery of the Strategy and the Action plan. 5.3. As part of the delivery of the action plan and implementation of the Council’s Armed Forces Strategy to ensure that the Council continue to work towards achieving the Gold Award status as part of the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme. Progress on the action plan will be included in the Annual Report. 6. Employee Implications 6.1. There are no implications for employees arising from the information presented in this report. 7. Financial Implications 7.1. There are no financial implications arising from this report, any ongoing work will be accommodated within existing budgets. 8. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 8.1. There are no Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications arising from the information contained within this report. 9. Other Implications 9.1. There are no implications for sustainability or risk in terms of the information contained within this report. 10. Impact Assessment and Consultation Arrangements 10.1. An impact assessment in relation to the strategy has been undertaken. The assessment identifies positive impact on the Veteran Community. On approval of the strategy this will be published on the Council website, and is available from the Head of Administration and Legal on request. 10.2 The Strategy and Action Plan highlight the steps that when taken forward will help the Council meet the requirements of the Armed Forces Community Covenant and the statutory Armed Forces Covenant Duty. 10.3 The trade unions will be updated on the implementation of the Strategy going forward. 10.4 As noted above, Council Officers have consulted with members of the Lanarkshire Armed Forces Community and Veterans Covenant Group, including the Council’s Armed Forces Champion. Jackie Taylor Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) 17 May 2024 Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Accountable, effective, efficient and transparent Fair, open and sustainable Ambitious, self aware and improving Excellent employer Focused on people and their needs Working with and respecting others 104
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Previous References South Lanarkshire Council – 29 June 2019 South Lanarkshire Council – 31 January 2024 List of Background Papers Armed Forces Covenant Duty Statutory Guidance on the Armed Forces Covenant Duty South Lanarkshire Armed Forces Community Covenant Duty Report 31 January 2024 Local Authority Armed Forces and Veterans Champion Role Description Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact: - Iain Strachan, Head of Administration and Legal Services Ext: 4658 (Tel: 01698 454658) E-mail: iain.strachan@southlanarkshire.gov.uk Michelle Milne, Head of Personnel Services Ext: 4330 (Tel: 01698 454658) E-mail: michelle.milne@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 105
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Appendix 1 South Lanarkshire Council Armed Forces Community Covenant Strategy 2024 - 2027 10 107
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Contents Page 3 Foreword – Councillor Mark Horsham – South Lanarkshire’s Armed Forces Champion 4 Background and Context 4 Aims and Vison 5 The Armed Forces Community Covenant 5 The Armed Forces Community Covenant Principles 5 South Lanarkshire Armed Forces Community Covenant 6 About South Lanarkshire’s Armed Forces Covenant 6 Lanarkshire Armed Forces Community and Veterans Covenant Group 7 Defence Employer Recognition Scheme 8 South Lanarkshire Councils Strategy 11 South Lanarkshire Council Action Plan 108
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Foreward As South Lanarkshire Council’s Armed Forces Champion I am delighted that the Council has brought forward this new Armed Forces Community Covernant Strategy. Within South Lanarkshire we are immensely proud of our Armed Forces, and proud to do as much as we can to support them. Importantly, and with the Council having been a signatory to the Armed Forces Covenant since 2012, we very much see ourselves as supporting the wider Armed Forces Community, being current and former Service personnel (Regular, Reserve and National Service) and their families, that served in the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force, as well as members of the Merchant Navy who have served on board a commercial vessel in support of UK military operations. This Strategy sets out how the Council intends to uphold the principles of the Covenant, so that the needs of the Armed Forces Community are considered in the delivery of local services, and that we improve and strengthen the ties between that Community and the South Lanarkshire communities in which they live and work. This Strategy also sets out the actions we plan to take, both ourselves and in partnership with others, to deliver on these commitments. Councillor Horsham South Lanarkshire Council Armed Forces Champion 109
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1. Background and Context South Lanarkshire Council has been a signatory to the Armed Forces Covenant since 2012 and is committed to uphold the key principles of the Covenant: • That no member of the Armed Forces Community should face disadvantage in the provision of services compared with any other citizen. • That, in some circumstances, special treatment may be appropriate especially for the injured or bereaved. The Council has developed its relationship and commitment with the armed forces community and achieved the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) Silver Award. That commitment will be demonstrated through a set of corporate aims and actions to provide assurance that it is able to deliver on that commitment. The Council has appointed an elected member (Cllr Mark Horsham since May 2024) to be its Armed Forces Champion. 2. Aims and Vision The Council recognises the value service personnel, reservists, veterans and military families (together the Armed Forces Community) bring to the life of Lanarkshire and its communities. The Council will, through this Strategy, seek to uphold the principles of the Armed Forces Covenant by: • recognising the sacrifices made by the armed forces community • encouraging support for the armed forces community • promoting understanding and awareness amongst the public • encouraging activities to help the community integrate into local life • supporting veterans and service families in employment at the Council The Council acts in partnership with local representatives of armed forces organisations, major charities and other local authorities and public bodies within Lanarkshire, including NHS Lanarkshire and Citizens Advice Bureau etc. It supports the Lanarkshire Armed Forces Community and Veterans Covenant Group, co- chaired by the Council’s Armed Forces Champion, which includes local stakeholders. We will work in partnership with the Armed Forces Community to understand the unique challenges they face and provide guidance and support so they can easily access services that are available. Our aim is to support the armed forces community by ensuring that the commitments in the Covenant are integral to our systems, processes and policies and that staff and Members understand this commitment and apply it in all they do within the Council and their communities. 110
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3. The Armed Forces Community Covenant The Armed Forces Covenant (AFC) was published in May 2011 along with a document called, ‘Today and Tomorrow’. This lists the nearly 100 real, tangible commitments the government has made to the Armed Forces Community. 4. Armed Forces Community Covenant Principles The Covenants two principles are that: • The Armed Forces Community should not face disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public and commercial services; and • Special consideration is appropriate in some cases, especially for those who have given most such as the injured and the bereaved. The Covenant exists to redress the disadvantages that the Armed Forces Community may face in comparison to other citizens, and to recognise sacrifices made. The AFC is also supported by the Corporate Covenant, which is a public pledge from businesses and other organisations who wish to demonstrate their support for the Armed Forces Community. Riverside signed the Corporate Covenant in June 2014, and was the first (and to date the only) Civilian Registered Provider of Social Housing to do so. 5. South Lanarkshire Council Armed Forces Community Covenant The Council signed up to the Armed Forces Community Covenant with a range of partners from the NHS, the Military and voluntary and charity sectors on 5 March 2012. This document was signed by the Leader and Chief Executive on behalf of the Council. The original covenant document was set up as a statement of mutual support between the civilian community and its local Armed Forces Community. This was intended to complement the Armed Forces Covenant, which outlined the moral obligation between the Nation, the Government, and the Armed Forces at a local level. The South Lanarkshire Council Armed Forces Community Covenant is a formal statement of mutual support between the civilian community and the local armed forces community, which is intended to complement the Armed Forces Covenant. This outlines the moral obligation between the nation, the government and the armed forces. The covenant aims to raise awareness of issues affecting the armed forces community and provide support through assisting with health and wellbeing, housing, leisure and culture, housing and employment. The covenant also gives South Lanarkshire community organisations the opportunity to bid for UK wide funding via the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust. 111
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6. About South Lanarkshire’s Armed Forces Covenant The Council signed the community covenant – a voluntary statement of mutual support between a civilian community and its local Armed Forces, which aims to: • Encourage local communities to support the Armed Forces community in their areas. • Nurture understanding and awareness amongst the public of issues affecting the Armed Forces community. • Recognise and remember the sacrifices faced by the Armed Forces community. • Encourage activities which help to integrate the Armed Forces community into local life. • Encourage the Armed Forces community to help and support the wider community, whether through participation in events and joint projects, or other forms of engagement. 7. Lanarkshire Armed Forces Community and Veterans Covenant Group A Lanarkshire wide group was previously set up under the co-ordination of the Army, and was called the Lanarkshire Firm Base Group, created in partnership with North and South Lanarkshire Council’s following a request by the Royal Regiment of Scotland for an Armed Forces Covenant to be established. This brought together a range of organisations including North and South Lanarkshire Councils, NHS Lanarkshire, the Military, voluntary sector groups, appropriate charitable organisations and other Community Planning partners to work together to improve services and support to local veterans and their families by progressing the terms of the Covenant. In 2018, the Armed Forces Covenant was updated and a multi-agency approach, led by both North and South Lanarkshire Councils, was adopted to bring together a reformed Lanarkshire Firm Base Group with the overarching aim to improve the quality of support for veterans in Lanarkshire. Lanarkshire Firm Base was subsequently relaunched to provide an updated focus and ensure a coordinated approach to issues facing veterans and their families in Lanarkshire. To underline and raise awareness of the Covenant, the Council recommitted to the Armed Forces Community Covenant by signing an updated version of the Covenant document at the Council’s Armed Forces Day Flag Raising Event on 23 June 2018. The Lanarkshire Firm Base Group has renamed itself the Lanarkshire Armed Forces Community and Veterans Covenant Group and updated its Terms of Reference to reflect the terms of the Armed Forces Act 2021 and associated guidance. The Head of Administration and Legal Services and the Council’s Veteran Champion, who is Co-Chair), are members of the Lanarkshire Armed Forces Community and Veterans Covenant Group. 112
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The organisation is the lead for delivering the key commitments contained in both Councils’ Armed Forces Community Covenants to ensure that those who serve or who have served in the armed forces, and their families, are treated fairly. 8. Defence Employer Recognition Scheme In 2014 the Prime Minister launched the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS), to recognise and reward UK employers for their support and commitment towards the Defence community. There are three tiers of award – Gold, Silver and Bronze – for employers who pledge, demonstrate or advocate support to the Armed Forces Community in alignment with the Armed Forces Covenant. The Council currently hold the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) Silver Award. It was awarded this in March 2023 and this is the Council’s second year of holding this award. In holding the Silver Award, SLC has demonstrated support for Defence, employing at least one Reservist, actively communicating and upholding a positive stance to their employees via established HR policies and procedures. Silver Award holders support Reservists by showing flexibility to plan for and allow them to fulfil their annual training and mobilisation commitments. SLC also met the requirements of the Bronze Award, demonstrating our pledge to support Defence, and take a positive stance towards Reservists who are either existing or prospective employees. The Council also seek to promote an Armed Forces friendly position and are open to employing Reservists and supporting their training and mobilisation commitments. 113
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The Council’s Strategy The Council’s Strategy and Action Plan has five workstreams to recognise and support the Armed Forces community, as detailed below: • Promote the Covenant to our staff and external stakeholders. • Provide employment support to members of the Armed Forces Community. • To engage and work with the established Lanarkshire Armed Forces Community and Veterans Covenant Group. • Provide the Armed Forces Community with fair access to our services, in particular housing, education and health and social care. • Promote and support local Armed Forces events and military heritage sites The Council is a proud supporter of the Armed Forces, and we regard ourselves as 'Armed Forces Friendly’'. The Council will demonstrate its commitment to the Armed Forces through the Lanarkshire Armed Forces Handbook, developed through the Lanarkshire Armed Forces Community and Veterans Covenant Group, link included. CC_2023_00572 Lanarkshire Armed Forces booklet.pdf (northlanarkshire.gov.uk) This handbook demonstrates a shared service strategic approach to supporting the armed forces, it is reflected in the Council Strategy and Action plan and includes the following supports and signposting: Leavers and Veterans When someone leaves service life, they will face some big decisions such as where to live and find a job and maybe moving their family away from the base and the support network they have there. If someone leaving the Armed Forces is planning to move to South Lanarkshire from elsewhere in the UK or abroad, the Council will provide information on local services and sources of support. This information will also be helpful even when someone has left the service some time ago. Employment and Training Transition from military to civilian life is a time of great change, the Council will provide information on resettlement, training, workshops and employers who are actively recruiting through its partnership approach. Skills Development Scotland will support leavers with free impartial Careers Guidance for all leavers and their families. Money Someone leaving the Armed Forces should not be disadvantaged as a result of their service. Information and support can be provided to help with credit ratings, mortgages and loans, motor and home Insurance, mobile and TV contracts. Housing North and South Lanarkshire Councils operate common house registers, this means veterans and serving personnel can use one application form to apply for social 114
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housing in each of the local authority areas which also includes partner housing associations. Both Councils give veterans and those leaving the service priority when applying for housing. Schools and Learning North and South Lanarkshire Councils have lots of advice available to make the children of those leaving the armed forces move to a new school as straightforward as possible. A child’s electronic records should move with them to their new school and the school should be aware that they are receiving a service child. Support and advice will be provided with: • Meeting additional support needs • Changing schools during term time • Curriculum for Excellence • Enrolling your child in primary school or nursery • Psychological Services • School clothing grants and free school meals • School meals • Provision of school transport where appropriate Health NHS Lanarkshire is also signed up to the Armed Forces Covenant. In turn, this ensures that everyone is able to be registered with a local GP and able to access respective health care treatment. The NHS Covenant duties ensure that no serving member or veteran will be disadvantaged as a result of their service and, where appropriate, priority treatment is available for veteran’s whose health condition has been impacted directly by their armed forces service. NHSL has its own Armed Forces and Veterans’ Champion who will, where necessary, work with SLC colleagues to ensure a ‘joined up’ approach to support individuals where their needs or circumstances straddle a number of services and/or agencies. General Advice Within the Lanarkshire Handbook there is information on how to obtain general advice Living in South Lanarkshire Lanarkshire is a great place to work, live and play. The area covers urban areas such as Rutherglen, Hamilton and East Kilbride and rural areas such as Clydesdale. Both North and South Lanarkshire have their own leisure and cultural trusts so there is plenty to keep the whole family entertained. Parks and Outdoors Across Lanarkshire there are six large country parks, countless playparks and the great outdoors is never far away. Within South Lanarkshire there are: • Allotments and food growing • Local nature reserves 115
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• Parks • Places to visit • Skateparks • Walking, cycling and horse riding Further information is available on the visit Lanarkshire website. Practical Information The Council will provide information on Council Tax, Council Tax Bands and Councillors Sport and Culture The Council will provide information on Arts and Entertainment, Halls and Venues, Health and Fitness, Libraries, Museums Who to contact if you are worried about a Veteran The Council will provide information for non-emergency and emergency help to Veterans. The Armed Forces Covenant Fund The Ministry of Defence provide money through the Armed Forces Covenant Trust to support the Armed Forces Community with grant programmes. 116
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SOUTH LANARSHIRE COUNCIL ARMED FORCES COMMUNITY COVENANT STRATEGY ACTION PLAN Workstream 1 – Promote the Covenant to our staff and external stakeholders Action Service Lead Timescale Comment Review of Veterans pages on Council’s website Head of Corporate Communications and Head of IT September 2024 Annual Report on Strategy and Covenant to Full Council Head of Administration & Legal Services January 2025 Creation of Lanarkshire Armed Forces Covenant Guide Head of Administration & Legal Services December 2025 Delivery of training on Armed Forces Covenant Duty to relevant Council services Head of Administration & Legal Services December 2024 Creation of Armed Forces Covenant Cross Service Working Group Head of Administration & Legal Services, Resource Champions and Head of Personnel Services June 2024 Workstream 2 – Provide employment support to members of the Armed Forces Community Action Service Lead Timescale Comment Maintain Defence Employer Recognition Scheme Silver Award Head of Personnel Services March 2025 The Council have held the award since 2014 and continue to maintain the criteria, it was renewed in March 2024 Work towards achieving Defence Recognition Gold Award Head of Personnel Services March 2025 This level of award focuses on advocacy 117
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Workstream 3 – Engage and work with Lanarkshire Armed Forces Community and Veterans Covenant Group Action Service Lead Timescale Comment Meetings to be co- chaired by Armed Forces Champion Head of Administration & Legal Services September 2024 - Quarterly Meetings to be attended by Armed Forces Champion Head of Administration & Legal Services September 2024 - Quarterly Minutes of meeting to be shared internally with relevant Council officers Head of Administration & Legal Services September 2024 - Quarterly Workstream 4 – Provide the Armed Forces Community with fair access to our services, in particular housing, education, and health and social care Action Service Lead Timescale Comment Creation of Armed Forces Covenant Working Group Head of Administration & Legal Services June 2024 Veteran Champions across Education, Housing and Health & Social care. Establish tracker to monitor housing enquiries Strategy and Policy Adviser, Housing and Technical Resources March 2024 Complete Tracker allows individual cases to be monitored to resolution Undertake review of housing allocation policy Strategy and Policy Adviser, Housing and Technical Resources 2025/2026 Ensure allocation policy takes account of national and local guidance on housing veterans and leavers Maintain accurate SEEMIS data as required by the ADES annual census Partnership Planning Manager, Education Resources October 2024 (and annually) Provides accurate understanding of scope and scale of Army Families Federation pupils in our schools and establishments. (487 as at September 2023) Engage with Army Families Federation and pupils in South Lanarkshire to Partnership Planning Manager, Education Resources March 2025 Supporting the Centre for Military Research, Education & Public Engagement, 118
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identify lived experience and better understand needs Edinburgh Napier University and ADES research additional barriers and ASN issues in education Provide support and advice regarding education related issues Partnership Planning Manager, Education Resources As and when required Ensuring that there is a reference point for Army Families Federation regarding education issues when required Provide support and advice regarding health and social care issues HSCP Champion As and when required Ensuring that there is a reference point for Army Families Federation regarding health and social care issues when required Workstream 5 – Promote and support local Armed Forces events and military heritage sites Action Service Lead Timescale Comment Armed Forces Day and Week Members’ Services Officer June every year Preparation in progress for 2024 Festival of Remembrance Members’ Services Officer November every year In tandem with the British Legion. Preparation in progress for 2024 Larkhall Remembrance Sunday Members’ Services Officer November every year Arrangements start August every year East Kilbride Remembrance Sunday Members’ Services Officer November every year Arrangements start August every year Hamilton Remembrance Sunday Members’ Services Officer November every year Arrangements start August every year Armistice Day Service Members’ Services Officer November every year Arrangements start August every year 119
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 26 June 2024 Report by: Chief Executive Subject: Recommendations Referred by Community and Enterprise Resources Committee 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] request approval of the following referred to this Committee by the Community and Enterprise Resources Committee of 18 June 2024 in respect of:- South Lanarkshire Council Bereavement Services Strategy 2024 to 2033 Introduction of Charge for Uplift of Household Garden Waste (Burgundy) Bin [1purpose] 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Committee is asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- [recs] (1) that, in relation to the South Lanarkshire Council Bereavement Services Strategy 2024 to 2033, as detailed in the report to the Community and Enterprise Resources Committee of 18 June 2024:- (a) the Bereavement Services Strategy 2024 to 2033 be approved; (b) the new crematorium service time pilot be approved; and (c) the new and harmonised charges be approved. (2) that, in relation to the introduction of a charge for the uplift of household garden waste (burgundy) bins, as detailed in the report to the Community and Enterprise Resources Committee of 18 June 2024:- (a) the proposal to introduce a charge for the uplift of burgundy bins containing garden waste be approved; (b) the increase of the Waste Services’ establishment by 4 Full-time Equivalent (FTE) on a temporary basis and 9 FTE on a permanent basis be approved; and (c) that the increase of the vehicle establishment for Waste Services be approved. 11 121
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[1recs] 3. Recommendation Referred by Community and Enterprise Resources Committee of 18 June 2024 – South Lanarkshire Council Bereavement Services Strategy 2024 to 2033 – Extract of Minute 3.1. A report dated 29 May 2024 by the Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) was submitted seeking endorsement of the South Lanarkshire Bereavement Services Strategy 2024 to 2033. The Council operated a Bereavement Service that provided a dignified and sensitive burial and cremation service. The key piece of legislation governing the Service was the Burial and Cremation (Scotland) Act 2016 which was passed by the Scottish Parliament on 22 March 2016 and received Royal Assent on 28 April 2016. The 2016 Act fulfilled the commitment of the Scottish Government to implement the recommendations made by:- The Burial and Cremation Review Group (2007) The Infant Cremation Commission (2014) The National Cremation Investigation (2016) A Working Group had been formed in July 2016 to commence regulations of the Act. Priority had been given to implementing Part 2 of the Act on Cremation and this resulted in the Cremation (Scotland) Regulation 2019. The COVID-19 pandemic had disrupted and delayed progress, however, a working group was still actively working on the regulations for Part 1 (Burial) of the Act. The most recent activity had been a consultation on the regulations which was completed in November 2023. The South Lanarkshire Council Cemetery Strategy 2023 to 2024 was approved by the Committee on 30 May 2023 and had allowed the Council to implement the strategic approach to the provision of burial ground within the local authority area, as detailed in paragraph 3.4 of the report. The Bereavement Strategy incorporated the previous work undertaken in the Cemetery Strategy to include the Crematorium to deliver a long-term vision for the Council’s Bereavement Service. The Bereavement Strategy 2024 to 2033, attached as an appendix to the report, was a strategic document that would assist the Council in providing, maintaining, and managing its crematorium and cemeteries over the long term. The Strategy included all aspects of the management and operation of the Council’s Bereavement Services. The Strategy detailed:- the purpose and vision the legal context the demographic context, demand and capacity crematorium rules and areas for development cemeteries rules and areas for development infrastructure and maintenance pricing structure The key points of the Strategy were detailed in section 4 of the report and included:- crematorium services:- the demand for cremations had increased since the South Lanarkshire Crematorium opened in 2006 and that trend would continue, as detailed at paragraph 4.2 of the report 122
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the crematorium operated with 3 different options of service times. An analysis of usage was provided at paragraph 4.3 of the report a proposal to offer a new type of morning service at 8.00am and 8.15am to utilise unused capacity was detailed at paragraph 4.4 of the report. An increase of uptake of early services was anticipated and this would be monitored for 6 months the crematorium infrastructure:- the cremators were now over 17 years old and required regular repair as well as annual servicing. Recurring costs over the last 3 years were detailed in paragraph 4.5 of the report. The Service operated a financial sink fund whereby any additional income generated was set aside to re- invest in the ongoing maintenance requirements the cremators would become less efficient over time and would likely need to be fully replaced over the next 5 years. Future replacement would provide the opportunity to consider larger capacity to meet the increasing requirement for outsized coffins IT modernisation:- the current IT system had been in place since 2005, however, the Service aimed to invest in a new, cloud-based system to drive modernisation, as set out in paragraph 4.7 of the report the charging framework:- operating costs for the Service were continuing to increase, particularly for the crematorium a review of existing charges had been conducted and benchmarked against comparators. 4 activities had been identified, as detailed in paragraph 4.9 of the report, where the Council did not currently charge but proposed to introduce a charge the review had also allowed the opportunity to harmonise charging across the crematorium and cemeteries and those proposals were detailed in the table at paragraph 4.10 of the report stakeholder engagement:- the first broad consultation on the Service would be undertaken and would include members of the public, funeral directors, clergy, humanists, other celebrants, and any other interested parties The Bereavement Strategy for South Lanarkshire 2024 to 2033, including a crematorium service time pilot and introduction of new and harmonised charges, if endorsed, would be referred to the next meeting of the Executive Committee for approval. The Committee decided: (1) that the Bereavement Services Strategy for South Lanarkshire 2024 to 2033, as detailed at Appendix 1, be endorsed; (2) that the new crematorium service time pilot, as detailed in section 4.4 of the report, be endorsed; and (3) that the new and harmonised charges, as detailed in sections 4.9 and 4.10 of the report, be endorsed. 123
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The Committee recommended to the Executive Committee: that the Bereavement Strategy for South Lanarkshire 2024 to 2033, including a crematorium service time pilot and introduction of new and harmonised charges, be approved. [Reference: Minutes of 30 May 2023 (Paragraph 10)] 3.2 A link to the report submitted to the Community and Enterprise Resources Committee of 18 June 2024 is provided for information. South Lanarkshire Council Bereavement Services Strategy 2024 to 2033 4. Recommendation Referred by Community and Resources Committee of 18 June 2024 – Introduction of Charge for Uplift of Household Garden Waste (Burgundy) Bin – Extract of Minute 4.1. A joint report dated 28 May 2024 by the Executive Directors (Community and Enterprise Resources) and (Finance and Corporate Resources) was submitted seeking endorsement for a proposal to introduce a charge for the uplift of burgundy bins containing garden waste. In 2015, the Council introduced a burgundy bin to collect food waste to comply with the Waste (Scotland) Regulations 2012. Those Regulations placed a statutory obligation on local authorities in Scotland to provide householders with a separate food waste collection service. Although there was no statutory requirement to provide residents with a garden waste collection service, the Council allowed residents who had been provided with a burgundy bin to deposit unbagged, compostable garden waste free of charge. Approximately 110,000 households had been provided with a burgundy bin to present commingled food and garden waste. Residents in flatted properties with no gardens had communal ‘food only’ burgundy bins. Around 5,000 rural properties, mainly in Clydesdale, were not provided with a burgundy bin and were currently unable to present food or garden waste separately at the kerbside. All South Lanarkshire Council residents, including those in rural areas, could request a garden waste uplift for unbagged compostable wate. The cost of that service was £40 for up to 10 items. As councils across the country looked for ways to reduce budgetary pressures, charges for garden waste collections had become increasingly common. Currently in Scotland:- 6 councils did not provide a kerbside garden waste collection service for residents 21 councils operated a chargeable garden waste permit scheme 5 councils currently provided a free of charge garden waste collection service The councils that operated a permit system charged residents an average of £42.16 per year. Further information of the cost of garden waste permits in Scotland was provided at Appendix 1 to the report. A proposal, which would make use of garden waste permits in South Lanarkshire to recover some of the costs associated with providing the Service, was fully detailed at section 4 of the report. Key aspects of that proposal included:- 124
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residents who used the burgundy bin solely for food waste would not require a permit the permit would cost £45 per annum and, except for a 2-week period over Christmas and New Year, the burgundy bin would be collected every 2 weeks in the financial year unlike the current food and garden waste collection service, the permit scheme would be available to residents in rural Clydesdale. The cost of the permit would include the cost of providing the burgundy bin as well as a food waste caddy. The establishment of this service would allow those residents in rural Clydesdale not currently on the service to opt in to receive a burgundy bin and caddy for food waste only the new Service would commence from 1 April 2025, however, given the scale of the project, it was anticipated that implementation work would commence on 1 July 2024 significant community engagement would be undertaken by Waste Services to ensure residents were aware of the new charges as well as alternative options. A ‘Frequently Asked Questions’ document was provided at Appendix 2 to the report the costs associated with the proposal, outlined at paragraphs 4.6 to 4.13 of the report, included:- the establishment of a Project Team to manage the design, implementation and roll out of the Service. This would include a specialist IT system to manage the permit process. Costs associated with establishing the Project Team, purchasing the IT system and burgundy bins were estimated at £0.170 million the vehicle fleet establishment would need to be increased by 3 refuse collection vehicles in 2025/2026. Leasing and maintenance costs were detailed at paragraph 4.8 of the report. Employee costs associated with the additional Waste Operatives required to crew those vehicles would be in the region £0.184 million in 2025/2026 and £0.330 million from 2026/2027 onwards four 14-tonne refuse collection vehicles, that had been purchased using funding from Zero Waste Scotland in 2015, would have to be replaced to ensure the Service continued to operate across South Lanarkshire. Those ‘owned’ assets were not on the vehicle replacement list and were now nearing end of life. The cost of replacing those with leased vehicles was detailed at paragraph 4.10 of the report expected income from the uptake of the Service, as outlined at paragraph 4.12 of the report The proposal to introduce a charge for the uplift of burgundy bins containing garden waste would require an overall increase in establishment, with the following posts being added to Waste Services, as detailed at paragraphs 5.2 and 5.3 of the report:- 1 FTE Project Officer post, temporary for 21 months, on Grade 3, Level 2 to 4, SCP 63-74 (£37,866 to £43,615) 3 FTE Waste Education Assistant posts, temporary for 12 months, on Grade 2, Level 1, SCP 34-35 (£26,023 to £26,406) 4 FTE permanent Waste Operative (Loaders) posts on Grade 1, Level 3, SCP 25-27 (£25,140 to £25,729) 5 FTE permanent Waste Operative (Drivers) posts on Grade 1, Level 4, SCP 30-31 (£29,682 to £30,054) 125
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The permanent posts would be implemented on a phased basis over 2 years, as detailed at paragraph 5.4 of the report. The total costs associated with the proposal were detailed at section 6 of the report and included estimated net income after deducting the costs of the Service. The proposal, if endorsed, would be referred to the next meeting of the Executive Committee for approval. The Scottish Government was currently considering proposals to make garden waste collections mandatory. If that was to be implemented, the Council would no longer be able to charge for the collection service. It was expected that appropriate compensatory funding would be made available to local authorities in respect of the new statutory obligation. Following an extensive discussion and interchange of views, Councillor Brown, seconded by Councillor Devlin moved that the matter be referred, without endorsement, to the Executive Committee for decision. Councillor McAllan, seconded by Councillor Johnston-Dempsey moved as an amendment that the recommendations in the report be not endorsed and not referred to the Executive Committee. On a vote being taken using the electronic voting system, 12 members voted for the motion and 11 members voted for the amendment. The motion was declared carried. The Committee decided: that the matter be referred, without endorsement, to the Executive Committee for decision. 4.2 A link to the report submitted to the Community and Enterprise Resources Committee of 18 June 2024 is provided for information. Introduction of Charge for Uplift of Household Garden Waste (Burgundy) Bin 5. Employee Implications 5.1. All employee implications were highlighted as part of the original reports to the Resource Committee. 6. Financial Implications 6.1. All financial implications were highlighted as part of the original reports to Resource Committee. 7. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 7.1. All climate change, sustainability and environmental implications were highlighted as part of the original reports to Resource Committee. 8. Other Implications 8.1. Any risks or other implications were highlighted as part of the original reports to the Resource Committee. 9. Equality Impact Assessment and Consultation Arrangements 9.1. Equality impact assessment and consultation arrangements were highlighted as part of the original reports to the Resource Committee. 126
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Paul Manning Chief Executive 18 June 2024 Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Accountable, effective, efficient and transparent Previous References ♦ Community and Enterprise Resources Committee of 18 June 2024 (Paragraphs 8 and 9) List of Background Papers None Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact:- Tracy Slater, Administration Adviser Tel: 07385 370089 E-mail: tracy.slater@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 127
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 26 June 2024 Report by: Executive Director (Housing and Technical Resources) Subject: South Lanarkshire Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy (LHEES) 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] update the Executive Committee on findings from the consultation and engagement regarding the draft Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy (LHEES) seek approval for the finalised LHEES (attached as Appendix 1) outline the proposed monitoring, reporting and governance arrangements for the LHEES [purpose] 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Executive Committee is asked to approve the following recommendation(s): - (1) that the findings from consultation and engagement with stakeholders regarding the LHEES be noted; (2) that the finalised LHEES and Delivery Plan be approved; and (3) that the proposed governance, monitoring and reporting arrangements be approved. [purpose] 3. Background 3.1. The concept of a Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy (LHEES) was introduced following Scottish Government consultation in 2017. The underlying principle was to establish a long-term plan for decarbonizing heat in buildings and improve their efficiency across an entire local authority area. This was followed by the Heat in Buildings Strategy published in October 2021 which confirmed that the introduction of area based LHEES are fundamental to the Scottish Government’s approach to heat decarbonisation. 3.2. The creation of a LHEES brings together key priorities around the reduction of carbon emissions, improvement of domestic and non-domestic building stock and the need for a reduction in fuel poverty. The development of a LHEES requires consideration of these priorities in a comprehensive way to ensure that action addresses inequalities and supports a just transition to net-zero carbon by 2045. 3.3. The Scottish Parliament passed the Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategies (Scotland) Order in May 2022. The LHEES Order places a duty on local authorities to prepare, publish and update a Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy and Delivery Plan. 12 129
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3.4. All local authorities were required to publish their first Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy and Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Delivery Plan on or before 31 December 2023. The Scottish Government also indicated that all local authorities must keep their LHEES and Delivery Plan under review. 3.5 The LHEES is required to prioritise areas for delivery of heat decarbonisation actions. It must cover all building sectors – domestic, non-domestic and public buildings and set a strategic framework for decarbonising the heat in these buildings. It will: • set out how each segment of the building stock needs to change to reach net zero • identify strategic heat decarbonisation zones and sets out the principal measures for reducing buildings emissions within each zone 3.6. Locally, the South Lanarkshire LHEES has been written in such a way to ensure that it complements and supports the Sustainable Development and Climate Change Strategy 2022 to 2027. 3.7. The need to ensure that the necessary datasets were effectively developed, reviewed, and analysed, coupled with a commitment to ensure that adequate time was provided for consultation has meant that the December timescale was not achieved. The Scottish Government have been kept up to date on progress and the anticipated date of publication. 3.8 Work on the consultative draft was completed in late January 2024 and the draft Strategy and Delivery Plan were issued for consultation on 14 February 2024. 4. Consultation and engagement 4.1. The public and stakeholder consultation for the draft LHEES and Delivery Plan covered an eight-week period, closing on 12 April 2024. An online survey was conducted on the Council’s Sustainable South Lanarkshire website during the consultation period. The survey was widely publicised internally through the Intranet and externally via the South Lanarkshire View. 4.2. As part of the consultation process, the Council has also engaged directly with a wide range of partners and stakeholders who provided constructive and positive feedback. This included:- Lanarkshire Business Hub Lanarkshire Climate Action Hub Local groups with an interest in climate change, climate action and sustainability South Lanarkshire Private Landlord Forum Tenant representatives of the South Lanarkshire Tenant Participation Coordination Group Financial Inclusion Network Fuel Poverty Sub-Group Registered Social Landlord Forum Local Housing Strategy Steering Group 4.3. A special elected members awareness session was held on 10 May 2024, providing elected members with the opportunity to review the draft in detail and speak with officers from across the Resources involved prior to submission for Committee approval. 130
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4.4. Feedback on the draft LHEES was positive. Over 80% of the respondents agreed with the three key priorities outlined in the LHEES, see 5.3 below. 4.5. A copy of the draft LHEES was also submitted to the Scottish Government for review. Feedback from this noted that the Council has initiated a comprehensive LHEES, highlighting a commitment to decarbonisation and energy efficiency, which aligns with Scotland's statutory targets. The Delivery Plan indicates a focus on a fabric-first approach, transitioning to zero direct emissions heating systems, and developing heat networks. 4.6. The review further noted that:- the Delivery Plan is at an early stage, which reflects development to date and projects already underway rather than a finalised set of actions further work will be required to develop the Delivery Plan in year one 5. Proposed LHEES priorities and structure 5.1. It is proposed that the LHEES Strategy and Delivery Plan are published as separate documents on the Council’s website following formal adoption by the Executive Committee. 5.2. The LHEES Strategy will consider both national and local priorities, policies, and strategies. The Strategy will take account of changes to the national and local context and make appropriate linkages to local and planned infrastructure upgrades, other major projects, access to available resources and funding, decisions over the gas grid and community engagement. 5.3. The priorities for LHEES are as follows:- Priority 1: Reduce heat demand using a fabric first approach to improve the condition and energy efficiency of housing across all tenures to ensure that poor energy performance is removed as a driver of fuel poverty. Priority 2: Transition to zero direct emissions heating systems in buildings across South Lanarkshire to tackle climate change. Priority 3: Make greater use of heat networks as part of the wider just transition to net zero. 5.4. The LHEES Delivery Plan is an action plan enabling the Council and our partners to work towards the delivery of the changes identified in the LHEES. The Delivery Plan will identify stakeholder roles and their responsibilities, build on existing plans and policies and coordinate action across local partners. 6. Monitoring, reporting and governance arrangements 6.1. As required in Scottish Government guidance, the LHEES requires be reviewed on an annual basis. Due to alignment with the Councils’ Sustainable Development and Climate Change Strategy 2022 to 2027, it is proposed an annual report is presented to the Climate Change and Sustainability Committee outlining progress achieved and key changes required. 6.2. The approach to reporting on the LHEES will ensure coherence and consistency in relation to the progress being achieved between the actions which are shared with the Sustainable Development and Climate Change Strategy 2022 to 2027. 131
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7. Employee Implications 7.1. All Resources will be required to contribute to the implementation of the Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy to ensure that actions and targets are met. 7.2. As outlined in section 8.2 below, the Scottish Government have allocated each local authority £75,000 annually until 2027/2028 to support the development and delivery of the first iteration of LHEES. 7.3. To help co-ordinate delivery and reporting arrangements for the Strategy, existing resources within Housing and Technical Resources are being realigned, with a dedicated officer established to act as the main point of contact for the Council and partners in relation to LHEES. 8. Financial Implications 8.1. The LHEES itself does not commit any expenditure. There will be additional costs associated with the delivery of projects identified through the LHEES, some of which will be eligible for external funding. Funding options will be developed and reported on a project-by-project basis. 8.2. Each local authority will receive £75,000 annually to support the development of its LHEES. This funding will be paid by the Scottish Government at the end of March each year as a redetermination of the General Revenue Grant, until 2027/2028. 9. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 9.1. It is anticipated that there should be no new significant environmental implications that have not already been identified in either the national Heat in Buildings Strategy or Council-led plans, for example, the Local Housing Strategy, Council Plan, Community Plan, Local Development Plan 2, Sustainable Development and Climate Change Strategy. Any new effects should be minor and positive in nature. Where identified, appropriate enhancement or mitigation measures will be considered within the LHEES. 9.2. In formally determining whether a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) is required, the Council has considered the views of the Consultation Authorities who agree that the LHEES is unlikely to have significant environmental effects and therefore a SEA will not be undertaken. 10. Other Implications 10.1. Failure to meet sustainable development and climate change objectives is one of the top risks for the Council. Without a plan in place and a financial plan to support it then this risk will continue to be one of the Council's top risks. 11. Equality Impact Assessment 11.1. An Equality Impact Assessment (EqIA) was undertaken as part of the development of the draft strategy. This identified that there would be no negative impact on the following categories: age, disability, gender, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion and belief, sex, and sexual orientation, whilst also highlighted that a key consideration of LHEES is to ensure a just transition in relation to tackling climate change, contributing to a quality of life which is fair, inclusive, and does not disadvantage anyone. 132
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11.2. A Fairer Scotland Duty Assessment was also undertaken as part of the development, concluding that South Lanarkshire’s LHEES will effectively support the delivery of the council’s wider goals of supporting those who are most vulnerable, reducing poverty, and decreasing carbon emissions. The assessment identified that those who are most vulnerable or faced socio-economic challenges would be the most adversely impacted by climate change, with the LHEES acting as an engagement vehicle to ensure effective actions to tackle climate change are taken forward. Stephen Gibson Executive Director (Housing and Technical Resources) 5 June 2024 Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Focused on people and their needs Fair, open and sustainable Accountable, effective, efficient, and transparent We will work towards a sustainable future in sustainable places Good quality, suitable and sustainable places to live Caring, connected, sustainable communities Previous References Update on Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy, Climate Change and Sustainability Committee, 28 February 2024 List of Background Papers The Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009 South Lanarkshire Sustainable Development and Climate Change Strategy 2022-27 South Lanarkshire Strategic Housing Investment Plan 2023-28 South Lanarkshire Council Local Housing Strategy 2022-27 Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact:- Name: John Smith Designation: Investment Officer, Housing and Technical Resources E-mail: john.smith@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 133
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1 South Lanarkshire Council Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy June 2024 12 135
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2 Executive Summary South Lanarkshire’s Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy (LHEES) sets out how to tackle greenhouse gas emissions from buildings, whilst also improving residents’ quality of life by addressing fuel poverty. South Lanarkshire, and Scotland as a whole, will be net zero by 2045. This is a challenging target, and the LHEES is a key step in planning our approach to achieving this goal. The LHEES Strategy is a long-term strategic framework for decarbonising heat in buildings and improving energy efficiency across South Lanarkshire. It is published alongside the LHEES Delivery Plan, which sets out how South Lanarkshire Council will implement the strategy over the next five years. South Lanarkshire’s LHEES will support the delivery of the Council’s goals of improving energy efficiency, reducing fuel poverty, and decreasing carbon emissions through zero direct emissions heating systems. The Council will use the LHEES to inform the development of Capital and Revenue programmes and as a means of engagement with stakeholders and community groups. The Council has identified three priorities for the LHEES: Priority 1: Reduce heat demand using a fabric first approach to improve the condition and energy efficiency of housing across all tenures to ensure that poor energy performance is removed as a driver of fuel poverty. Priority 2: Transition to zero direct emissions heating systems in buildings across South Lanarkshire to tackle climate change. Priority 3: Make greater use of heat networks as part of the wider just transition to net zero. The LHEES has been developed in accordance with the Scottish Government’s methodology. This consists of 8 stages which bring together: • the Council’s existing goals and strategies • data analysis of the building stock • input from different stakeholder groups Overall, the content of South Lanarkshire’s LHEES has been informed primarily through a data- driven approach using a number of datasets and proxy indicators. South Lanarkshire Council is already making progress toward achieving its goals of decarbonisation, improving energy efficiency, and reducing fuel poverty. Within its own stock, the Council is investing in improving energy efficiency to meet required standards. Beyond the Council’s buildings, improvements have been carried out to homes under the Area Based Schemes and Energy Company Obligation programmes. The LHEES will support the Council and its community planning partners to scale up and align existing programmes, and to increase the scale and pace of retrofit and heat network development that is needed to meet the national target of net zero by 2045. 136
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3 The Sustainable Development and Climate Change Strategy covers the actions the council will take to tackle climate change. The Council’s Corporate Plan: Connect, highlights the work required to develop local solutions to protect nature and to take action on climate change. The Local Housing Strategy outlines actions to make housing in South Lanarkshire more sustainable and improve energy efficiency while ensuring that more of the energy used comes from low carbon and renewable sources. South Lanarkshire’s Building Stock A baselining exercise has been carried out to highlight key characteristics within the housing stock across South Lanarkshire. This will allow benchmarking in future iterations of LHEES and enable the evaluation of progress towards targets and the ultimate target of net zero by 2045. It also highlights some of the opportunities for how and where the Council can target interventions to achieve the greatest impact. Domestic properties The majority of domestic properties are cavity construction type (~70%), with the remaining 30% equally distributed between solid brick or stone, system built, and timber frame. This means that there are opportunities for standardising fabric measures to enable installations at scale in cavity construction properties. South Lanarkshire has one of the lowest rates of fuel poverty in Scotland, according to data from the 2019 Scottish House Condition Survey. However, over 20% of South Lanarkshire’s residents are in fuel poverty. Addressing fuel poverty remains a priority for the Council and is specifically addressed in the LHEES and Delivery Plan. South Lanarkshire Council owns 15% of the properties within the local authority area. This provides the Council with opportunities to upgrade properties at scale. This is particularly important in the social housing sector, as half of all social housing properties within the local authority area are in SIMD deciles 1 (most deprived) and 2. This means that they have a high risk of fuel poverty. The majority (89%) of domestic properties have a fossil fuel-based heating system. This means that there is significant work to be done to decarbonise heating in South Lanarkshire’s homes through heat networks and switching to zero direct emissions heating systems such as heat pumps. South Lanarkshire Council is already investigating the potential for new heat network developments in two areas. Feasibility studies have been conducted by external consultants for heat networks in Hamilton, around Almada Street and for decarbonising the six tower blocks in Calderwood, East Kilbride. Non-domestic properties The heat demand of non-domestic buildings in South Lanarkshire is 513,110 MWh/yr, equivalent to 76% of the total heat demand and significantly more than the heat required for domestic properties. Buildings such as hotels, leisure facilities, industry, education, and community centres have larger average heating demands per property than buildings such as offices and retail premises. 137
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4 Mains gas is used to meet 57% of the total heat demand for non-domestic properties in South Lanarkshire, providing 291,454MWh/yr of heat (Table 18 Heat demand by main fuel type (MWh/yr)Table 18). This means that properties which use gas as a main fuel type have a higher average demand than those that use electricity. Heat Network opportunities in South Lanarkshire Heat networks have been identified as a low-regrets1 decarbonisation option in the Scottish Government’s Heat in Buildings Strategy. 90% of South Lanarkshire’s residents live in urban areas which may be suitable for the development of heat networks. The Council has carried out data- driven analysis to highlight potential areas for future heat network development, including new build developments. This has highlighted 11 potential heat network zones for further investigation with actions for each discussed within the Delivery Plan. Challenges to delivery This Strategy outlines a number of challenges which need to be overcome in order to decarbonise South Lanarkshire’s buildings. These include: • Market disincentives, such as the current unit price differential between gas and electricity • Consumer uncertainty about new technologies • Challenging property types, such as those that require significant fabric upgrades • An underdeveloped supply chain for energy efficiency and heating upgrades Not all of these challenges can be addressed in the first iteration of LHEES, or the first Delivery Plan. For this reason, the LHEES will be an iterative Strategy. The regulatory landscape will change quickly over the next few years in order to drive progress in building decarbonisation in Scotland2. The LHEES Strategy and Delivery Plan will both be reviewed annually, and if necessary revised to react to legislative and market changes and to benefit from new opportunities that arise. 1 Low-regrets decisions are actions that are cost-effective now and provide options and flexibility in the future rather than blocking off options. 2 For example, the Scottish Government’s proposed Heat in Buildings Bill and the Social Housing Net Zero Standard, or the UK Government’s Review of Electricity Market Arrangements. 138
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5 TABLE OF CONTENTS SOUTH LANARKSHIRE COUNCIL 1 LHEES STRATEGY 1 JUNE 2024 1 1. Introduction 7 1.1. National Context 7 1.2. Local Context and Priorities 7 2. About LHEES 8 2.1. Purpose 8 2.2. Structure and approach 9 2.3. How this LHEES has been developed 10 3. Achieving net zero 14 3.1. Policy drivers 15 3.2. Progress to net zero in South Lanarkshire 19 4. Current Building Stock 21 4.1. Domestic buildings 22 4.2. Non-domestic buildings 37 4.3. Heat pump suitability 40 4.4. Heat network development 42 5. South Lanarkshire’s LHEES Priorities 43 5.1. Priority 1: Reduce heat demand using a fabric first approach to improve the condition and energy efficiency of housing across all tenures to ensure that poor energy performance is removed as a driver of fuel poverty. 43 5.1.1. Fuel Poverty 44 5.1.2. Mixed-tenure properties 46 5.2. Priority 2: Transition to zero direct emissions heating systems in buildings across South Lanarkshire to tackle climate change. 48 5.2.1. Off-gas areas 48 5.2.2. On-gas grid buildings 48 5.3. Priority 3: Make greater use of heat networks as part of the wider just transition to net zero. 49 Heat Network Opportunities 49 6. Opportunities for South Lanarkshire 52 6.1. Economic opportunities 52 6.2. New business models to accelerate retrofit 53 7. Challenges 54 139
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6 7.1. Heat networks 54 7.2. Barriers to retrofit 55 7.3. Challenges associated with different tenure types 57 7.4. Rural and urban challenges 60 8. Summary 61 9. Glossary 62 9.1. Abbreviations 62 9.2. Terms 63 10. Appendices 69 10.1. Appendix A: Additional national policy drivers 69 10.2. Appendix B: Datasets used in the development of this LHEES 71 10.3. Appendix C: Datasets and Limitations of the LHEES approach 72 10.4. Appendix D: LHEES stage descriptions 75 10.5 Appendix E: Identification of conservation areas and listed buildings 77 10.6 Appendix F: Detailed methodology for the identification of potential heat network zones 78 140
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7 1. Introduction 1.1. National Context In 2018 the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) advised that to reach the 1.5°C target set in the Paris Climate Accord the world needs to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050. The Climate Change (Emissions Reduction Targets) (Scotland) Act 2019 then set an ambitious target of Scotland reaching net zero by 2045. Achieving net zero is crucial to mitigating the impacts of climate change to stabilise global temperatures. This is a vital step to avoid the worst consequences of climate change. The way we heat our homes, workplaces and other buildings is the third-largest cause of carbon emissions in Scotland. To meet the net zero target, both domestic and non-domestic buildings in Scotland will have to significantly reduce their carbon emissions. Decarbonising buildings involves reducing carbon emissions associated with their energy use and is a key factor in reaching net zero. Building decarbonisation can be achieved through measures including improving the energy efficiency of buildings and transitioning to zero direct emissions heating systems. This LHEES will outline how South Lanarkshire Council will identify and target support to retrofit existing buildings with better insulation and energy efficient technologies. Addressing fuel poverty is an important aim of this strategy. Poor energy efficiency of buildings is a critical driver of fuel poverty. South Lanarkshire Council will utilise this strategy as the primary tool to boost the adoption of energy efficient measures, aiming to simultaneously alleviate fuel poverty and contribute to the path towards achieving net-zero carbon emissions. 1.2. Local Context and Priorities South Lanarkshire has a population of 320,820, which makes it Scotland’s fifth largest local authority by population. The local authority covers an area of 1,772 km2, almost 80% of which is currently being used for agriculture. However, 3 out of 4 people in South Lanarkshire live in urban areas. The largest settlements are East Kilbride, Hamilton, Rutherglen, and Cambuslang. The larger settlements towards the south of the local authority include Carluke, Lanark, Strathaven, Biggar and Forth. South Lanarkshire is growing. Since 2001 the number of households in South Lanarkshire has been steadily increasing and has now reached 148,483. In addition, there are approximately 9,900 non-domestic properties across South Lanarkshire including schools, libraries, leisure facilities, factories, and shops. The Council has three key priorities that have been laid out in the Council’s Corporate Plan 2022- 2027. • People – Putting people first and reducing inequality is key to improving lives and life prospects. South Lanarkshire is committed to working with communities to ensure that voices are heard, and people have support to act on the things that are important to them. 141
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8 • Planet – Working towards a sustainable future in sustainable places is key to protecting our natural world for a healthier future. South Lanarkshire is dedicated to working together to develop local solutions to protect nature, take action on climate change, and support our young people to lead the way. • Progress – By working together South Lanarkshire will build on what we have learned to recover from the pandemic, while making progress through continuous improvement. This progress will be delivered in a way that matters to everyone, is in the right place, and is at the right time. Aiming to contribute to all three of these wider priorities through LHEES, the council has established the following priorities for this Strategy: Priority 1: Reduce heat demand using a fabric first approach to improve the condition and energy efficiency of housing across all tenures to ensure that poor energy performance is removed as a driver of fuel poverty. Priority 2: Transition to zero direct emissions heating systems in buildings across South Lanarkshire to tackle climate change. Priority 3: Make greater use of heat networks as part of the wider just transition to net zero. These priorities are described in further detail in section 5 in this Strategy. They also contribute to the structure of the LHEES Delivery Plan. Priorities 1 and 2 have shaped the identification of delivery areas for both social housing and private tenure housing, while heat network delivery areas have been identified in line with Priority 3. 2. About LHEES 2.1. Purpose Scottish local authorities have a statutory duty to develop a Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy (LHEES) by 31st December 2023. This duty is described in the Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategies (Scotland) Order 2022.3 LHEES are the principal mechanism for locally led heat planning across Scotland’s local authorities. The strategies set out the long-term plan for decarbonising heat in buildings and improving energy efficiency across an entire local authority. The focus on locally led planning is to ensure that the decarbonisation of heat in buildings is delivered in a way that is relevant to local contexts and tailored to the specific needs of communities. The purpose of this LHEES is to present the evidence base that identifies what needs to be done across South Lanarkshire to change buildings and local infrastructure by 2045 to fulfil the Scottish Government’s objectives and local priorities relating to heat in buildings. The interventions occur at the building level, in heat networks or in a combination of both. 3 The Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategies (Scotland) Order 2022 142
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9 South Lanarkshire’s LHEES will support the delivery of the Council’s goals of improving energy efficiency, reducing fuel poverty, and decreasing carbon emissions through zero direct emissions heating system. The Council will use the LHEES to inform the development of its Capital and Revenue programmes for Council-owned buildings, and in engagement with stakeholders and community groups to offer targeted support for privately owned properties. 2.2. Structure and approach Structure LHEES has a two-part structure, consisting of a strategy and a delivery plan. • The LHEES Strategy is a long-term strategic framework for decarbonising heat in buildings and improving energy efficiency across South Lanarkshire, framed around the six considerations outlined below. • The LHEES Delivery Plan sets out how South Lanarkshire Council will implement its strategy over the next five years. It enables the Council to work towards delivery of the changes identified in the strategy and clarifies the role and responsibilities of stakeholders. This document contains South Lanarkshire Council’s LHEES Strategy. The accompanying Delivery Plan can be found on South Lanarkshire Councils website. Considerations The national LHEES guidance frames the strategy around six considerations relating to heat decarbonisation and energy efficiency. They are used to identify and target interventions in different parts of the building stock. The six considerations are outlined in Table 1. The considerations for heat decarbonisation grouped around buildings that are: on or off the gas and areas with potential to develop heat networks. Considerations relating to energy efficiency and other outcomes focus on areas with poor building energy efficiency, such as no or low levels of insulation, and areas where this is likely to contribute to high levels fuel poverty. This focus will ensure that energy efficiency projects will reduce fuel poverty. Mixed-tenure, mixed-use, and historic buildings are included as a separate consideration as these are likely to require different approaches. Table 1: Summary of the LHEES considerations No. LHEES Considerations Description Heat decarbonisation 1 Off-gas grid buildings Transitioning from heating oil and LPG in off-gas areas 2 On-gas grid On-gas grid heat decarbonisation 3 Heat networks Decarbonisation with heat networks 143
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10 Energy efficiency and other outcomes 4 Poor building energy efficiency Poor building energy efficiency 5 Poor building energy efficiency as a driver for fuel poverty Poor building energy efficiency as a driver for fuel poverty 6 Mixed-tenure, mixed-use and historic buildings Mixed-tenure and mixed-use buildings, listed buildings and buildings in conservation areas 2.2.1 LHEES stages This LHEES has been developed over eight stages, as outlined in Figure 1. The completion of stages 1-6 provided the data analysis and evidence base which forms the foundation for South Lanarkshire’s LHEES Strategy (stage 7) and Delivery Plan (stage 8). Figure 1: Summary of LHEES Stages 2.3. How this LHEES has been developed South Lanarkshire’s LHEES was developed in partnership with Changeworks, following the standard methodology published by Scottish Government [see section 10.4]. The table below displays the outputs of each stage and how they have been used in the LHEES process. 144
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11 Table 2: Summary of LHEES outputs and its use in the project. LHEES Stage Outputs and Formats Role in informing LHEES 1 Policy and Strategy Review (.pdf/.doc) Sets priorities for LHEES and highlights relevant national and local policy and strategy drivers 2 Data and Tools Library (.xlsx) Dataset scoping and review exercise, including uses in subsequent LHEES stages and key contacts 3 Baseline Tools (Domestic and Non- Domestic) (.xlsx) Maps (.pdf) Data outputs on Strategic Zones used in the identification and mapping of initial Delivery Areas (Stage 4) 4 GIS layers on Heat Networks (.mpkg) Summary table of clusters, resources and constraints (.xlsx) Summary table used for sense-checking of initial Delivery Areas and GIS layers and also for deeper exploration of maps. Both outputs are further carried forward for deliberation in stakeholder workshops (Stage 6) 5 PEAT-OR Power-BI Visual breakdown of potential costs and savings per total installation measures at property/ datazone levels. Demonstrated in stakeholder workshops to identify potential Delivery Areas 6 Ranked list of Delivery Areas Used in the structuring and writing of the Strategy Document and Delivery Plan 7 Strategy Document (.pdf/.doc) Storymap of Strategy Document Summary document of local authority’s building stock and opportunities for achieving net zero as well as challenges Storymap used to supplement the Strategy document 8 Delivery Plan (.pdf/.doc) Final output highlighting priorities and actions in delivering LHEES for the next five years The analysis in Stage 3 separates buildings into four categories, which are primarily based on their suitability for a heat pump retrofit. The categories are defined in the Scottish Government’s LHEES guidance and are based on indicators from the Home Analytics dataset. Table 3 provides a brief description of each category and the process for categorising all domestic properties. 145
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12 Table 3: A description of each category of domestic properties including their specific indicators. Building category Description Indicators Category 0 Currently have a low or zero direct emissions heating system, or heat network connection • Properties with a heat pump (off-gas only) or communal heating as the main heating system Category 1 “Heat pump ready” buildings that are well-suited to heat retrofit with minimal other changes. • Cannot be a category 0 property • Not listed or in a conservation area • Properties with insulated walls and double or triple glazed windows • If the property has a loft, it must have at least 100mm of loft insulation • Properties which are likely to have a wet heating system (i.e. mains gas, LPG, Oil or Biomass/solid fuels) Category 2 Secondary potential for heat pump retrofit. Require some fabric and/or distribution systems upgrades. • Cannot be a category 0 or 1 property • Properties that are cavity construction4 (either insulated or uninsulated), or any other construction type, with insulated walls • There must be no risk of the property having a narrow uninsulated cavity • Properties can be listed or in a conservation area Category 3 Significant upgrades required to be heat pump ready. Off-Gas Categorisation Process The subcategory indicates the most viable decarbonisation technology. Heat pumps are the priority solution. The suitability of storage or direct electric heating, and biomass are indicated by the characteristics listed below: Category 3 – Heat pump • If the property is currently heated via an oil or LPG system Category 3 – Electricity (storage or direct) • Properties already using electricity as the main fuel type • Flats • Properties with double or triple glazed windows • Properties in urban areas (1, 2 or 3 in the 8-fold classification5) Category 3 – Biomass • Properties already using biomass as the main fuel type • Detached and semi-detached properties • Properties of a solid brick or stone construction type On-Gas Categorisation Process 4 See Error! Reference source not found. for an explanation of construction types 5 Scottish Government Urban Rural Classification 2020 146
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13 As per the off-gas categorisation process but there are no subcategories for electric and biomass options. For detailed descriptions on exact methodology used during the development of this LHEES, please refer to the Scottish Government issued methodology documentation. Summary of relevant regional policiesTable 4 sets out any areas where deviations were made from this methodology. Table 4: Summary of the deviations (if any) from standard methodology in the LHEES Considerations. LHEES Consideration Standard methodology Deviation from standard LHEES method Off-Gas Grid Buildings Categories 0, 1, 2 and 3 properties determined according to the following factors: - Unlisted property - Not in a conservation area - Wall insulation - Double/triple glazed windows - Wet system replacement (except electric and no heating/hot water systems) - Loft insulation prediction (99mm +) Only wall insulation is considered in determining Category 1 properties for all heating types (boilers, room heaters, storage heaters, no heating/hot water systems). Additionally identified solar PV suitability for category 1 properties. On-Gas Grid Buildings Categories 0, 1, 2 and 3 properties determined according to the following factors: - Unlisted property - Not in a conservation area - Wall insulation - Double/triple glazed windows - Wet system replacement (except electric and no heating/hot water systems) - Loft insulation prediction (99mm +) Only wall insulation is considered in determining Category 1 properties for all heating types (boilers, room heaters, storage heaters, no heating/hot water systems). Additionally identified solar PV suitability for category 1 properties. Poor Building Energy Efficiency Energy efficiency score is determined by wall insulation status, loft insulation status and double glazing. As most programmes and projects are wall insulation focused, the weighted Energy Efficiency map only includes wall 147
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14 insulation potential, not glazing and loft. Poor Building Energy Efficiency and Fuel Poverty Energy efficiency and Fuel Poverty score is determined by wall insulation status, loft insulation status and double glazing and Fuel Poverty. As most programmes and projects are wall insulation focused, the weighted Energy Efficiency and Fuel Poverty map only includes wall insulation potential, not glazing and loft. 2.3.1 Engagement The LHEES was developed with engagement from external stakeholders as well as internal stakeholders from different teams within the Council. The strategy also draws on insights from the public engagement activities carried out on related strategies, including the Sustainable Development and Climate Change Strategy (2021-22) and the Local Housing Strategy (2022). Stakeholder engagement has informed the evidence base and analysis at all stages of the LHEES. In the early stages of the LHEES development, the Council set up an LHEES Officer Working Group with representation from across each Council Resource or Service. Members of the group were involved in and responsibility for asset or estate management, energy usage or supply. In addition, officers with expertise in economic development, GIS mapping, energy efficiency and building decarbonisation were included. A stakeholder mapping exercise was undertaken, identifying internal and external stakeholders and their levels of interest and influence. The steering group provided input and reviewed analysis output throughout the LHEES stages. The Council will hold events with key stakeholders to discuss the Strategy and Delivery Plan and will launch an eight-week public consultation on the Strategy before seeking approval from the Council's Executive Committee on the final version of the document. 3. Achieving net zero Developing an LHEES and updating it every five years is a statutory duty for all local authorities. There are a number of policy drivers behind the need to develop an LHEES, and which have informed the content of South Lanarkshire’s LHEES. This section outlines the local, regional, and national policy drivers, as well as setting the scene by outlining the ongoing work in South Lanarkshire to meet net zero. 148
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15 3.1. Policy drivers The LHEES takes influence from a range of different policies, strategies, and targets. The following subsections outlines key policies that are relevant to the LHEES at local, regional, and national level. 3.1.1 Local policies South Lanarkshire Council has a number of policies and strategies that are relevant to the LHEES. These cover topics such as climate change, energy efficiency, fuel poverty and planning. The following is a list of the most relevant policies. Table 5: Summary of relevant local policies and strategies Name Description Community Plan 2022-2032 Developed by a partnership of public, private, and community representatives. Sets out key priorities to improve the lives and prospects for everyone in South Lanarkshire. Includes priority areas focused on improving housing quality and energy efficiency. Connect Council Plan 2022-2027 Sets out how the Council will continue to serve local communities and residents over the next five years. Includes objectives to improve the energy efficiency of housing stock and to minimise impact of fuel poverty and climate change on people. Sustainable Development & Climate Change Strategy 2022-27 The Council's priorities in its transition to Net Zero and to achieve sustainable development goals and meet climate change targets over a five-year period. Local Housing Strategy 2022-27 The Council’s priorities in relation to housing over a five- year period. Includes actions to improve energy efficiency and increase home energy decarbonisation. Local Development Plan 2 2020- 2025 Aims to guide future development to improve the quality of life for everyone in South Lanarkshire. Includes policies that support the development of heat networks. Local Development Plan 3 is in preparation. Strategic Housing Investment Plan 2024-2029 Affordable housing development priorities which guide the way in which Scottish Government funding will be allocated to achieve Local Housing Strategy outcomes. Child Poverty Action Plan 2022- 2023 Sets out what South Lanarkshire Council is doing to reduce child poverty. Contains a focus on reducing costs for families, including energy costs, by improving energy efficiency. 3.1.2 Regional plans 149
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16 The LHEES recognises the importance of collaboration across local authorities. South Lanarkshire is one of the eight councils making up the Glasgow City Region and its Strategic Development Planning Authority, Clydeplan. This strategic partnership has developed regional policy which informs South Lanarkshire’s LHEES, these policies can be found in Table 6. Strategic Development Plans have been replaced with the requirement to develop a Regional Spatial Strategy (RSS). RSS is a long-term spatial strategy for the strategic development of an area. Work on Glasgow City Region’s RSS will begin once further guidance has been published by Scottish Government. South Lanarkshire Council is also part of Climate Ready Clyde, who have published the Glasgow City Region Climate Adaptation Strategy and Action Plan. Table 6: Summary of relevant regional policies Name Description Clydeplan Strategic Development Plan 2017 Provides a 20-year land use plan for the Glasgow City Region. Includes policies for housing and delivering low-carbon heat and electricity, including heat networks. Glasgow City Region Climate Adaptation Strategy and Action Plan 2021 Seeks to guarantee the resilience and prosperity of the Glasgow City Region economy, society, and environment amid the challenges posed by the climate crisis. Flagship Action 7 addresses the need for net-zero, climate resilient housing retrofit. Glasgow City Region Regional Economic Strategy (2021) and Action Plan (2022-23) Sets out the high-level actions which will support the Region’s key economic challenges and ambitions. Includes a focus on housing retrofit. 3.1.3 National policies and targets The LHEES is primarily driven by Scotland’s statutory targets for greenhouse gas emissions reduction and fuel poverty. Several national policies are relevant, particularly the Heat in Buildings Strategy, the Heat Network Act, and the Fuel Poverty Act. These are outlined in Error! Reference source not found. and further described in the following section. 150
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17 Name Description Targets/aims Climate Change Climate Change (Emissions Reduction Targets) (Scotland) Act 2019 Targets to reduce Scotland's emissions of all GHGs to net-zero. 2045: Net zero GHG emissions 2040: 90% 2030: 75% 2020: 56% Update to the Climate Change Plan 2018–2032 Sets out a pathway to deliver our Scotland’s climate change targets, including ambitions for Scotland’s buildings. Multiple targets, including: 2030: At least 50% of building heated using zero emission systems Housing Heat in Buildings Strategy 2021 Sets out a pathway to reduce emissions from buildings and to remove poor energy performance as a driver for fuel poverty. By 2030, majority of buildings should achieve EPC band C, and 1 million homes use zero emission heating Heat in Buildings Bill (currently at consultation stage) Proposed new laws around minimum energy efficiency standards and prohibiting direct emissions heating systems. Minimum energy efficiency standards to be met by: 2028 for Private landlords 2033 for owner-occupiers Social Housing Net Zero Standard Proposed new energy efficiency standard that replaces EESSH2. Sets a minimum fabric efficiency rating for each home rented by social landlords. Under consultation. 2033: Fabric energy efficiency rating 2045: Clean heating in all socially rented homes Housing to 2040 Sets out the vision and route map for housing in Scotland to 2040. Existing homes are adapted and retrofitted to improve their energy efficiency and decarbonise their heating Energy Heat Networks (Scotland) Act 2021 Requires local authorities to review whether one or more heat network in the local authority is suitable for construction. Achieve a combined supply of thermal energy by heat networks of: 2030: 6 TWh 2027: 2.6 TWh Heat Networks Delivery Plan Sets out how provisions of the Heat Networks (Scotland) Act 2021 will contribute to increasing heat networks in Scotland. The targets set out in the Heat Networks (Scotland) Act 2021. Fuel Poverty Fuel Poverty (Scotland) Act 2019 Defines fuel poverty and requires the creation of strategies to tackle fuel poverty. 2040: < 5% of households in fuel poverty, < 1% in extreme fuel poverty. National Planning Framework 4 Sets out Scotland’s spatial principles, regional priorities, national developments, and national planning policy. Multiple Table 7 Summary of relevant national policy. 151
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18 Heat in Buildings The Heat in Buildings Strategy, published in 2021, sets out a vision that by 2045 Scotland’s homes and buildings are cleaner, greener, and easy to heat, and no longer contributing to climate change. The strategy prioritises improvements to the fabric of buildings to reduce energy demand, alongside a focus on zero emissions heating systems. This LHEES will contribute to the targets set out in the Heat in Buildings Strategy by identifying measures for reducing building emissions and potential heat network zones. In the Heat in Buildings Strategy, the Scottish Government committed to the development of a Heat in Buildings Bill to provide the regulatory framework for zero emissions heating and energy efficiency. In November 2023, the Scottish Government launched a consultation on the Heat in Buildings Bills, which proposes a minimum energy efficiency standard for private landlords by the end of 2028, and for owner-occupiers by 2028. It also proposes a ban on polluting heating systems in all buildings by 2045. The consultation will close in March 2024. Standards for social housing The Scottish Government has established targets to improve the energy efficiency of social housing. Previously, these have been set through the Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing (EESSH). EESSH2 guidance required all social housing to meet an energy efficiency rating of EPC band B by 2032. EESSH2 has been under review to realign the standard with net zero targets and the 2032 milestone has been put on hold. In November 2023, the Scottish Government launched a consultation on a new Social Housing Net Zero Standard which will replace EESSH2. The proposed new standard includes setting a minimum fabric efficiency rating (different to current EPC rating) and introducing a requirement to replace polluting heating systems with clean alternatives by 2045. Heat Network Act The act requires local authorities to review areas that are potentially suitable for heat networks within their constituency. This LHEES will function as the main vehicle by which South Lanarkshire Council will carry out this review. Heat networks supply multiple buildings with heat or cooling from a central source or sources. This avoids the need for individual boilers or electric heaters in every building. The Heat networks (Scotland) Act 2021 defined a heat network to mean either a district heat network or a communal heating system and provides the legislative framework to both set up and regulate heat networks. The act requires local authorities to review areas that are potentially suitable for heat networks within their constituency. This LHEES will function as the main vehicle by which South Lanarkshire Council will carry out this review. Fuel poverty The Fuel Poverty Act was passed by the Scottish Parliament in 2019. It defined a household as being in fuel poverty if fuel bill costs exceed 10% of the household income. A household is defined as being in extreme fuel poverty if fuel costs are in excess of 20%. The first set of targets laid out in 152
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19 this legislation are that by 2030 no more than 15% of households in Scotland are in fuel poverty and no more than 5% are in extreme fuel poverty. Homes with a lower energy efficiency were identified as one of the key drivers of fuel poverty and the LHEES looks to address this pressing issue. By improving the energy efficiency of homes, a reduction in fuel costs can be expected. LHEES can therefore provide support to reducing fuel poverty by mitigating energy efficiency as a driver. EPC reform To date, Scotland’s energy efficiency targets have been articulated through EPC ratings. Recently, limitations of this approach have been highlighted6. One limitation is that the EPC rating is a cost efficiency rating, where the cost of using the heating system is a factor in the rating. This makes the rating less useful for setting targets for the energy demand of buildings. The Scottish Government has launched a consultation on EPC reform7. It proposes to introduce a range of new metrics, including a fabric rating, which will specifically focus on the fabric performance in terms of heat loss. Recent consultations on minimum energy efficiency standards for buildings indicate that this rating may be used. 3.2. Progress to net zero in South Lanarkshire The LHEES will build on work already taking place within South Lanarkshire to reduce emissions. This section provides an overview of some of the activity to date which will help South Lanarkshire to achieve net zero. 3.2.1 Within South Lanarkshire Council Sustainable Development and Climate Change Strategy (SDCCS): The Council’s SDCCS was developed following extensive public engagement and is focussed on addressing climate related issues. Sustainable development typically includes three pillars: environmental, social, and economic. The focus for SDCCS is mainly on the environmental pillar. This strategy focuses on the period 2022 to 2027, it also sets the pathway through to the end of this decade. Carbon Management: South Lanarkshire Council has committed to a zero direct emissions target by 2038 for its non-domestic buildings. The term ‘direct’ emissions refer to fossil fuels consumed at source, for the Council’s carbon footprint this includes the gas and oil used in buildings and the fossil fuel used to power fleet vehicles. This target is in line with the ambitious public sector targets detailed in Scotland’s Climate Change Plan and Scotland’s Heat in Buildings Strategy. Strategic Energy Review: The Council undertook a Strategic Energy Review in 2015, which was updated in 2021. The review provides advice to the Council on how to meet its climate change aspirations and obligations, and recommendations from the first report have been implemented. 6 Climate Change Committee - Reform of domestic EPC rating metrics to support Net Zero 7 Scottish Government - Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) reform: consultation 153
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20 The review demonstrates that the Council has consistently met, or exceeded, its annual 2% carbon emission reduction targets year-on-year. Achieving standards for social housing: South Lanarkshire has made significant investments to improve the energy efficiency of its housing stock. The Council met the Scottish Housing Quality Standard (SHQS) by the deadline of April 2015 through major investment. Due to this investment the majority of council-owned homes have an energy efficiency rating of EPC Band C or above, meeting the first phase of the Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing (EESSH). EESSH2 has been implemented since December 2020. It seeks to ensure social rented properties achieve the equivalent of EPC Band B or above where it is practically possible to do so. The original EESSH2 milestones of 2025 and 2032 are currently on hold while the standard is reviewed to ensure alignment with the 2045 Net Zero target. In accordance with the interim guidance on EESSH28, South Lanarkshire Council will prioritise zero direct emission heating systems for council-owned properties where the heating system is due for replacement during the review period. Currently, 6% of South Lanarkshire Council’s stock reaches the energy efficiency (EE) rating of band B required for EESSH2 compliance. This is slightly lower than national levels of 7%. The majority of South Lanarkshire Council’s properties currently have an EE band C (85%). The Council has worked with Changeworks to understand the potential impact and cost of fabric and heating system upgrades, as well as solar PV and battery storage installations. The estimated cost was £235 million. Similar analysis will be required for the new Social Housing Net Zero Standard (SHNZS). All new council homes are built to the Silver Greener Standard, meaning that tenants benefit from lower energy bills. 3.2.2 Beyond the Council’s buildings Area Wide Emissions The Council worked with consultants to understand how to measure and reduce area-wide carbon emissions for South Lanarkshire. The work established a baseline position and identified high-level actions to help the Council meet its long-term targets. LHEES Pilot As part of the development of the standardised methodology for LHEES the Council worked with Changeworks to deliver a pilot project as part of the second phase in 2018/2019. The pilot focussed on opportunities for electrification and solar generation in off-gas areas, specific 8 Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing post 2020 (EESSH2) review: interim guidance for social landlords 154
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21 challenges in the private rental sector, and mapping out all the sectors and building types that would need to be addressed. Private Tenure housing Energy Efficient Scotland: Area Based Schemes (ABS): ABS is a Scottish Government scheme that provides funding for local authorities to deliver energy efficiency programmes in areas with high levels of fuel poverty. South Lanarkshire Council has delivered ABS schemes since 2013. In this time over 4,000 insulation measures have been installed in South Lanarkshire homes. The majority of these installations have been in owner-occupied homes. Energy Company Obligation (ECO) and Great British Insulation Scheme (GBIS): The Energy Company Obligation (ECO) was first introduced in 2013 and places legal obligations on energy suppliers to deliver energy efficiency measures to domestic premises. The Great British Insulation Scheme (GBIS) was launch in September 2023, both schemes are UK Government energy efficiency schemes that supports private tenure households on low income and vulnerable households. The aims of the schemes are to improve the least energy efficient homes and helping to meet the Government’s fuel poverty and net zero commitments. Local Authorities are invited to participate in these schemes. South Lanarkshire Council participates in both the ECO4 and GBIS which run until March 2026. The Council has published a Statement of Intent (SOI)9 which outlines the eligibility criteria. The ECO4 scheme will focus on supporting low income and vulnerable households. The scheme will improve the least energy efficient homes and will take a whole house approach installing multiple energy efficiency measures. The GBIS will support the ECO4 scheme in the delivery of predominantly single measures targeted at a wider range of households. ECO Flex and GBIS Flex are household referral mechanisms within the schemes to allow local authorities to widen the eligibility criteria and to improve targeting of energy efficiency measures. In the four years between 2018/19 and 2021/22, 5,526 measures in 2,603 owner-occupied properties have been funded through ECO in South Lanarkshire. 4. Current Building Stock This section provides an overview of the building stock in South Lanarkshire. This baseline allows the Council to create an effective strategy and to measure progress towards targets and the ultimate target of net zero by 2045. Based on information within the Home Analytics dataset (version 3.7, 2021), South Lanarkshire has a total number of 153,000 domestic properties. Age, dwelling type, wall construction, tenure, 9 South Lanarkshire ECO Flex 155
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22 and heating fuel are key factors that impact energy performance, operational costs, and living conditions in buildings. Home Analytics data for South Lanarkshire has been used to benchmark key property statistics against overall national statistics found in the Scottish House Condition Survey, 202110. 4.1. Domestic buildings Property age and construction type Property age can be used to predict construction type which is useful when planning appropriate retrofit interventions across a large number of buildings. The majority of properties within South Lanarkshire are of cavity construction (Table 9). This provides an opportunity as fabric measures can be standardised and installed at scale as construction methods, moisture mitigation processes and material types are well-understood. However, as discussed below, there will be a range of different thermal performances within this archetype. Table 8: Property ages per property type within South Lanarkshire Property Type 1919- 1949 1950- 1983 1984- 1991 1992- 2002 Post- 2002 Pre- 1919 Total Detached house 1,638 8,409 3,238 6,740 10,148 3,919 34,092 Semi-detached house 6,053 13,810 1,677 2,782 3,390 3,077 30,789 Mid-terraced house 1,623 19,139 939 724 1,154 1,740 25,319 Small block of flats/dwelling converted in to flats 8,481 6,778 926 952 1,113 2,498 20,748 Block of flats 656 11,199 762 1414 3,035 1,310 17,614 End-terraced house 1,232 11,780 721 670 1,173 965 16,541 Large block of flats 16 3,789 242 952 4,309 30 9,338 Flat in mixed use building 166 872 205 163 563 1,636 3,605 10 Introduction - Scottish House Condition Survey: 2021 Key Findings - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) 156
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23 Figure 2: Property types by age of building in South Lanarkshire Table 9 Construction types of properties within South Lanarkshire Cavity Timber Frame Solid brick or stone System built Insulated Uninsulated Insulated Uninsulated Insulated Uninsulated Insulated Uninsulated 66,318 (42%) 27,378 (17%) 26,235 (17%) 5,241 (3%) 6,670 (4%) 16,786 (11%) 4,828 (3%) 5,352 (3%) 0 5000 10000 15000 20000 25000 30000 35000 40000 Detached house Semi-detached house Mid-terraced house Small block of flats/dwelling converted in to flats Block of flats End-terraced house Large block of flats Flat in mixed use building Distribution of property ages within property types in South Lanarkshire Pre-1919 1919-1949 1950-1983 1984-1991 1992-2002 Post-2002 157
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24 Figure 3: Insulation status by construction type within South Lanarkshire Understanding construction types Properties built before 1919 are likely to be of a solid wall construction, from brick or stone, with timber floor and roof construction. Stone buildings are likely to have a high conservation value, at might be within conservations areas or listed. Retaining the facing stone in such buildings is often essential to the character of the area, however it also presents unique retrofit challenges and is expensive. Cavity wall construction became more commonplace from the 1920s onwards and is still built today. Like traditional construction, cavity wall construction commonly uses timber for floor and roof 0 20,000 40,000 60,000 80,000 100,000 System built Solid brick or stone Timber frame Cavity Property Construction Type in South Lanarkshire Insulated Uninsulated 158
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25 construction. Walls are constructed in two, rather than a single leaf. In comparison to solid wall construction, unfilled cavity walls are almost twice as thermally efficient. Additionally, cavity wall constructed properties are much more likely to incorporate damp proof courses (DPCs) and Portland cement than traditionally constructed properties. More recent cavity wall constructed properties (post-1980) are likely to have partially filled cavities. System-built usually refers to post-war non-traditional construction housing that is not cavity wall constructed. It is generally found in mass social house building programmes of the period. Such housing is normally utilitarian in design with low conservation value. This is advantageous regarding potential external wall insulation interventions; however, these properties have a range of unique designs making standardised retrofit plans challenging. In Scotland, timber frame construction superseded cavity wall construction as the primary method of housebuilding in the early 1980s. The proliferation of timber frame construction in Scotland has coincided with the incremental increase of insulation standards. Older properties may have minimal mineral wool insulation between timber studs whereas newer properties may have up to 140mm of phenolic foam or air tightness barriers. Increasing insulation standards have been the main driver in the increase in depth of the timber structure, with older properties having around 75mm timber studs in comparison to 140mm in modern buildings. Loft Insulation Levels of loft insulation in properties in South Lanarkshire. Figure 4: Loft Insulation status within South Lanarkshire 159
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26 Window Glazing Types of glazing in properties in South Lanarkshire. Figure 5: Window glazing status within South Lanarkshire Tenure Property tenure will have a direct impact on the pace and extent of retrofit installations across South Lanarkshire. Specific tenure-targeted policies such as EESSH2 have been proven to accelerate change. Conversely, the private sector has seen slower progress due to property owners not seeing a strong return on capital investment without government stimulation. Table 10: Tenure split of properties within South Lanarkshire Owner Occupied Local Authority Privately Rented Housing Association 111,324 (~70%) 27,506 (~17%) 14,404 (~9%) 5,574 (~4%) 160
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27 Figure 6: Property tenure split within South Lanarkshire Just under a fifth of the domestic properties in South Lanarkshire are social housing. While these properties are eligible for various government funding streams targeted at retrofit, the existing funding is not sufficient to meet the energy efficiency requirements while keeping rents affordable. This is a challenge for the social housing sector. The majority of properties are owner occupied or private rented which indicates developing a retrofit strategy for properties outside of council-ownership is essential to meet net zero. Mixed tenure provides an additional retrofit challenge due to multiple owners within the same property, this impacts around of fifth of the total housing stock. This can delay or reduce the extent of retrofit carried out due to different priorities or capital investment plans for the property owners. Council-owned properties in this category could be targeted first to develop a retrofit plan addressing challenges and opportunities. Table 11: Mixed tenure properties within South Lanarkshire Mixed Tenure Properties No Yes 128,634 (81%) 30,174 (19%) 5,574 4% 27,506 17% 111,324 70% 14,404 9% Tenure split of properties within South Lanarkshire Housing Association Local Authority Owner Occupied Privately Rented 161
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28 Figure 7: Mixed tenure split within properties in South Lanarkshire 30,174 19% 128,634 81% Split of mixed tenure properties in South Lanarkshire Yes No 162
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29 Fuel Poverty Data from the Scottish House Condition Survey (Box 1) and the Scottish Index for Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) (Box 2) have been used to assess fuel poverty within South Lanarkshire. South Lanarkshire had one of the lowest rates of fuel poverty in Scotland in 2017-1911, with an overall percentage below the national average. However, a fuel poverty rate of 22% is still high, and not on track for meeting the national target of <5% by 2040. Additionally, the gap between South Lanarkshire’s fuel poverty rate and the national average has narrowed considerably over the past five years (Table 12). However, due to a change in how fuel poverty is defined in 201912, direct comparisons cannot be drawn with the statistics published prior to 2016-2018. The average rate of 22% will include areas with much higher concentrations of fuel poverty, as demonstrated in Map 6. South Lanarkshire has substantial rural areas, which are potentially at greater risk of fuel poverty (See 5.1.1 for more detail). It is difficult to identify the exact reasons for the lower-than-average fuel poverty rates, as fuel poverty is a function of several variables including income and how energy is used in the home; neither of which have been analysed as part of the LHEES. Fuel poverty is also driven by the energy efficiency of homes and by fuel prices. As shown in Error! Reference source not found., 15% of South Lanarkshire’s owner-occupied homes are an EPC Band B, suggesting that homes in South Lanarkshire are generally more energy efficient than the national average. However, this trend is not seen across private and social rented homes, which generally have poorer energy efficiency levels than the national average. Furthermore, the rate of fuel poverty is likely to have worsened since 2019 due to the recent cost of living crisis and energy price crisis. 11 Scottish House Condition Survey: Local Authority Analysis 2017-2019 12 Fuel Poverty (Targets, Definition and Strategy) (Scotland) Act 2019 Box: 1 Scottish House Condition Survey: Fuel Poverty Data In this dataset, a household is classified as fuel poor if, in order to maintain a satisfactory heating regime, total fuel costs necessary for the home are more than 10% of the household’s adjusted net income (after housing costs), and if after deducting fuel costs, benefits received for a care need or disability and childcare costs, the household’s remaining adjusted net income is insufficient to maintain an acceptable standard of living.1 163
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30 Table 12 Scottish House Condition Survey figures showing the three-year average fuel poverty rates across South Lanarkshire and Scotland Figure 8: Three-year average fuel poverty rate across South Lanarkshire relative to the Scottish national. Note that from the years 2016-18 onwards, the definition of fuel poverty differed to the previous years. 26% 25% 23% 20% 22% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 2013-15 2014-16 2015-17 2016-18 2017-19 Comparison of three-year average fuel poverty rates across South Lanarkshire and Scotland South Lanarkshire Scotland Households 2013-15 2014-16 2015-17 2016-18 2017-19 South Lanarkshire 26% 25% 23% 20% 22% 36,000 36,000 33,000 30,000 32,000 Scotland 34% 34% 27% 25% 24% [Old fuel poverty definition] [New fuel poverty definition] 164
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31 In a national context, South Lanarkshire is the tenth most deprived area out of 32 local authorities, based on the SIMD analysis carried out. A total of 31,590 properties in South Lanarkshire fall within SIMD deciles one and two. Just under half of the total properties owned by the Council fall into this category. This illustrates a strong link between the social housing tenure type and areas with high SIMD scores. With a priority of alleviating fuel poverty, South Lanarkshire Council has used the LHEES process to investigate areas of high probability of multiple deprivation in conjunction with category one properties. This is detailed in the Delivery Plan. Table 13: SIMD statistics covering deciles one and two within the local authority Owner Occupied Local Authority Privately Rented Housing Association 15,975 (10%) 10,310 (6%) 2,733 (2%) 2,574 (2%) Box: 2 Scottish Index for Multiple Deprivation as a proxy for fuel poverty The Scottish Index for Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) dataset has been used assess fuel poverty within South Lanarkshire. SIMD is a standard tool for identifying areas with relatively high levels of deprivation and was published in 20201. The SIMD: • Is a relative measure of deprivation across small areas in Scotland. • Looks at multiple deprivation. 'Deprived' does not just mean 'poor' or 'low income'. It can also mean people have fewer resources and opportunities, for example in health and education. SIMD data can be used to: • Compare overall deprivation of small areas. • Compare the seven domains of deprivation. • Compare the proportion of small areas in a council region that are very deprived. • Find areas where many people experience multiple deprivation. • Find areas of greater need for support and intervention. SIMD data is split into ten deciles covering the whole population, where one is most deprived and ten is least on the scale. 165
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32 Figure 9: Tenure split amongst SIMD Decile One and Two Properties within South Lanarkshire 2,574 8% 10,310 33% 15,975 50% 2,733 9% Tenure split of properties within SIMD Deciles One and Two within South Lanarkshire Housing Association Local Authority Owner Occupied Privately Rented 166
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33 Primary Fuel Type Generally, the domestic housing stock aligns with national averages in relation to primary fuel type with a slightly higher proportion of properties using electricity as a primary fuel type. Table 14: Primary fuel type statistics for domestic properties in South Lanarkshire Primary Fuel Type South Lanarkshire Scotland Mains gas ~127,840 (81%) 2,016,000 (82%) Electricity ~20,423 (13%) 262,000 (11%) Oil ~7,115 (4%) 129,000 (5%) LPG ~1,525 (1%) 18,000 (1%) Biomass / Solid Fuel ~1,096 (1%) 36,000 (1%) Figure10: Primary fuel types across properties in South Lanarkshire relative to the Scottish national average. 127,840 20,423 7,115 1,525 1,096 1 10 100 1,000 10,000 100,000 1,000,000 10,000,000 Mains gas Electricity Oil LPG Biomass / Solid Fuel Primary Fuel Type in South Lanarkshire and Scotland South Lanarkshire Scotland 167
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34 EPC data Generally, the social housing sector housing in South Lanarkshire currently has lower EPC ratings when compared to national averages. This is at odds with the various policy drivers for the sector and suggests that these are not having the desired impact in relation to retrofit. Just under a quarter (20%) of social housing properties are in the poorest performing EPC bands E-G, this is significantly higher than the national average of 7%. Owner occupied properties in South Lanarkshire have almost four times the proportion of EPC band B properties (15%) when compared to the national average (4%). This may be linked to lower fuel poverty rates in the area. Table 15: EPC data for domestic properties in South Lanarkshire EPC Band Owner Occupied Private Rental Social Housing SLC Scotland SLC Scotland SLC Scotland A (92-100) 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% B (81-91) 15% 4% 7% 7% 6% 6% C (69-80) 47% 43% 35% 43% 36% 59% D (55-68) 28% 38% 40% 35% 38% 28% E (39-54) 8% 11% 13% 9% 15% 6% F (21-38) 2% 3% 4% 5% 5% 1% G (1-20) 0% 1% 1% 1% 0% 0% 168
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35 Figure 11: Split of EPC bands across all property tenures in South Lanarkshire relative to the Scottish national average. Carbon emissions Carbon emissions across the national housing stock remains relatively consistent between 67.4 kg/m² and 70.5kg/m² across all dwelling types (Error! Reference source not found.). This varies considerably for housing in South Lanarkshire, in particular tenement and terraced housing. Terraced housing has ~41% higher carbon emissions per m² when compared to the national average. Poorer energy efficiency and a higher proportion of carbon intensive primary heat source are two potential reasons why terraced houses in South Lanarkshire contribute higher carbon emissions per m². On the other hand, tenements in the area have 23% lower carbon emissions suggesting improved energy efficiency or a higher proportion of tenements with lower carbon heat sources. In general, the dwellings are larger in South Lanarkshire at 117m², compared to 97m² nationally. 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% A (92-100) B (81-91) C (69-80) D (55-68) E (39-54) F (21-38) G (1-20) EPC Data for Domestic Properties in South Lanarkshire Relative to National Statistics Owner Occupied Private Rental Social Housing Owner Occupied (Scotland) Private Rental (Scotland) Social Housing (Scotland) 169
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36 Figure 12: Carbon emissions (kg/m²) for each dwelling type in South Lanarkshire 119.2 70.1 60 59.8 51.7 72.270.4 68.2 70.5 69.8 67.4 69.3 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 Terraced Other flats Detached Semi-detached Tenement All dwelling types Carbon Emissions (kg/sqm) SLC - Carbon Emissions (kg/sqm) National Average - Carbon Emissions (kg/sqm) 170
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37 4.2. Non-domestic buildings Table 16 below shows that non-domestic buildings in South Lanarkshire require significantly more heat than for domestic properties, equivalent to 76% of the total heat demand. Figure 43: Breakdown of domestic and non-domestic building counts in South Lanarkshire Table 16: Total heat demand for domestic and non-domestic buildings in South Lanarkshire Non-domestic total heat demand (MWh/yr) Domestic total heat demand (MWh/yr) Total heat demand (MWh/yr) 513,110 (76%) 158,000 (24%) 671,110 Figure 5 below demonstrates the correlation between number of properties and heat demand is not always directly proportional and is dependent on property end use. Non-domestic typologies such as hotels, leisure facilities, industry, education, and community centres have larger average heating demands per property when compared to offices and retail premises for example. 8737 1169 0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 7000 8000 9000 10000 Privately Owned Public / LA Owned Count of Privately Owned vs Public / LA Owned Properties 171
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38 Figure 5: Non-domestic property count and heat demand Between them, offices and retail premises make up 43% of the non-domestic properties within South Lanarkshire, while only contributing to 22% of the total non-domestic heating demand requirements. Although, sports and leisure facilities make-up a relatively low number of properties 290 (3%), they contribute to 8% of the heating demands. This is likely due to high intensity heating requirements associated with activities such as heating swimming pools. Primary Fuel Type Over half of non-domestic properties across South Lanarkshire use electricity as their main fuel source, a total of 5,616 properties (Table 17). Table 17: Non-domestic property count by main fuel type Electricity Mains Gas Oil Other 5,616 (57%) 3,082 (31%) 1,149 (12%) 56 (0%) 0 10,000 20,000 30,000 40,000 50,000 60,000 70,000 80,000 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 Retail Offices Light manufacturing /… Cafes, pubs,… Storage / distribution Other Education Clubs and… General sports &… Residential Heavy manufacturing… Health Places of worship Hotels Museums, art… Emergency services Large entertainment… Military and prison Non-domestic property count and heat demand Property count Heating demand (MWh/yr) 172
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39 Figure 65: Main fuel type split across all non-domestic properties within South Lanarkshire Mains gas is used to meet 57% of the total heat demand for non-domestic properties in South Lanarkshire, providing 291,454MWh/yr of heat (Table 17). This means that properties which use gas as a main fuel type have a higher average demand than those that use electricity. Figure 76: Heat demand by main fuel type split within South Lanarkshire 5,616 3,082 1,149 56 0 1,000 2,000 3,000 4,000 5,000 6,000 Non-domestic property count by main fuel type Electricity Mains gas Oil Other 291,454 172,376 44,189 5,091 0 50,000 100,000 150,000 200,000 250,000 300,000 350,000 Mains gas Electricity Oil Other Heat demand by main fuel type split 173
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40 Table 18 Heat demand by main fuel type (MWh/yr) Mains gas Electricity Oil Other 291,454 (57%) 172,376 (34%) 44,189 (9%) 5,091 (<1%) 4.3. Heat pump suitability The analysis carried out at Stage 3 of the LHEES development identifies buildings’ heat pump suitability, both in areas with existing gas infrastructure and those without. The categories are defined in the Scottish Government’s LHEES guidance and are based on indicators from the Home Analytics dataset. Table 3 provides a brief description of each category and the process for categorising all domestic properties. Heat pump suitability, both in areas with existing gas infrastructure and those without. The following maps indicate properties in Category 1 - “Heat pump ready” buildings that are well- suited to heat retrofit with minimal other changes, in both on and off gas areas. Map 1 Council properties On Gas Grid in Category 1- “Heat pump ready” buildings 174
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41 Map 2 Private properties On Gas Grid in Category 1- “Heat pump ready” buildings Map 3 Council properties Off Gas Grid in Category 1- “Heat pump ready” buildings 175
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42 Map 4 Private properties Off Gas Grid in Category 1- “Heat pump ready” buildings 4.4. Heat network development South Lanarkshire Council is already investigating the feasibility of heat networks in two areas. A feasibility study has been conducted by an external consultant for a heat network in Hamilton, around Almada Street and the surrounding area. This feasibility study shows that there is an opportunity for a heat network here. This opportunity is detailed in the LHEES Delivery Plan (priority indicative heat network zone 1). South Lanarkshire Council has also investigated the options for decarbonising the six tower blocks in Calderwood, East Kilbride. The feasibility study, conducted by an external consultant, concluded that the site has scope to develop a heat network beyond the two clusters of tower blocks. 176
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43 5. South Lanarkshire’s LHEES Priorities South Lanarkshire Council’s key priorities for this LHEES have been informed by the six LHEES considerations, the local policy context, stakeholder engagement and analysis of the building stock in South Lanarkshire. 5.1. Priority 1: Reduce heat demand using a fabric first approach to improve the condition and energy efficiency of housing across all tenures to ensure that poor energy performance is removed as a driver of fuel poverty. Reducing heat demand simultaneously addresses fuel poverty and climate change as it results in lower carbon emissions and can reduce heating bills. A ‘fabric first’ approach to retrofit prioritises making the building envelope (walls, roof, floor, doors, windows) thermally efficient, alongside repairs and improvements to the building condition. This reduces a building’s heat demand before a decarbonised heating system is installed. Map gives an illustration of the areas of South Lanarkshire with domestic properties with low levels of energy efficiency. This is indicated by the level of uninsulated walls in each datazone. As shown in the map, the areas with the highest levels of uninsulated walls are Cambuslang Central, Shawfield and Clincarthill, and Mossneuk and Newlandsmuir. 177
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44 Map 5 Energy efficiency of domestic properties in South Lanarkshire. The weighted scores indicate the level of uninsulated walls in each datazone. A higher weighted score indicates lower levels of energy efficiency. 5.1.1. Fuel Poverty It is widely recognised that fuel poverty links closely with other forms of poverty. South Lanarkshire Council will continue to work with housing, health, and homelessness partners to support those households who are at risk of fuel poverty. Through a community planning approach, the Council will seek to ensure that the right type of advice and support is provided to households who need it through money advice and advocacy partners. Actions to tackle fuel poverty are led through the Financial Inclusion Networks’ Fuel Poverty Sub- Group. Chaired by the Council’s Money Matters Advice Service, this group aims to raise awareness of issues between services and identify solutions to help households who may be impacted by fuel poverty. Membership consists of representatives from across council services, the Health and Social Care Partnership, Home Energy Scotland, Energy Action Scotland, Citizens Advice Scotland, and a range of other third sector partners and services. Short term actions such as identifying grants for eligible households are taken forward alongside longer, strategic discussions on how best to support households across all tenures. 178
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45 South Lanarkshire Council is committed to reducing levels of child poverty. The Council recognises that the cost of energy means that family budgets are stretched further than ever. Addressing poor energy efficiency is a key part of the Council’s commitment to “provide support to South Lanarkshire’s families in order to tackle child poverty head on”13. South Lanarkshire has substantial rural areas, which are potentially at greater risk of fuel poverty due to the particular rural dimensions identified in the Scottish Rural Fuel Poverty Task Force Action Plan in 2016, and the 2023 Changeworks report A Perfect Storm: fuel poverty in rural Scotland. Map shows the probability of fuel poverty across South Lanarkshire. This is only an indication of the number of properties at risk of fuel poverty as a result of poor building energy efficiency. It does not account for the other variables that are drivers of fuel poverty (household income, energy bills and how energy is used in the home). The map shows that the areas with the highest risk of fuel poverty due to poor energy efficiency are Clydesdale South, Merryton and Meadowhill, and Shawfield and Clincarthill. However, poor building energy efficiency alone should not be used as an indicator of fuel poverty risk, as it may highlight affluent areas with poor building energy efficiency. For this reason, South Lanarkshire Council has instead used SIMD data as a proxy indicator for fuel poverty (as detailed in Error! Reference source not found. and the Delivery Plan). 13 South Lanarkshire's Local Child Poverty Action Plan Report 2022/23 179
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46 Map 6 Risk of fuel poverty due to low energy efficiency in South Lanarkshire. The higher weighted scores indicate poor energy efficiency, which is associated with a higher risk of fuel poverty. 5.1.2. Mixed-tenure properties For mixed-tenure and mixed-use (including the non-domestic sector) properties, whole-building level solutions are likely to be the most effective way to reduce emissions caused by heating. This is challenging as it requires the co-operation of multiple owners, but Scotland does not yet have robust systems in place to support and encourage this. For example, there is a lack of building management structures such as owners’ associations. Another key challenge to the retrofit of these buildings is that currently we cannot undertake energy assessments at a whole building level to assess and make appropriate recommendations for communal works for both energy efficiency work and communal heating systems14. Mixed-tenure properties are a priority for South Lanarkshire in recognition that early action is required to overcome these challenges. There are a total number of 9,379 mixed-tenure properties in South Lanarkshire, approximately 6% of the housing stock. For the first LHEES, mixed-tenure buildings where the Council is the factor will be prioritised, as well as other blocks containing social 14 ClimateXChange (2023) Whole building assessment for energy efficiency and zero direct emissions heat in multi-owner and mixed-use buildings 180
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47 housing. This is because social landlords are in a position to facilitate the retrofit of multi- occupancy blocks. Mixed-tenure blocks feature in the Council’s existing capital programme investment plans for external fabric repairs and energy measures. The plans will be updated to include appropriate retrofit measures. This includes development of a plan for non-traditional and hard to treat mixed tenure blocks. Where possible, the Council will utilise ABS funding to assist private tenure properties in mixed-tenure blocks with the costs. Map illustrates the number of uninsulated walls in mixed-tenure buildings across South Lanarkshire. The data shows that the datazone Burgh, Eastfield and Silverbank has the highest level of uninsulated walls in mixed-tenure properties. This is closely followed by Uddingston and Gardenside, and Hamilton Centre and Low Parks. Map 7 Uninsulated walls in mixed-tenure properties. 181
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48 5.2. Priority 2: Transition to zero direct emissions heating systems in buildings across South Lanarkshire to tackle climate change. South Lanarkshire’s first LHEES is following a low-regrets approach toward building-level decarbonisation of heating. This means continuing to follow a fabric first retrofit strategy, and initially targeting heating system upgrades in buildings that are already highly suitable for heat pumps (e.g., well insulated properties with a wet heating system). The two priorities for transitioning to zero direct emissions heating (ZDEH) systems in South Lanarkshire’s homes are: 2a: South Lanarkshire Council will lead by example by transitioning all council-owned properties to ZDEH, and no longer install gas boilers. 2b: South Lanarkshire Council will actively support, encourage, and enable owner- occupiers and private sector landlords to retrofit homes. The Council will educate, encourage and influence, where possible, private households to make their homes more energy efficient. This will include referrals for ECO funding and inclusion in ABS schemes, as well as working alongside active community groups to engage with homeowners on climate action. 5.2.1. Off-gas areas Off-gas homes that currently use high emissions oil, LPG, and solid fuels are a priority for converting to zero emissions heating. South Lanarkshire’s LHEES will initially focus on low-regrets deployment of individual building heat pumps in buildings off the gas network, particularly those currently using high carbon heating fuels. Heating upgrades to low carbon heating systems such as heat pumps can most easily be carried out in well-insulated properties which do not require the installation of additional heat emitters such as radiators (category 1 properties). Looking ahead, South Lanarkshire will also prioritise properties with secondary potential for heat pump retrofit, for example those requiring moderate fabric upgrades or the addition of wet distribution systems. In prioritising these ‘category 2’ properties, the LHEES is providing clear market signals in order to build a pipeline of work and support the development of the retrofit supply chain. 5.2.2. On-gas grid buildings Buildings connected to the gas grid are more likely than off-grid buildings to be connected to heat networks in the future. However, a large proportion of on-gas buildings will need to transition to individual building-level low carbon heating systems such as heat pumps. South Lanarkshire Council will lead by example, and for its own housing stock will no longer programme gas boiler replacements apart from in exceptional cases (catastrophic failure, for example, where there is no time to install a zero-emissions heating system). 182
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49 The Council will work to support registered social landlords, private sector landlords and owner- occupiers to install heat pumps in heat pump ready properties and those requiring some upgrades to enable heat pump installation (see Delivery Plan). Several initiatives already exist to deliver this support. The Council hosts a Private Landlord Forum twice a year with around 50-60 landlords usually in attendance. At the forum, the Council has provided sessions in conjunction with Home Energy Scotland covering new targets and standards for private sector housing, as well as how private landlords can access grant funding or support to upgrade their heating or properties to comply. The Council has also produced an AHSP guide to help tenants understand how to operate their new heating as efficiently as possible, which has been shared with registered social landlord partners. Going forward, the Council will work with the newly formed Lanarkshire Climate Action Hub to engage interested community organisations and building owners to aid future community action around energy efficiency and retrofitting. The Council will also signpost private rented sector landlords and owner occupiers to Scottish Government funding schemes for heat pump installation. 5.3. Priority 3: Make greater use of heat networks as part of the wider just transition to net zero. Heat networks have also been identified as a low-regrets decarbonisation technology in the Scottish Government’s Heat in Buildings Strategy. Nearly 80% of people in South Lanarkshire live in urban areas which may be well suited to heat networks. The deployment of heat networks will be a key mechanism in delivering net zero carbon and therefore is a priority focus for this first iteration of the LHEES. Section 47 of the Heat Networks (Scotland) Act places a duty on local authorities to consider undertaking the designation of heat network zones. These are the areas most suited to a heat network. The LHEES Delivery Plan indicates some potential heat network zones. These will require further investigation before a decision is taken on whether each zone is suitable for the construction and operation of a heat network. Suitable zones will then be designated as heat network zones, meaning that operators can apply for a permit for exclusive use for a specified number of years. Heat Network Opportunities Heat networks are a heat supply technology which deliver heat to multiple properties. Heat can be supplied by a range of different technologies. This could include heat generated from boilers (gas or biomass fired, combined heat and power (CHP)), or from heat pumps. They can also use 183
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50 recovered or waste heat from industrial processes, data centres, or energy from waste facilities. A heat network, despite its name, can provide both heating and cooling. Heat networks, as defined in the Heat Networks Scotland Act 2021, include both district and communal heating: • A district heat network is a network which distributes thermal energy from one or more sources to more than one building. • A communal heating system is a system which distributes thermal energy from one or more sources to one building comprising more than one unit (e.g. a block of flats). Heat networks, depending on their fuel source, can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The design of heat networks enables new heat sources to be added in the future with minimal disruption for the end-user. This means that heat networks are a low-regrets technology. Heat networks will play an important role in balancing wider energy networks, as they can store energy and absorb constrained renewable electricity generation (when there is too much energy being generated for the electricity grid). Heat networks may also help to reduce householders’ energy bills and tackle fuel poverty, if well- designed and operating efficiently using an appropriate heat source. To be efficient, economically viable and deliver value for money, heat networks must be well located. This means being in areas with sufficient heat demand and density to enable optimal performance. It also means securing connections to the network from buildings with large, reliable, and long-term demand for heat. These are known as ‘anchor loads’ and are essential in allowing heat networks to operate efficiently. The Heat Networks Act requires local authorities to identify and potentially designate Heat Network Zones. Zoning provides market signals to attract private investment from heat network developers. Analysis was undertaken to identify the areas where heat networks present a decarbonisation pathway that could be of strategic importance for South Lanarkshire. The areas of greatest potential were identified based on heat density and the identification of anchor loads (see Appendix F for full methodology). For the first iteration of the LHEES, only non-domestic buildings that the Council has full or partial control over were treated as potential anchor loads in the heat network zoning exercise. This is because the Council has greater control over the operation of these buildings and can guarantee their use as an anchor load. A total of 11 indicative heat network zones have been identified based on the analysis outlined above. There are three primary opportunities and eight secondary opportunities (Map 8). These zones are detailed in the Delivery Plan which provides additional details about specific areas and potential opportunities. Further analysis through feasibility studies will be required to understand the viability of heat network development in each identified area. 184
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51 Map 8: Primary and secondary heat network opportunities in South Lanarkshire. New build developments New build developments provide an opportunity to develop zero direct emissions heating systems or heat networks. There is a guarantee of demand from these developments, and infrastructure works can be included as part of the development to reduce overalls costs of heat network development. The Local Development Plan sets out the housing land available to facilitate all housing developments across South Lanarkshire to accommodate the Housing Supply Targets set out in the Local Housing Strategy 2022-27. In addition, the Council is committed to delivering 1,300 additional council homes by March 2027 with proposed sites for new homes set out in the Strategic Housing Investment Plan. Heat network opportunities will be considered for all new housing developments, while also recognising the significant capital costs associated, particularly for smaller sites. 185
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52 6. Opportunities for South Lanarkshire A significant portion of the social housing in South Lanarkshire is owned by the Council. This provides an opportunity to make the necessary investments in the social housing sector. By doing this, the Council will lead by example to encourage retrofit in other sectors of the housing market. Developing heat networks and improving the energy efficiency of buildings through retrofit provides a range of economic and development opportunities for communities, businesses, individuals, and the Council in South Lanarkshire. 6.1. Economic opportunities Supply chain development The LHEES Delivery Plan will outline the substantial pipeline of work required to achieve the net zero targets of local authority areas. This visibility may help to improve the local availability of ‘green skills’ by encouraging the existing workforce to invest in upskilling and attracting young people into the workforce. The implementation of heat networks will also create new roles within the local area, both short-term and for long-term operation. Financial returns Heat networks and electricity generation sites can provide an additional source of income for the Council. Any additional income generated can help to fund future decarbonisation programmes, helping to accelerate progress towards net zero targets. The Council has been working with partners to investigate the possibility of using land in the Council's ownership to identify renewable energy opportunities. Community wealth building Community Wealth Building (CWB) is an alternative approach to traditional economic development, which seeks to develop resilient, inclusive local economies, with more local employment and a larger and more diverse business base. It aims to reorganise local economies to be fairer and aims to reduce wealth flowing out of our communities, towns and cities by helping local investments and assets to generate more and better jobs for local residents and businesses. The South Lanarkshire Community Wealth Building Strategy was launched in 2021 and covers the five different pillars of our community wealth building approach. Of these, domestic and non- domestic public sector assets play a key role within the ‘Land and Property’ pillar, with a range of actions agreed to support the aims of the strategy. The pillar seeks to deepen the function and ownership of local assets held by anchor institutions (including the Council) so that financial and social gain is harnessed by residents. 186
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53 Regional collaboration South Lanarkshire’s existing regional engagement as a part of the Glasgow City Region provides opportunities for further collaboration and knowledge exchange in relation to energy efficiency and heat decarbonisation. Glasgow City Region is developing a Housing Energy Retrofit programme15. Supply chains are generally more developed across the Central Belt compared to the rest of Scotland, and there may be potential for developing these further through collaboration across neighbouring councils. Through the Local Housing Strategy, the Council will contribute to wider Glasgow City Region projects with the aim of pulling resources and identifying solutions on a regional level. This includes the City Region Retrofit Study and opportunities to work with neighbouring local authorities to identify particular housing needs. 6.2. New business models to accelerate retrofit Meeting the targets to improve the energy efficiency of homes and buildings will require rapid action across sectors. While some of the development and investment will come from the public sector, the scale and cost of retrofit means that new business models need to be developed. These models will provide opportunities for businesses, individuals, communities and the Council. South Lanarkshire Council will be proactive in further exploring the opportunities and potential risks of new business models and in partnering with others to maximise their potential. This section outlines four business models that have the potential to accelerate retrofit in South Lanarkshire. They are likely to require a central or anchor organisation, the Council is well-placed for facilitation, implementation and engaging with local stakeholders. Area-based approaches Area-based, or ‘neighbourhood’ approaches to delivery of retrofit programmes can help motivate people to decarbonise their homes and provide support throughout a project. A central delivery vehicle is set up to support local authority implementation of area-based decarbonisation programmes. This vehicle finances the project and is responsible for recruiting investors to supplement public financing made available through the local authority. This is a holistic approach to decarbonisation of an area which includes the implementation of community co-benefits (e.g., improved transport links, more green spaces). Collective purchase This approach combines support, guidance and group purchasing of energy renovation services to reduce upfront costs and accelerate retrofit at scale. Costs can be reduced by grouping together a number of properties looking to undertake the same renovation works. A central delivery agent is responsible for householder engagement and support, procurement and can also fulfil a project 15 Glasgow City Region – Housing Energy Retrofit 187
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54 management function. This delivery agent may also provide up-front financial support, such as a loan, which is then repaid over time by the property owner. Split ownership of communal heat networks The split ownership approach has been developed to support the rollout of networked heat pumps. This approach helps to separate the homeowner from the upfront cost of infrastructure installation (e.g., underground pipework). A private company or a not-for-profit community group finances and installs the heating infrastructure, and local residents pay a fee to connect to the network as well as a monthly charge for the energy they use in the home. Individual homeowners would still pay for the systems in the home, in the same way as those who are connected to the mains gas grid purchase and maintain their own boiler. Integrated Energy Systems (IESs) Integrated energy systems (IESs) combine energy sources to collectively supply electricity, transport, heating, and cooling demands of an area. The idea is that by looking across all areas of demand, and thinking about the local service needs that determine energy use, a more effective and efficient system can be created to help reduce waste and lower carbon emissions. There is one central control platform to automate decision making and operate the grid accordingly. 7. Challenges 7.1. Heat networks Expanding existing heat networks Expansion of existing heat networks will require co-operation between the heat network operator and any prospective customers. Many of the existing heat networks are not currently sized for expansion. The challenges associated with network expansion include redesigning energy centres, laying new connecting pipework and developing new contractual arrangements. Modifications to individual property infrastructure will be required, primarily installing new heat interface units (HIU) for each property. Internal pipework will need to be rerouted to the new HIU. An assessment of any change in supply temperature from the network should be carried out, this may require changes to radiator sizes within properties. Minimum performance guarantees Current contractual agreements generally do not include key performance indicators such as overall system efficiencies. This is a challenge as there is little incentive for heat network operators to maintain high system efficiencies if they have a minimum price guarantee. Introducing minimum 188
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55 levels of service is important when entering into a contractual agreement with heat network operators. High capital costs Heat networks require a significant amount of upfront investment for the development of both the heat generator (e.g. heat from waste facility) and the underground network of pipework. As such, most existing networks in Scotland have been developed in partnership with local authorities, as they have needed some form of public funding to get them up and running. Heat network demand assurance Heat networks are only viable where there is enough heat demand available to ensure efficient and economical stability of the project. Assurances need to be made prior to development that there is enough heat demand in the area to ensure financial returns on investment. Whilst local people may agree in principle to connect to the network, they cannot legally commit to a connection. This uncertainty surrounding heat demand impacts on the willingness for investors to also commit to the project, where initial investment is high, and returns are uncertain. Consumer uncertainty Heat networks are uncommon in Scotland and therefore are an unfamiliar concept for most energy consumers. There may be a reluctance to engage with a planned heat network project, and householders may require incentives to encourage a connection and a significant amount of support throughout the process. Consumers would also be limited to one heating supplier, and therefore be subject to any fluctuations in energy prices without the option to shop around for a cheaper alternative. 7.2. Barriers to retrofit Unit cost of electricity Those with fossil fuel boilers who are not in a heat network catchment would have to consider switching to a heat pump or other electric heating system to decarbonise their home. Consumers moving from mains gas (currently the cheapest form of heating) to heat pumps may see an increase in energy costs. The unit price of electricity is currently a barrier to the installation of heat pumps. This may be addressed by changes under the UK Government’s Review of Electricity Market Arrangements (REMA). Grid capacity Transitioning to ZDEH systems will significantly increase reliance on electricity, putting additional pressure on the electricity grid. The grid will need to be reinforced to enable large scale heat 189
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56 decarbonisation. This will be managed through engagement with the distribution network operator, SPEN. Working with SPEN will ensure that work to deliver the LHEES will be aligned with grid investment planning. High upfront capital costs High upfront costs and long-payback periods are associated with some more expensive measures such as EWI. This is a particular barrier for privately owned homes (owner-occupiers and private renters) without the funds to invest upfront in energy efficiency improvements to their homes. Funding does exist for these tenures, as detailed in the Delivery Plan. At present, this has not been enough to mobilise private homeowners at the pace required to meet targets. Skills gap There are major shortfalls facing the retrofit and decarbonisation industry in many specific trades and professions such as plumbers, HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning) specialists, surveyors and Retrofit Coordinators16. Investment is needed to encourage existing contractors to upskill and train young workers to enter the retrofit and decarbonisation workforce. This is a particular challenge in rural areas where training and upskilling opportunities are limited and where there is lower demand for green skills. The Just Transition Commission has stated that the market will not drive the change required, and systemic change must be driven by legislation and regulation from Scottish Government17. Similarly, reforming public procurement mechanisms can create demand and support growth of local workforces. The Scottish Government has committed to a £100m Green Jobs Fund over the next five years, which will be used to support the development of sustainable and low-carbon products and services. Supply chain Beyond the skills gap, the supply chains that underpin heat decarbonisation will also need to be developed to meet future demand. A 2020 research report found that heat pump manufacturers were confident in their ability to scale up operations as demand increases18. Concerns about meeting future demand was primarily associated with upskilling and training of installers. Local housing stock Significant fabric upgrades would be required in 4.6% of off-gas properties and 15.5% of on-gas properties in South Lanarkshire in order to be heat pump ready. Several factors can result in a property being classified in this category. Some of these factors include the property being listed or in a conservation area, being difficult to insulate, and a lack of an existing wet central heating system. 16 ClimateXChange (2022) Clean Heat and Energy Efficiency Workforce Assessment 17 Just Transition Commission (2023) Scotland’s Retrofit Workforce: A Briefing on the Built Environment and Construction 18 Eunomia (2020) Heat pump manufacturing supply chain research project 190
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57 Public confidence Recent research19 shows that there is broad concern about climate change among the public in Scotland, however this does not seem to be translating into widespread uptake of decarbonised heating systems. Whilst there are high levels of awareness of decarbonised heating, awareness does necessarily indicate confidence. Advice from trusted sources, such as installers and Scottish Government-backed advice services, as well as new energy-service business models will help to build consumer confidence in these systems. Disruption The large-scale electrification of heat will require significant reinforcement of the transmission network and changes to the operation of distribution networks in Scotland. It is expected that the majority of network reinforcements will occur in semi-rural networks, where disruption will be low. However, much of the urban network could also need upgrading, which will be disruptive as most lines are underground.20 Householders can face significant disruptions when retrofitting their homes with zero direct emissions heating systems. This has been highlighted in research on early adopters of heat pumps21. The level of disruption varies across heating systems and will depend on the existing heating system and pipework. Possible solutions The Council will look to overcome the barriers to retrofit. Possible solutions will include retraining our own in-house contracting operatives to install retrofit measures. This has already been successful in the installation of ASHPs and PV panels by council operatives but can be expanded further during the period of the first iteration of LHEES. The Council will work with the recently formed the Lanarkshire Climate Action Hub to support homeowners to make energy efficiency improvement to their homes. We will support local businesses to take advantages of the opportunities which LHEES presents. 7.3. Challenges associated with different tenure types Owner occupied properties In South Lanarkshire, 72% of properties are owner-occupied. Of these, 62% are in EPC bands A- C, meeting the proposed 2033 requirements22 for energy efficiency. The remaining 38% will require improvements to the buildings fabric and/or heating system within the next 10 years.23 In the longer 19 ClimateXChange (2020) Public awareness of and attitudes to low-carbon heating technologies 20 Vivid Economics, for CCC (2019) Accelerated electrification and the GB electricity system 21 Climate Xchange (2023) Experiences of early adopters of zero emissions heating 22 Delivering net zero for Scotland's buildings - Heat in Buildings Bill: consultation 23 This depends on how the targets will be measured. At the moment, some properties will be able to meet the EPC requirement by switching from electric storage heaters to a gas boiler. Future measurements (as described in Scottish EPC reform consultation) may set more ambitious targets specific to the fabric efficiency. 191
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58 term, the 77% of owner-occupied properties that are currently using fossil fuel-based heating systems will need to change by 2045. Since both deadlines are many years in the future, owner-occupiers may not be motivated to take action sooner. This is likely to be compounded by uncertainty around local energy developments. For example, owner-occupiers may be hesitant to install a new heating system if they await information about the development of a heat network. This LHEES is part of the actions the Council is taking to develop clearer plans around how the entire building stock will need to change. Private rented sector The number of privately rented properties in South Lanarkshire has been steadily increasing over the past decade, currently accounting for 9% of the building stock. Over half (58%), of these are in EPC bands D or below. Under proposed legislation, privately rented properties will be required to meet a minimum energy efficiency standard of EPC band C by 2028 (replacing the existing requirement of EPC band E by 2025). Funding exists to support landlords to improve the energy efficiency of their properties, however limited funding is available for heating system upgrades. The ‘split incentive’ associated with privately rented properties is a barrier to improving the energy efficiency of these buildings. This describes the issue faced by a private landlord who is responsible for paying for the cost of energy efficiency upgrades to their property but does not gain from the financial benefits associated with cheaper energy bills. Social housing In South Lanarkshire, 21% of properties are social housing, with the majority of these being owned by the Council. Households in this category are at a higher risk of facing fuel poverty. Almost half of Council-owned housing stock falls within SIMD deciles one and two, indicating a high risk of fuel poverty. As outlined in section 3, a new energy efficiency standard is being developed for social housing. This will require South Lanarkshire’s social housing properties to undergo significant energy efficiency improvements. Delivering the improvements will require assurance of long-term and adequate funding available to support social landlords, to avoid rent increases which could worsen fuel poverty. Mixed tenure In South Lanarkshire, 6% of properties are in mixed tenure buildings. While this is a relatively small proportion, they present a challenge when it comes to retrofit and heat decarbonisation. Mixed-tenure buildings are often slow to renovate because for some measures all occupants in the building must agree to the installation and pay towards funding the project. If one occupant does not have the funding available or does not agree to proceed with the project, this creates a risk that the project will not go ahead. Mixed-tenure buildings have been highlighted as a particular challenge in South Lanarkshire Council’s Local Housing Strategy. 192
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59 Mixed-tenure buildings that are factored privately face challenges in coordinating retrofit projects, for example the lack of building management structures such as owners’ associations (see 5.1.2 for more detail). 193
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60 Non-domestic properties Data is limited on non-domestic buildings, as many existing datasets are incomplete. Energy efficiency upgrade information is not currently well-reported in the non-domestic sector. This is an issue across Scotland, and not just in South Lanarkshire.24 7.4. Rural and urban challenges Rural areas In South Lanarkshire, 10% of people live in areas that are classified as ‘rural’25. They are more like to experience a number of specific barriers to decarbonisation, including supply chain issues, lack of local installers for renovation services, generally lower incomes and higher costs for retrofit due to the ‘rural premium’26, and a greater proportion of older and traditional properties. Additionally, people living in rural areas risk facing particular rural dimensions of fuel poverty, as identified by the Scottish Rural Fuel Poverty Task Force in 201627. A key priority for South Lanarkshire's advice and support services and housing investment programmes will be to continue to identify and target rural households who are likely to face higher risks of fuel poverty, including those in off-gas grid homes and solid wall, non-traditional construction types. Through the launch of targeted Energy Company Obligation (ECO) funding, as well as external funding opportunities such as community endowment funds generated by windfarm construction, the council will seek to improve outcomes for rural households. Urban area In South Lanarkshire, 90% of people live in areas classified as ‘urban’ or ‘small town’28. Like rural areas, urban areas also are also faced with unique barriers to decarbonisation. These include a greater number of mixed-tenure properties, such as tenement blocks, which can be difficult to retrofit due to the size and scale of the work required as well as issues related to occupant buy-in (see section 5.1.2 and section 3). Additionally, mains gas is the predominant heating fuel, where a switch to some zero direct emissions heating systems, such as heat pumps, in some cases could be more costly to run for householders. This is a significant barrier to householder engagement with the decarbonisation agenda, as discussed in section 7.2. 24 An evidence review of data associated with non-domestic buildings 25 Defined as Remote Small Towns, Accessible Rural, and Remote Rural in the Scottish Government 6-fold Urban Rural Classifications 26 Higher cost of goods and services in rural areas 27 Delivering affordable warmth in rural Scotland: action plan 28 Defined as Large Urban, Other Urban, and Accessible Small Towns in the Scottish Government 6-fold Urban Rural Classifications 194
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61 8. Summary South Lanarkshire’s LHEES sets out how to tackle greenhouse gas emissions from buildings, whilst also improving residents’ quality of life by addressing fuel poverty. This Strategy informs, and should be read alongside, the LHEES Delivery Plan. South Lanarkshire’s LHEES will support the delivery of the Council’s goals of improving energy efficiency, reducing fuel poverty, and decreasing carbon emissions through zero direct emissions heating systems. In addition, it will support the Council and its community planning partners to scale up and align existing programmes, and to increase the scale and pace of retrofit and heat network development that is needed to meet the national target of net zero by 2045. Overall, the content of South Lanarkshire’s LHEES has been informed primarily through a data- driven approach using a number of datasets and proxy indicators. The Strategy outlines a number of challenges which need to be overcome in order to decarbonise South Lanarkshire’s buildings. It also highlights opportunities, including 11 potential heat network zones. There is a statutory duty on the Council to update the LHEES every five years. Due to the urgency of the climate emergency, and the rapidly evolving policy landscape, the Strategy and Delivery Plan will both be reviewed and updated on an annual basis. This means they should be treated as live documents which will to respond to the introduction of new standards, regulation, and delivery programmes, to any changes in the LHEES process, and to future opportunities within South Lanarkshire. 195
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62 9. Glossary 9.1. Abbreviations Acronym Description EES Energy Efficient Scotland EESSH Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing EPC Energy Performance Certificate EST Energy Saving Trust EWI External Wall Insulation GIS Geographic Information System ABS Energy Efficiency Scotland: Area Based Schemes IZ Intermediate Zone LA Local Authority LHEES Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy LPG Liquefied Petroleum Gas mxd Map Exchange Document PEAT Portfolio Energy Analysis Tool SAP Standard Assessment Procedure ToC Table of Contents 196
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63 UPRN Unique Property Reference Number 9.2. Terms Terms Description Baselining Baselining is the purpose of understanding at local authority or strategic level, the current status of the buildings against the Priorities, Targets and Indicators set out in the Baseline tool. Building-level Pathway As part of LHEES Stage 5, a building-level pathway is the outcome of the assessment undertaken using PEAT. It provides the likely energy efficiency retrofit technologies, as well as the low carbon heating system (where applicable) to support building level decarbonisation. Criteria Criteria are the settings applied to the Indicators for each Priority in order to support Baselining, Strategic Zoning and the identification of Delivery Areas. An example of Criteria is a simple “no” applied to the indicator of “wall insulation (Y/N)” to identify properties with uninsulated walls. Another example is the definition of an “anchor load” within the Heat Networks analysis, which applies a minimum threshold to the “heat demand” Indicator. The LHEES methodology provides a set of default Criteria that local authorities may wish to use, with flexibility to update and augment these to support local needs or for more focused analysis linked to specific actions and project identification within the Delivery Plan. Data - Alternative Alternative data can overwrite the Core data to improve accuracy (national to local level of detail, e.g. local housing data to overwrite fields in Home Analytics). Data - Core Core data is the data that is essential to complete the minimum requirements of the LHEES analysis. Core data will come from national datasets e.g. Home Analytics or the Scotland Heat Map. Data - Supplementary Supplementary data allows inclusion of additional Indicators to inform specific, local priorities & targets; also, Supplementary data can be used in GIS investigation to complement the Core analysis carried out in any assessment. An example of 197
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64 Supplementary data would be the inclusion of low carbon heat supply information layers within a district heating analysis. Data Zone Data zones are groups output areas which have populations of around 500 to 1,000 residents. Delivery Area Delivery Areas (sometimes referred to as Delivery Level Areas) are a term used for all LHEES Priorities with the exception of Heat Networks. These Areas will be an important starting point for identifying a range of projects, regulation and actions that are within the competence of the Scottish Government and local authorities (projects and actions to be developed in the LHEES Delivery Plan). Delivery Areas are at a higher granularity than Strategic Zones, are generated as part of LHEES Stage 4 and are presented in the LHEES Delivery Plan. Guidance is provided for one approach to identify Delivery Areas, but there are other approaches that local authorities may wish to use. The identification of Delivery Level Areas through LHEES will be indicative only, with further investigation being required to determine the viability of progressing projects associated with the area identification activity. Detailed practitioner guidance Steps These Steps form part of the detailed practitioner guidance in LHEES Stage 4, Generation of Initial Areas to set out particularly suitable heat network zones and to support project identification. Energy Efficiency Measures Measures such as double glazing, draught proofing and insulation which reduce energy demand and increase the viability for switching to low carbon heat sources. Heat Decarbonisation Decarbonisation of heat refers to reducing carbon emissions from heating systems. This involves switching to low carbon heating systems to provide homes with ‘clean’ heat. Heat Pumps A heat pump is a device that transfers heat from the outside environment into a building by transferring thermal energy using a refrigeration cycle, cooling the cool space, and warming the warm space. Indicator For a given Priority, the purpose of an Indicator is 1) To act as a key information field to help characterise the local authority using 198
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65 the Baseline tool as part of LHEES Stage 3 (authority-wide and at a strategic level); 2) To act as a key information field to support strategic zoning and generation of initial delivery areas (as part of LHEES Stage 3 and 4); 3) if suitable, to act as a key information field to measure progress against Targets over the duration of the LHEES - set out in LHEES Stage 8, LHEES Delivery Plan. For some Priorities, one Indicator may be sufficient, but for others a range may be appropriate. The LHEES methodology sets out a core set of default Indicators that local authorities may wish to use, with flexibility to update and augment these to support local needs or for more focused analysis linked to specific actions and project identification within the Delivery Plan. Intermediate Zone Intermediate zones are a statistical geography that are designed to meet constraints on population thresholds (2,500 - 6,000 household residents), to nest within local authorities, and to be built up from aggregates of data zones. LHEES Delivery Plan An LHEES Delivery Plan is an action plan that enables a local authority and its partners to work towards delivery of the changes identified in the LHEES Strategy. Actions will contribute to achieving Scotland’s statutory targets on net zero greenhouse gas emissions and fuel poverty, as well as enabling the delivery of changes to buildings and local infrastructure needed to fulfil the Scottish Government’s objectives relating to heat and energy efficiency in buildings. The Delivery Plan will clarify stakeholder roles and responsibilities in delivering the Strategies; build on existing plans and policies, such as EEPS:ABS Plans, as far as possible and; coordinate across local partners and provide a mechanism for identifying new delivery actions. LHEES Priorities The LHEES Priorities are a list of technologies, building typologies and policy priorities that the LHEES Methodology uses to identify and target interventions. They include: - Heat networks - Off-gas grid buildings - On-gas grid buildings Secondary outcomes include: - Poor building energy efficiency - Poor building energy efficiency as a driver for fuel poverty - Mixed-tenure, mixed-use properties and historic buildings 199
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66 LHEES Stages There are 8 LHEES Stages. The purpose of the LHEES Methodology is to enable the local authority to complete LHEES Stages 1 to 6. The completion of these Stages will provide the local authority with the data analysis and evidence base to enable them to complete their LHEES Strategy and Delivery Plan documentation. There are two LHEES guidance templates included alongside this methodology– LHEES Strategy guidance and LHEES Delivery Plan guidance. The completion of these two templates will satisfy the completion of LHEES Stages 7 and 8. The 8 LHEES Stages are: 1 - Policy and strategy review 2 - Data and tools library 3 - Strategic zoning and pathways 4 - Generation of initial delivery areas 5 - Building-level pathway assessment 6 - Finalisation of delivery areas 7 - LHEES Strategy 8 - LHEES Delivery Plan LHEES Strategy An LHEES Strategy identifies what needs to be done to change buildings and relevant local infrastructure by 2045 to fulfil the Scottish Government’s objectives and local priorities relating to heat and energy efficiency in buildings. These interventions might occur at building level or in energy supply networks or in a combination of both. The Strategy will reflect national and local priorities, policies and wider strategies. Where feasible, it will take into account local and national factors, such as the timing of planned infrastructure upgrades, access to resources and funding, major projects, decisions over the gas grid and community engagement. Mixed-tenure, mixed-use and historic buildings Mixed-tenure and mixed-use buildings could include a mixture of owner occupied, private rented and social housing, and also non- domestic uses, or simply multiple ownership within the same tenure. Historic buildings include the buildings that are within conservation areas or those that are listed buildings. These categories may require established alternative approaches and regulation for the installation of low carbon heat and energy efficiency solutions and where specific advice and support might be available relating to the installation of these solutions. 200
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67 Potential Zones The Heat Networks Priority follows a distinct methodology to the other LHEES Priorities – Stage 3 does not apply and the outputs from Stage 4 are of a different type, showing Potential Zones for Heat Networks as opposed to the identification of Delivery Areas (notionally using a 100m raster approach). The Heat Networks Priority analysis and activity carried out within LHEES is also anticipated to support activity related to formal zone designation as required by the Heat Networks Act. For these reasons, the analysis carried out in Stage 4 for Heat Networks is to identify Potential Zones rather than the otherwise used naming convention of Delivery Areas. The Potential Zones identified are to be included in the LHEES Strategy and could also inform actions around further investigation / progression within the LHEES Delivery Plan. Raster A matrix of squares, or grid, used as a method of data analysis in GIS. Each cell in the grid contains a value representing information on the cell’s contents. Strategic Level Zone Strategic Zones (sometimes referred to as Strategic Level Zones) are a term used for all LHEES Priorities with the exception of Heat Networks. Strategic Level Zones are identified in Stage 3 and are presented in the LHEES Strategy. These zones offer a visualisation of the potential pathways to decarbonise the building stock at a local authority level, split out by intermediate zone level. They are useful to understand the baseline performance, the scale of potential and initial areas of focus. Strategic Zones could be used to inform or prioritise focus areas for the more granular identification of Delivery Level Areas. The identification of Strategic Zones through LHEES will be indicative only. Targets Targets are the measurable aspect of the Priority and are likely to be taken directly from national and/or local policy documentation, for example net-zero by 2045, or EPC C by 2040. Targets are likely to comprise of end-point targets and milestone targets and would sit along a timeline within (and beyond) the LHEES. This timeline would help to prioritise the types of projects undertaken within the LHEES over its duration. Weighting For some Priorities, one Target and Indicator may be sufficient, but for others a range of Indicators may be appropriate to contextualise and characterise performance against a Target 201
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68 and/or progress towards a Priority. If multiple Indicators are used in strategic zoning or the identification of delivery areas, a Weighting can be applied based on the importance of each. The LHEES methodology sets out a core set of default Weightings for instances where multiple Indicators are suggested as a default setting. There is flexibility to update and augment these to support local needs or for more focused analysis linked to specific actions and project identification within the Delivery Plan. 202
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69 10. Appendices 10.1. Appendix A: Additional national policy drivers Policy/strategy Description Targets/aims Heat in Buildings Supply Chain Delivery Plan This plan sets out how the supply chain needs to grow and develop to meet the future of heating and energy efficiency regulations. Accelerate efforts to build on energy efficiency and reduce our demand for energy. Rapidly scale up deployment of zero emissions heating systems, such as heat pumps and heat networks. Tackling fuel poverty in Scotland: a strategic approach Sets out the policies and proposals for national government, local authorities, and third sector partners to help meet the targets set Fuel Poverty (Targets, Definition and Strategy) (Scotland) Act 2019. Heat Networks Delivery Plan Sets out how provisions of the Heat Networks (Scotland) Act 2021 will contribute to increasing heat networks in Scotland. The plan to facilitate reaching the targets set out in the Heat Networks (Scotland) Act 2021. Draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan The draft sets out key ambitions for Scotland’s energy future. Targets include: the production of more than 20 GW of additional renewable electricity on- and offshore by 2030, accelerate the decarbonisation of domestic industry, transport and heat and to increase contributions from solar, hydro, and marine energy. New Build Heat Standard 2024 (NBHS) This legislation changes building regulations to promote the uptake of zero direct emissions heating systems, such as heat pumps and heat networks. New buildings applying for a building warrant from 1 April 2024 will be prohibited from using direct emissions heating to help reach the targets set in The Climate Change (Emissions Reduction Targets) (Scotland) Act 2019. Review of Electricity Market Arrangements (REMA) Proposed reforms to the electricity market to improve security of supply and cut prices for consumers. 203
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70 (UK Government) Tenements (Scotland) Act 2004 The Tenement Management Scheme (outlined in Schedule 1 of the Act) explains how to come to arrangements about maintenance and how costs are shared between owners. The Planning (Listed Building Consent and Conservation Area Consent Procedure) (Scotland) Regulations 2015 This legislation provides the framework for applying for listed building consent and conservation area consent on or after 1st October 2015. Public Sector Leadership on the Global Climate Emergency: Guidance (2021) This guidance provides advice for public bodies on: leadership; robust, consistent and comprehensive carbon management; interpretations of the strengthened legislation; and resources available to support public bodies. Provides advice to public bodies to assist with achieving the targets set in the climate change plan 2018– 2032 update. NHS Scotland climate emergency and sustainability strategy: 2022-2026 Sets out plans for NHS Scotland to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions and impact on the environment, adapt to climate change and to better contribute to the United Nation’s sustainable development goals. NHS Scotland is aiming to become a net-zero health service by 2040 at the latest. Police Scotland - Environmental Strategy 2021 The Environmental Strategy sets out Police Scotland’s commitment to environmental sustainability and represents an organisational response to the climate crisis. Reduce carbon emissions by 35% over the next 5 years. Includes ambitions to improve energy efficiency of buildings. Historic Environment Policy for Scotland HEPS is a non-statutory policy statement that should be taken into account whenever a decision will affect the historic environment. Promote a way of understanding the value of the historic environment while encouraging consistent, integrated management and decision-making to support a positive outcome for Scotland’s historic assets. 204
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71 10.2. Appendix B: Datasets used in the development of this LHEES Data Resource/Tool Description Data Format Weblink Scotland Heat Map (SHM) (Summer 2020) Valuable spatial dataset with point-level heat demand data for all properties in Scotland / various other useful data fields and additional information layers. Updated approximately annually. Source data (including from public sector) requested at each update. Spatial geodatabase https://www. gov.scot/pub lications/scot land-heat- map- documents/ Home Analytics v3.7 (Feb 2021) Database covering all domestic properties in Scotland, built using information from the domestic EPC register and other sources; statistical models are used to provide estimates giving 100% property coverage Excel spreadsheet https://energ ysavingtrust. org.uk/servic e/home- analytics/ Non-Domestic Analytics (version 1.1) Database covering all non-domestic properties in Scotland, built using information from the non-domestic EPC register and various other sources, with extensive modelling to provide estimates giving 100% property coverage Excel spreadsheet Portfolio Energy Analysis Tool (PEAT)[VS1] Tool to accompany Home Analytics; can be used to investigate and cost intervention options for a portfolio of up to 500 properties; can be driven by a price cap or a target EPC score Tool hosted online; input / output as Excel spreadsheet https://home analyticspea t.est.org.uk/ One Scotland Gazetteer (OSG) - Address Gazetteer (AG) Central database for all addresses within an authority GIS API or csv file Local Development Plan sites Information, ideally in spatial format, on development sites in the LDP and LDP2. To include detail on development type and expected build-out where available. GIS shapefiles SEPA waste heat data Online interactive 205
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72 Waste sites capacity tool (SEPA) map viewer/ Excel spreadsheet https://www. sepa.org.uk/ data- visualisation/ waste-sites- and- capacity- tool/ Green Heat in Greenspaces (GHiGs) GHiGs investigated the suitability of many types of urban open space across Scotland for use as low carbon heat sources, heat storage sites and heat transmission corridors. Excel spreadsheet https://www. greenspaces cotland.org. uk/introducin g- ghigs#:~:text =Green%20 Heat%20in %20Greens paces%20( GHiGs)%20i s%20a%20p roject%20wit hin%20the,S cottish%20lo w%20carbo n%20heat% 20transition Geographic boundary datasets Information, ideally in spatial format, on council-owned assets. GIS shapefiles https://borde rs.ukdataser vice.ac.uk/b ds.html 10.3. Appendix C: Datasets and Limitations of the LHEES approach Home Analytics Home Analytics Scotland provides essential data on the Scottish housing stock. This data is provided down to the address level and is available to the Scottish Government and local authorities to assist them in developing, targeting and delivering policies, schemes and programmes designed to improve energy efficiency, install renewable technologies and alleviate fuel poverty. The core datasets that make up Home Analytics Scotland are: 206
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73 • Energy Performance Certificate data • Home Energy Efficiency Database (HEED) data • Energy Saving Trust Home Energy Check (HEC) data • Ordnance Survey AddressBase, MasterMap Topography layer and StreetMap data • Scotland Gas Networks data • Scottish Census data • Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) data While there is full coverage of the Council’s property stock, the data is not entirely accurate given that not all properties are surveyed; where gaps exist property information will have been estimated based on neighboring characteristics using statistical modelling. Fuel poverty figures in the dataset only act as an indication. To date, there has not been a comprehensive dataset detailing fuel poverty given the resources required to do so and the risk of identifying individuals and communities through the use of sensitive information such as income data. The fuel poverty data is therefore probability driven and users should not treat figures as an absolute number or percentage but rather a likelihood of fuel poverty. An instance where fuel poverty data lacks confidence and leads to a poor representation of the geographical area is in households in affluent areas who may be labelled as in fuel poverty because they live in stone buildings with poor heating capture. Currently, fuel poverty data is calculated by the following: • Probability of wall being uninsulated • Loft Insulation Prediction • Loft Insulation: 0-99mm • Loft Insulation: 100-249mm • Loft Insulation: >250mm • No loft • Excess Cold Category 1 Hazard • Probability of Fuel Poverty (Fuel Bill >10% of Income) Non-domestic Analytics Non-domestic Analytics is a new data set developed by Energy Saving Trust on behalf of Scottish Government, to provide more property-level details about the non-domestic building stock in Scotland. The dataset brings together property details from a variety of data sources such as the Scottish EPC Register, Ordnance Survey, Scottish Assessors and BEIS, to establish property attributes and energy profiles for each non-domestic building. Like Home Analytics, gaps in these records are imputed using a series of statistical models. The final database is therefore a combination of known and modelled records. There are limitations on the confidence of using Non-Domestic Analytics due to the lack of robust information from the non-domestic sector compared to the domestic sector with much of the data relying on significant modelling. Therefore, users should not take figures as an absolute number or percentage but rather an estimation. Due to the reliance on probability, analysis was limited to exploring groupings of building typologies. 207
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74 The dataset relies on the use of an external categorisation of property typology (Ordnance Survey) resulting in a deviation in standard interpretation of property classes. For example, church can be classified as either a commercial or place of worship depending on its main function, while residential (non-domestic) buildings can also indicate short-term lets and sheltered accommodation. Scotland Heat Map (2020) Containing both domestic and non-domestic heat demand data, the Scotland Heat Map is an important resource to identify the opportunities for efficient heat supply projects and support their development. Developed with data provided by public and private sector organisations including all local authorities, it will help to identify opportunities for new and expanding heat projects including efficient supply projects, such as district heating. The dataset also contains various additional layers such as Geology and hydrogeology, waste energy supply points, and existing heat networks. As the dataset was captured in the summer of 2020, demand data exists only as a snapshot in time. Since network viability is based around the demand of individual buildings, the difference between modelled and expected demand may affect that viability. PEAT-OR tool The PEAT-OR tool, developed by EST, accompanies Home Analytics. It is used to investigate cost intervention options for a portfolio of up to 500 properties. The tool has a relatively high degree of flexibility to be tailored to reveal target areas and properties by price cap or a target EPC score. However, there are the following limitations: • Individual measures cannot be isolated or removed, the tool will show all possible interventions. This means some impractical measures are proposed such as installing wind turbines. • Costs and Carbon savings are calculated for al possible measures, this means it is not possible to investigate the impact of individual measures. • Fuel cost data used within PEAT-OR was released at the start of July 2023, with fuel costs modifying frequently these costs are not totally accurate These limitations will affect the outputs from Stage 5, which should be understood as estimates only. Ordnance Survey Various mapping data, central to the development and use of Scotland's Heat Map and other GIS information sources. OS product data and licenses are required to use SHM & other OS-derived datasets. Key to GIS analysis elements of LHEES. 208
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75 One Scotland Gazetteer Central database for all addresses within an authority. Key to GIS elements of LHEES for identifying multi-tenure non-domestic properties. 10.4. Appendix D: LHEES stage descriptions Stage 1: Policy and strategy review A policy review was carried out to highlight national, regional and local policies that are linked to, impact, or could be impacted by LHEES. Results from this review, along with initial stakeholder mapping were logged in the policy review template for reference during subsequent stages of the LHEES. Stage 2: Data and tools library This stage involves identifying and maintaining a record of the data and tools used to support analysis in the subsequent stages of the LHEES process. The record captures data sources, ownership rights, requirements for the LHEES Considerations and data format. Stage 3: Strategic zoning and pathways The purpose of LHEES Stage 3 is to support local authorities to understand the current energy efficiency and heat decarbonisation performance of the building stock at a local authority wide level. It also supports further analysis to set out Strategic Zones and pathways for each LHEES Consideration, as far as reasonably possible, at data zone level, a commonly used standard for statistical reporting of socio-economic data. These Strategic Zones identify potential solutions for inclusion in the LHEES Strategy (Stage 7). The analysis sets out the strategic starting point for the generation and prioritisation of Delivery Areas (Stage 4), as well as further engagement and actions for the Delivery Plan (Stage 8). LHEES Stage 3 is supported by both the ‘Domestic Baseline Tool’ and the ‘Non-domestic Baseline Tool’. The Domestic Baseline Tool was developed by Zero Waste Scotland for analysis of the domestic sector drawing on Home Analytics as the core source data to support this. The tool was used to generate a performance baseline of buildings and to set out Strategic Zones with respect to the LHEES Considerations. The ‘Non-domestic Baseline Tool’ was developed following the release of Non-Domestic Analytics, as a means to support better understanding of the breakdown of non-domestic building typologies and by other criteria, such as age, heating system type or floor area category. Given the limitations of the non-domestic dataset, the outputs are focused on providing property count and / or total heat demand information for these groupings, rather than suggesting suitability for specific interventions. When assessing heat decarbonisation options in the tools, heat pump installation is one of the suggestions. According to the LHEES methodology, the level of heat pump ‘readiness’ in domestic properties are sorted into four categories: 209
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76 Building category Description Category 0 Currently have a low or zero direct emissions heating system, or heat network connection Category 1 “Heat pump ready” buildings that are well-suited to heat retrofit with minimal other changes. Category 2 Secondary potential for heat pump retrofit. Require some fabric and/or distribution systems upgrades. Category 3 Significant upgrades required to be heat pump ready. In the standard Zero Waste Scotland methodology, Category 1 properties are assessed based on a range of indicators including wall insulation, glazing status, wet heating system and loft insulation prediction. For South Lanarkshire’s LHEES, only wall insulation was accounted for in Stage 3 given that this was the most relevant factor to the local domestic property stock. Stage 4: Generation of initial Delivery Areas. Stage 4 is informed by the LHEES Strategy and analysis from Stages 1-3. The purpose of Stage 4 is to support the Council’s decision making by generating initial Delivery Areas for each of the LHEES Considerations. This Stage uses GIS to generate initial Delivery Areas at a higher granularity than LHEES Stage 3, to enable the Council to understand specific locations of potential Delivery Areas within a Strategic Zone or across the whole local authority. The level of granularity is advised at 250m2 to reflect an appropriately sized delivery area without the risk of identifying individual properties. This analysis is the starting point for more detailed engagement, building level assessment of interventions and cross-checking against the policy and strategy review (stage 1) to enable finalisation of the Delivery Areas (LHEES Stage 6). These Delivery Areas should then support actions in the Delivery Plan (Stage 8) that are within the competence of the Scottish Government, local authorities and wider partners. Stage 5: Building-level pathway assessment The purpose of LHEES Stage 5 is to support with delivery area identification of Stages 4 and 6 to establish in more detail the type of intervention(s) required to decarbonise the building from a heating and energy efficiency perspective. This stage provides an understanding of the costs and the energy and carbon savings associated with interventions. Stage 5 enabled South Lanarkshire Council to select and analyse domestic buildings for assessment in the Energy Saving Trust’s PEAT-OR, for the domestic sector only. PEAT-OR enables the local authority to evaluate energy efficiency and heat decarbonisation retrofit options in terms of costs and carbon emissions reduction. Results can be presented at the building level or at a zone level. The buildings to be evaluated can be selected and taken from the analysis in LHEES Stage 3 or Stage 4. It is recognised that PEAT-OR has not been designed specifically to support LHEES. Therefore, in this LHEES, a PowerBI report has been developed to enable the Council to explore potential decarbonisation results in an interactive and customised manner to assess viability and decision making of delivery areas. 210
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77 Stage 6: Finalisation of Delivery Areas During this stage, Strategic Zones, initial Delivery Areas and any building-level assessment were considered alongside the detail included as part of the policy and strategy review and all stakeholder engagement undertaken. The outcomes from this stage are documented in the stage 8 Delivery Plan. 10.5 Appendix E: Identification of conservation areas and listed buildings Map 9: Count of buildings in conservation areas. 211
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78 Map 10: Count of listed buildings. 10.6 Appendix F: Detailed methodology for the identification of potential heat network zones Analysis was undertaken to identify the areas where heat networks present a decarbonisation pathway that could be of strategic importance for South Lanarkshire. Heat Data Point non- domestic properties were filtered to only include semi-public and public buildings. These were refined using OS AddressBase classification codes identified as semi-public or public by the Green Heat in Greenspaces project. Additionally, a sense check of building names was carried out to identify council-owned buildings. If that was the case, the buildings were added to analysis. This approach was chosen so that only non-domestic buildings that the Council has full or partial control over are treated as potential anchor loads in the heat network zoning. When defining anchor loads, public and council-owned buildings have been prioritised as the Council has greater control over the operation of these buildings. Heat network zones have been identified based on a 4,000 kWh/yr/m linear heat density (a means of relating annual heat demand to a distance). Areas of greatest potential for heat network development have been further identified based on a solely heat demand perspective where at least two anchor loads were required > 500MWh/yr. Further analysis through feasibility studies and constraints analysis were required to understand the viability of heat network development in each identified area. Existing heat networks have been added to potential heat network zones to identify viability of heat network expansion. For the 212
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79 purpose of LHEES, a 500m radius buffer has been drawn around the existing heat network points to provide a sensible estimate of the area within which heat demand can serve. The methodology for identification of heat networks has been summarised in the figure below. For a comprehensive methodology, please see the Heat Network Zoning methodology in the LHEES documentation. Figure 19 Summary of the methodology for identifying heat network zones 213
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Error! Reference source not found. 1 South Lanarkshire Council Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Delivery Plan June 2024 12 215
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Error! Reference source not found. 2 Executive Summary The aim of LHEES is to provide a plan for decarbonising heat in buildings and improving their energy efficiency to meet statutory national targets by 2045. The Delivery Plan sets out how the Council will support implementation of the LHEES. It identifies areas to target for low-regrets measures to decarbonise heat in buildings. This is the first LHEES Delivery Plan, and it is focussed mainly on actions for the next five years. The Council has identified three priorities for the first LHEES. Priority 1: Reduce heat demand using a fabric first approach to improve the condition and energy efficiency of housing across all tenures to ensure that poor energy performance is removed as a driver of fuel poverty. The first LHEES Delivery Plan has a strong focus on social housing and mixed-tenure properties, due to the high risk of fuel poverty. Priority 2: Transition to zero direct emissions heating systems in buildings across South Lanarkshire to tackle climate change. The first LHEES Delivery Plan will initially target heating system upgrades in buildings that are already highly suitable for heat pumps, across all housing tenure types. 2a: South Lanarkshire Council will lead by example by transitioning all council- owned properties to zero direct emissions heating (ZDEH) systems, and no longer installing gas boilers. 2b: South Lanarkshire Council will actively support, encourage, and enable owner-occupiers and private sector landlords to retrofit homes. Priority 3: Make greater use of heat networks as part of the wider just transition to net zero. This Delivery Plan outlines 12 indicative heat network zones which may be suitable for the development of heat networks. Delivery of the LHEES The implementation of the LHEES will be driven by South Lanarkshire Council and requires a collaborative cross-sectoral approach. A key priority for the delivery of South Lanarkshire’s LHEES is engaging with relevant stakeholders. The Council will develop a stakeholder engagement plan to enable collaboration and seek feedback on the LHEES Strategy and Delivery Plan. Delivering Heat Networks South Lanarkshire Council has categorised heat network opportunities into three priority areas for immediate action, and nine further heat network opportunities. Two of the three priority indicative heat network zones are in the Almada Street area of Hamilton, and the third is in East Kilbride. These are all areas with high heat loads and an existing heat network nearby. A feasibility study has been completed already for Almada Street, Hamilton (Priority Heat Network Zone 1). The 216
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Error! Reference source not found. 3 Council will invest in developing a suitable delivery model for Almada Street heat network with the assistance of expert consultants. For the other indicative heat network zones, the Council will review Local Development Plans to assess the viability of these opportunities, and commission detailed feasibility studies. The further nine heat network opportunities will be considered after the three main clusters. These require a review of any future planned developments to assess the feasibility of a network in the zone. There are limitations to the data used as part of the LHEES process, particularly the availability of data on non-domestic buildings. The Council has committed to undertake Building Assessment Reports (BAR) for all its public buildings to ensure that decision-making and planning is based on the best possible available data. BARs will be prioritised in three priority heat network zones. Social housing and mixed-tenure properties The Council owns 17% of the total housing stock and most of the social housing in South Lanarkshire. This means that the Council can lead by example in installing heating and fabric upgrades. Delivery areas for the next five years have been identified to target those areas with the highest risk of fuel poverty. The delivery areas have been identified based on SIMD data. Almost half of Council-owned housing stock falls within SIMD deciles one and two, indicating a high risk of fuel poverty. These delivery areas will allow the Council to target its capital programme investment plans in the areas where investment can have the greatest impact for alleviating fuel poverty. Mixed-tenure buildings have been identified in the LHEES as a priority for delivery. There are a total number of 9,379 properties in mixed-tenure buildings in South Lanarkshire, approximately 6% of the housing stock. For the first LHEES, mixed-tenure buildings where the Council is the factor will be prioritised, as well as other blocks containing social housing. This is because social landlords can facilitate the retrofit of multi-occupancy blocks. However, significant external funding is needed to achieve the standards and targets required, which poses a challenge for the social housing sector. Private tenure housing The Council’s approach is to support owner-occupiers and private landlords to meet regulatory standards. South Lanarkshire Council proposes to use data outputs from LHEES to identify suitable clusters of private tenure housing for retrofit. Key characteristics such as construction type, heating systems, EPC and SIMD ratings will be used to develop a short list of clusters for further engagement. 217
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Error! Reference source not found. 4 Table of contents Executive Summary 2 1. Introduction 5 1.1. Purpose of this report 5 1.2. Delivery Plan layout 5 2. South Lanarkshire’s LHEES 7 2.1. LHEES Priorities 7 2.2. Implementation and Governance 7 2.3. Engagement 8 3. Heat Network Delivery Areas 10 3.1. Heat Networks (Scotland) Act 2021 10 3.2. Priority Heat Network Zones 10 3.3. Further Heat Network Opportunities 15 3.4. Summary of Actions for Heat Networks 23 3.5. Funding Heat Networks 24 4. Social Housing and Mixed-Tenure Delivery Areas 25 4.1. Priority Delivery Areas 25 4.2. Summary of actions for social housing and mixed-tenure properties 28 4.3. Funding available for social housing and mixed tenure 29 5. Private Tenure Housing Delivery Areas 30 5.1. Priority Delivery Areas 30 5.2. Summary of actions for private tenure housing 31 5.3. Funding available for private tenure housing 31 6. Non-Domestic Delivery Areas 34 6.1. Priority Delivery Areas 34 6.2. Summary of actions for non-domestic buildings 35 6.3. Funding available for non-domestic buildings 36 7. Summary 37 218
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Error! Reference source not found. 5 1. Introduction 1.1. Purpose of this report Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategies (LHEES) are at the heart of a place based, locally led, and tailored approach to the heat transition. The aim of LHEES is to provide a long-term and evidence-based plan for decarbonising heat in buildings and improving their energy efficiency across an entire local authority area. LHEES are primarily driven by Scotland’s statutory targets for greenhouse gas emissions reduction and fuel poverty: • Net zero emissions by 2045 and 75% reduction by 2030 • In 2040, as far as reasonably possible, no household in Scotland is in fuel poverty. This LHEES Delivery Plan should be considered in conjunction with South Lanarkshire Council’s LHEES Strategy. The Delivery Plan sets out how the Council will support implementation of the LHEES. It identifies areas for targeted intervention through early, low-regrets measures to decarbonise heat in buildings. This is the first LHEES Delivery Plan, and it focuses initially on immediate and medium term (5-year) actions. At this early stage in the LHEES process, many of the actions detailed in this plan are developmental or reflect projects and initiatives which are already underway. The analysis undertaken to date as part of the LHEES process will be further expanded to develop a more detailed and strategic delivery framework. This will form the basis of the next iteration of the LHEES, which will be reviewed annually. 1.2. Delivery Plan layout The actions and delivery areas in this Delivery Plan are split into the following sectors: • Heat network delivery areas: outlining the areas in South Lanarkshire with high heat density which may be suitable for heat network development. • Social housing and mixed-tenure delivery areas: the Council owns 17% of the total housing stock in South Lanarkshire. This means that the Council can lead by example in installing heating and fabric upgrades. The priority actions for this Delivery Plan are to tackle fuel poverty in areas with high levels of deprivation. Private tenure housing delivery areas: this covers both owner-occupied properties and those in the private rental sector. Although there are some unique challenges, opportunities, and regulations for these two tenure types, the Council’s approach is to support owner-occupiers and private landlords to meet regulatory standards. 219
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Error! Reference source not found. 6 For each chapter, the actions are summarised in a table format shown below. Actions have been prioritised as one of: • Immediate: to be implemented in the next two years. • Medium-term: to be implemented in the next 2-5 years. Action Priority Description Responsibility Action required to implement South Lanarkshire’s LHEES Immediate / Medium-term Additional detail of how the Council and its partners will achieve this. Lead responsible for delivery 220
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Error! Reference source not found. 7 2. South Lanarkshire’s LHEES 2.1. LHEES Priorities South Lanarkshire Council’s key priorities for this LHEES have been informed by the six LHEES considerations (detailed in the LHEES Strategy), the local policy context, stakeholder engagement, and analysis of the building stock in South Lanarkshire. The Council has identified three priorities for the first LHEES. Priority 1: Reduce heat demand using a fabric first approach to improve the condition and energy efficiency of housing across all tenures to ensure that poor energy performance is removed as a driver of fuel poverty. The first LHEES Delivery Plan has a strong focus on social housing and mixed-tenure properties, due to the high risk of fuel poverty. Priority 2: Transition to zero direct emissions heating systems in buildings across South Lanarkshire to tackle climate change. The first LHEES Delivery Plan will initially target heating system upgrades in buildings that are already highly suitable for heat pumps, across all housing tenure types. The two priorities for transitioning to zero direct emissions heating (ZDEH) systems in South Lanarkshire’s homes are: 2a: South Lanarkshire Council will lead by example by transitioning all council-owned properties to ZDEH, and no longer installing gas boilers. 2b: South Lanarkshire Council will actively support, encourage, and enable owner- occupiers and private sector landlords to retrofit homes. Priority 3: Make greater use of heat networks as part of the wider just transition to net zero. This Delivery Plan outlines 12 indicative heat network zones which may be suitable for the development of heat networks. 2.2. Implementation and Governance The implementation of the LHEES will be driven by South Lanarkshire Council. The LHEES requires a collaborative cross-sectoral approach, engaging with partners and stakeholders is essential to achieving the goals set out. It will be integrated into existing steering groups and governance structure for sustainable development and climate change. Within the Council, LHEES ‘champions’ will support embedding LHEES delivery into everything that we do. The Council has set up an officer working group to take forward the development of the South Lanarkshire LHEES. The membership is made up of at least one representative from each council resource or service who has responsibility for asset or estate management, energy usage or supply. The group includes officers with expertise in economic development, GIS mapping, energy efficiency, and building decarbonisation. 221
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Error! Reference source not found. 8 LHEES Governance LHEES Governance diagram 3.1 Actions: Action Priority Description Responsibility Develop a monitoring and evaluation framework for the LHEES delivery actions Immediate For delivery actions, identify the owner and the indicators to be measured. Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources Annual review of both Strategy and Delivery Plan Immediate Update and amend both documents considering regulatory changes. Identify local targets. Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources . 2.3. Engagement The LHEES Strategy and Delivery Plan have been developed in consultation with stakeholders across South Lanarkshire, and through the public engagement strategy. Implementation will also be a collaborative effort. A key priority for the delivery of the LHEES is for the Council to develop a stakeholder engagement plan. This will draw on the stakeholder identification and mapping work which took place as part of the LHEES development. Key stakeholder groups that the Council will work with include: 222
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Error! Reference source not found. 9 • Local community groups • Public sector partners • Housing providers • Delivery partners • Electricity and gas network operators • Local businesses • Advice organisations Action Priority Description Responsibility Further develop and implement stakeholder engagement programme to support implementation of the first LHEES Delivery Plan Immediate Based on the stakeholder identification work undertaken as part of the LHEES Strategy development, the Council will work with key stakeholders to progress the actions detailed in chapters 3 - 6. Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources 223
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Error! Reference source not found. 10 3. Heat Network Delivery Areas 3.1. Heat Networks (Scotland) Act 2021 Section 47 of the Heat Networks (Scotland) Act 2021 places a duty on the local authority to review heat network zoning in their area. The areas in South Lanarkshire have been reviewed and those areas identified in sections 3.2 and 3.3 are considered as potentially suitable for the construction and operation of a heat network. 3.2. Priority Heat Network Zones There are three priority indicative heat network zones in South Lanarkshire, two are in the Almada Street area of Hamilton, and the third is in Towers, East Kilbride. For a detailed insight into the methodology for heat network identification, refer to Appendix D of the Strategy Document. Heat Network Zone 1: Almada Street, Hamilton The Almada indicative heat network zone has an area of 865,998 m2. Within the outlined zone there are seven buildings registering a total estimated annual heat demand of 18,515 MWh/yr. There is a high heat density within this cluster with pockets of high heat demand (above 150 kWh/m²/yr.) which neighbour areas of lower heat demand (50-150 kWh/m²/yr.). Key anchor loads include the First Endeavour new build housing development site, Hamilton Water Palace, Almada Street Council Headquarters and Holy Cross High School. There are six existing natural gas fuelled heat networks (one still in development at the time of writing) either overlapping a large extent of the indicative heat network zone or neighbouring it. This offers considerable potential for network expansion. 224
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Error! Reference source not found. 11 With support from the Scottish Government Heat Network Support Unit, a feasibility study has already been conducted for this site. A key driver for the investigation of this heat network is the age and condition of the existing heating system in the Council headquarters buildings. This heating system is outdated and in need of replacement to decarbonise. Previous studies have investigated different heating technology options for the building, including gas-fired combined heat and power (CHP) and air source heat pumps (ASHP). However, the proximity of the headquarters to other public / semi-public buildings, with significant heat demands mean that there is an opportunity for a heat network. In addition, these buildings all currently use gas fed boiler systems which require transition to an alternative ZDEH. Development of a heat network in this area would ensure this target is met. The next step is to develop an Outline Business Case (OBC) to understand the strategic, management, technical, economic, and financial cases for developing a heat network in Hamilton. Further work is also required to develop an appropriate financial delivery model for the scheme, which will include an outline contractual agreement for the non-council-owned buildings. Figure 1: Indicative Heat Network Zones 1 and 2: Almada Street, Hamilton. Priority clusters have been identified based on a 4,000 kWh/yr/m linear heat density (a means of relating annual heat demand to a distance), while a 500m buffer around existing heat network approximates the area within which heat serves. 225
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Error! Reference source not found. 12 Table 1: Breakdown of existing heat networks by proximity and fuel type in Almada Name Proximity Description Connections to Buildings Number of Customers Almada Street Within the cluster In development - - Almada Street HQ Within the cluster Natural gas boiler 1 10 Victoria Court Intersects cluster top left Natural gas boiler 22 22 Dewar House Intersects cluster bottom right Natural gas boiler 16 16 Brandon House Business Centre Intersects cluster bottom right Natural gas boiler 1 19 Woodburn Court Intersects cluster bottom right Natural gas boiler 32 32 226
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Error! Reference source not found. 13 Heat Network Zone 2: Almada Street Extension To the east of the Almada heat network zone is another, albeit smaller, indicative heat network cluster covering an area of 345,273 m2 (see Figure 2). While there are two buildings registering a total heat demand of 4,957 MWh/yr, there is a low density of additional heat loads nearby indicated by the sparse distribution of orange/yellow heat demand rasters1 near the red ones. The key anchor loads include the Hamilton Palace Sports Ground and David Lloyd Gym - Hamilton. There is also an existing gas fuelled heat network that intersects the top left of the cluster. The potential for expanding the heat network zone to include this system will need to be investigated further. Figure 2: Detail of Indicative Heat Network Zone 2: Almada Street Extension Table 2: Breakdown of existing heat network by proximity and fuel type in Almada Street Name Proximity Description Connections to Buildings Number of customers Almada Street HQ Intersects top left cluster Natural gas boiler 1 10 1 A raster is a matrix of squares, or grid, used as a method of data analysis in GIS. Each cell in the grid contains a value representing information on the cell’s contents. 227
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Error! Reference source not found. 14 Heat Network Zone 3: Towers The final indicative priority heat network zone identified in Towers has an area of 493,847 m2. There are two key anchor loads including South Lanarkshire College and a Nuffield Health Fitness and Wellbeing Gym registering 2,270 MWh/yr of heat. There are also parts of the cluster which have high heat demands of over 150 kWh/m²/yr. According to the data, there are three gas-fuelled communal heating systems within the cluster. There are a further two existing communal heating systems just outside of the indicative heat network zone, one of which is gas-fuelled, and the other is CHP. Table 3: Breakdown of existing heat networks by proximity and fuel type in Towers, East Kilbride Name Proximity Description Connections to Buildings Number of customers White Cart Tower Within cluster Natural gas boiler 1 108 Clyde Tower Within cluster Natural gas boiler 1 114 Calder Tower Within cluster Natural gas boiler 1 91 James Watt Avenue/Scottish Enterprise Tech Park Outside cluster Natural gas boiler 1 30 Nasmyth Building Outside cluster CHP plant 1 70 Figure 3: Indicative Heat Network Zone 3: Towers, East Kilbride 228
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Error! Reference source not found. 15 3.3. Further Heat Network Opportunities The following eight indicative heat network zones have smaller area sizes than the priority three clusters shown above and should be considered as additional opportunities. Further exploration will be required to assess viability of these opportunities. This is likely to include: • Determining existing system capacity and suitability for expansion • Site inspections • Design considerations such as heat source appraisal (e.g. ASHP, GSHP), energy centre location and layout, grid capacity constraints, pipework distribution routes, operating temperatures, individual building upgrades required (e.g. heat interface unit installation) • Economic analysis to assess commercial viability. • Funding options • Stakeholder engagement plan Opportunity 1: Hamilton International Technology Park This indicative zone in Hamilton Technology Park has a high density of heat demand, as indicated by the large presence of red rasters in Figure 4. One of the anchor loads is the new University of the West of Scotland campus. The Council has also recently taken ownership of one of the industrial units in Livingstone Boulevard, which could improve the feasibility of a heat network here. An existing heat network at Kilpatrick House intersects much of the heat network cluster, although its use for heat extraction will need to be further explored. Figure 4: Further heat network opportunity 1 in Hamilton 229
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Error! Reference source not found. 16 Table 4: Breakdown of existing heat networks by proximity and fuel type in Hamilton Name Proximity Description Connections to Buildings Number of customers Kilpatrick House, Hamilton International Park Within the cluster Technology "unknown" 1 3 Opportunity 2: East Kilbride Town Centre This indicative heat network zone has a high density of heat demand as indicated by the large presence of connecting red rasters in Figure 5. Three existing operational gas-fuelled heat networks (see Table Table 5) intersect the heat network cluster. Further exploration of the viability of development in this indicative zone is required. The next step for assessing the feasibility of this indicative zone is to review the East Kilbride Town Centre masterplan to align a potential heat network with planned future development and assess its commercial viability. Figure 5: Further heat network opportunity 2 in East Kilbride Town Centre. Table 5: Breakdown of existing heat networks by proximity and fuel type in East Kilbride Town Centre Name Proximity Description Connections to properties Number of customers Wellbeck House Sheltered Housing Above cluster Operational natural gas boiler - 14 230
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Error! Reference source not found. 17 Opportunity 3: Carluke This heat network cluster has heat demands of over 150 kWh/m²/yr where Carluke High School and Carluke Leisure Centre are situated. There is also a gas-fuelled heat network intersecting much of the outlined heat network zone (see Table 6). Further exploration is required to assess viability of extending the existing heat network, as described at the start of this section. Figure 6: Further heat network opportunity 3 in Carluke Table 6: Breakdown of existing heat networks by proximity and fuel type in Carluke Name Proximity Description Connections to properties Number of customers Rosemount Court Left of cluster Natural gas boiler 22 22 Deer Park Intersects bottom of cluster Natural gas boiler 1 34 Archibald Kelly Court Intersects bottom of cluster Natural gas boiler 24 24 231
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Error! Reference source not found. 18 Opportunity 4: East Kilbride (1) This cluster includes a single anchor load, Sanderson High School, in excess of 150kWh/m²yr. There is a gas-fuelled heat network intersecting part of the cluster. To the south there is a priority heat network in Towers. The proximity of this cluster means that it could be considered as part of a wider heat network scheme covering the town centre and neighbouring residential areas within East Kilbride. Figure 7: Further heat network opportunity 4 in East Kilbride (1) Table 7: Breakdown of existing heat networks by proximity and fuel type in East Kilbride (1) Name Proximity Description Connections to properties Number of customers White Cart Tower Radius intersects bottom of cluster Natural gas boiler 108 108 Calder Tower Within cluster Natural gas boiler 1 91 Clyde Tower Within cluster Natural gas boiler 1 114 232
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Error! Reference source not found. 19 Opportunity 5: East Kilbride 2 This indicative zone is a small heat network cluster with low heat density centred around Duncanrig Secondary School currently serving a primarily residential area. Two existing gas-powered heat networks (see Table 8) intersect much of the cluster opportunity providing potential opportunity for expansion of this heat network. Figure 8: Further heat network opportunity 5 in East Kilbride (2) Table 8: Breakdown of existing heat networks by proximity and fuel type in East Kilbride (2) Name Proximity Description Connections to properties Number of customers Canberra House Outwith cluster Natural gas boiler 1 33 Canberra House Sheltered Housing Outwith cluster Natural gas boiler - 33 233
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Error! Reference source not found. 20 Opportunity 6: Blantyre (Leisure Centre) This heat network opportunity cluster has been identified due to its high heat load coming from Blantyre Sports Centre and the Blantyre miners’ welfare indoor bowling club. The cluster has a moderate heat density with high, but non-continuous, heat demands of above 150 kWh/m²/yr. Currently, the cluster serves domestic properties. For this indicative zone South Lanarkshire Council will review the local development plans to assess potential benefit and financial viability of a heat network here in the near future. Figure 9: Further heat network opportunity 6 in Blantyre 234
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Error! Reference source not found. 21 Opportunity 7: East Kilbride (Hairmyres Hospital) This small cluster is served by two anchor points within Hairmyres Hospital with very high heat loads of above 500 MWh. However, heat density is low as indicated by the sparse distribution of red rasters. The cluster has potential to serve domestic properties nearby and lower load non- domestic properties. A robust assessment of the business case for heat network development in this area will determine financial viability of the project. Future planned developments in this area will be assessed by the Council for heat network connection viability. Figure 10: Further heat network opportunity 7 around Hairmyres Hospital 235
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Error! Reference source not found. 22 Opportunity 8: Eastfield (South Lanarkshire Lifestyles Eastfield) This cluster is served by South Lanarkshire Lifestyle Eastfield with pockets of high heat demand of above 150 kWh/m²/yr in Trinity High School and Eastfield. The cluster would only serve a small number of domestic properties (247) nearby making financial viability challenging for this cluster. However, future planned development will be assessed by the Council to understand the viability of a heat network here. Figure 11: Further heat network opportunity 8 in Eastfield Clyde Gateway D2 Grids Project This EU-funded project is a fifth-generation district heat and cold (5GDHC) grid which uses lower temperature. This provides opportunities for using low grade or ambient heat to supply buildings, with low levels of heat loss. This system integrates well with office buildings and there is a pilot project focussed on the proposed developments at Shawfield as part of the Clyde Gateway regeneration. South Lanarkshire Council will review possible extension to the grid to connect properties in South Lanarkshire. 236
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Error! Reference source not found. 23 3.4. Summary of Actions for Heat Networks Action Priority Description Responsibility Undertake Building Assessment Reports (BAR) for all council- owned public buildings Immediate South Lanarkshire Council will lead by example and undertake BARs for all its public buildings. These will be prioritised in the delivery areas outlined above. Section Leader (Legislative), Housing & Technical Resources Business Case for Almada Street heat network Immediate Progress with Outline Business Case. Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources; Heat Network Support Unit Delivery Model for Almada Street heat network developed and approved Immediate Develop suitable delivery model for Almada Street heat network. This model may be suitable for future heat network opportunities in South Lanarkshire. Housing & Technical Resources / Community & Enterprise Resources Conduct feasibility studies for the identified priority heat network zones Medium- term Undertake detailed feasibility studies to fully assess the financial and technical viability of 10 indicative heat network zones. (A feasibility study for the Almada Street network is already complete.) Housing & Technical Resources / Community & Enterprise Resources Review Local Development Plans to assess viability of opportunities Immediate Review LDP for future planned development in the identified heat network zones (see 3.3). Head of Planning and Regulatory Services, Community & Enterprise Resources Designate heat network zones Medium- term Once BARs and feasibility studies have been completed these could be designated as zones to give clear opportunities for investment. Head of Planning and Regulatory Services, Community & Enterprise Resources 237
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Error! Reference source not found. 24 3.5. Funding Heat Networks Currently there is an under-developed pipeline of heat network projects across Scotland. The Scottish Government is providing funding to stimulate and accelerate the development and growth of heat networks, as detailed below. Significant investment from the private sector and heat network developers is also required to achieve heat network deployment at the scale required to reach the national targets of 2.6 TWh of heat output by 2027 and 6 TWh of output by 2030. Scotland’s Heat Network Fund is designed to support the development and roll out of heat networks across Scotland. It is open to any organisation seeking to develop and deploy heat networks in Scotland. In total £300 million is being made available to stimulate investment and grow the low carbon heat sector. The project must be large scale, deliver emissions reductions, and demonstrate a positive social and economic benefit. Applications can be made for enabling costs, commercialisation costs, and capital costs. The SHNF will only support projects that would not progress without capital grant funding or would not progress to the same scale. Therefore, applicants to the scheme need to clearly demonstrate the how the grant money will be used to expand the project outcomes and provide evidence the value of the grant is appropriate. Up to a maximum of 50% of the total eligible capital costs can be covered through this fund. The District Heating Loan Fund offers low interest unsecured loans of more than £1 million designed to help address the financial and technical barriers to district heating projects. This fund offers an alternative to commercial borrowing which can be expensive and difficult to obtain. Repayment terms are either 10 or 15 years and larger projects above £500,000 will be considered on a case-by-case basis. This scheme is open to local authorities, registered social landlords, small and medium sized enterprises, and energy service companies with fewer than 250 employees. The Heat Network Support Unit identifies, supports, and develops heat network projects for the public sector. The support available includes expert advice and grant funding to develop projects until they have a clear financial strategy and well-defined business model. The unit is active in project identification, aggregation, and stakeholder engagement and can support with working group management, stakeholder workshops, and policy linkage and review. 238
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Error! Reference source not found. 25 4. Social Housing and Mixed-Tenure Delivery Areas The actions and delivery areas outlined in this section give an indication of the range of steps required to deliver progress on the LHEES. This includes initial activities such as developing plans to ensure effective prioritisation of retrofit across social rented properties. This section also outlines some area-specific projects at different stages of implementation. As this is a live document, further delivery actions will be identified over the course of the first five-year LHEES delivery phase. 4.1. Priority Delivery Areas The delivery areas detailed below have been identified in line with two of South Lanarkshire’s priorities set out in the LHEES Strategy: Priority 1: Reduce heat demand using a fabric first approach to improve the condition and energy efficiency of housing across all tenures to ensure that poor energy performance is removed as a driver of fuel poverty. Priority 2: Transition to zero direct emissions heating systems in buildings across South Lanarkshire to tackle climate change. 2a: South Lanarkshire Council will lead by example by transitioning all council-owned properties to ZDEH, and no longer installing gas boilers. Targeting fuel poverty Analysis has been conducted to identify the areas of South Lanarkshire most at risk of fuel poverty. The results from this analysis will be used by the Council to ensure it is effectively prioritising resources to have the greatest impact in tackling fuel poverty. A summary of the analysis findings is provided below: The Scottish Index for Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) dataset has been used as a proxy to identify fuel poverty within South Lanarkshire. Almost half of the total properties owned by the Council fall within the most deprived SIMD deciles (deciles one and two). This illustrates a strong link between the social housing tenure type and areas with high SIMD scores. With a priority of alleviating fuel poverty, the Council has used the LHEES process to investigate areas of high probability of multiple deprivation. Within the social housing sector, the five data zones with highest rates of deprivation (top 20%), have been analysed below in Table : 239
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Error! Reference source not found. 26 Table 9: The five data zones with the highest number of social housing properties which are within SIMD deciles 1-2 Data zone reference (top 5) Number of properties within SIMD deciles 1-2 Hareleeshill - 01 347 Whitlawburn and Greenlees – 02 296 Fernhill and Cathkin – 04 288 Cambuslang Central – 04 281 Strutherhill – 02 275 To identify priority delivery areas, social housing SIMD deciles 1-2 have been combined properties in ‘heat pump readiness’ category 1 (those most suited to a transition from fossil fuel heat sources, as they are generally already well-insulated. See Strategy for full explanation of Categories 0-3 for on and off gas properties). These properties generally have higher levels of energy efficiency than properties in category 2 or 3. Therefore, there is a lower risk of increasing fuel poverty rates through electrification of heat.2 A total of 1,680 properties which are connected to the gas grid meet the criteria, this equates to 6% of the total social housing stock. Strutherhill data zone at the top of the list in Table 9 also appears in the top five when looking at SIMD in isolation (as per Table ) with the majority of the 275 properties highlighted being category 1. Table 9: The five data zones with the highest number of social housing Category 1 properties on the gas grid, which are within SIMD deciles 1-2 Data zone reference (top 5) Number of properties within SIMD deciles 1-2 Strutherhill – 02 194 Westburn and Newton - 05 91 Hillhouse – 03 76 Vicarland and Cairns 73 Westburn and Newton – 06 68 A similar exercise was carried out for off-gas properties, highlighting around 4,700 properties in total. Three data zones listed in Table 10 are close geographically, potentially providing economies of scale price reduction benefits for any retrofit programmes. Cambuslang features within both Table and Table 10, indicating that it is an area that should be targeted within the Council’s social housing investment programme, and that it has a high concentration of heat pump ready properties. 2 The current price differential between gas and electricity means that replacing gas heating systems with electric heating systems could lead to an increase in energy bills. Until this price differential is addressed by the UK Government, South Lanarkshire Council will focus on ‘category 1’ properties for the electrification of heat, as they are likely to have lower heat demand. This is to reduce the risk of increasing householders’ energy bills. 240
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Error! Reference source not found. 27 Table 10: The 5 data zones with the highest number of Category 1 properties off the gas grid, which are within SIMD deciles 1-2 Data zone reference (top 5) Number of properties within SIMD deciles 1-2 Cambuslang Central – 04 223 Burnhill and Bankhead North - 05 135 Burnbank Central and Udston - 05 133 Hareleeshill -01 132 Shawfield and Clincarthill - 04 127 Existing communal heating systems The Council currently has 15 communal heating systems, 12 of which are in sheltered accommodation and three in multi-storey blocks. All these networks are currently using fossil fuels as the heat source. A decarbonisation programme will be developed to transition these existing 15 systems to zero emissions heat sources. The first area of delivery for this is the tower blocks in Calderwood, East Kilbride. Mixed-Tenure Multi-Storey Blocks in Calderwood The Council commissioned a consultant to carry out a feasibility study into the potential for installing a communal ground source heating system for the Calderwood multi-storey blocks. All six blocks have mixed tenure with several privately owned flats in each block. The study confirmed that a communal closed loop ground source heat pump system provides the best solution for reducing carbon emissions, energy usage and the cost of heating homes. The feasibility study confirms that a fabric first approach is the best approach to ensure correct sizing of the heat pumps. A technology appraisal has been completed to identify a suitable unit combing an internal heat pump and hot water cylinder to be installed in each flat. A suitability assessment has also been conducted to identify the location of boreholes. To progress this project the Council will decide on an insulation approach (external or internal wall insulation). There is a further opportunity to expand the network to the wider Calderwood area, incorporating a further 20 blocks. Technical site visits are required to assess the individual sites and confirm the positioning of boreholes. In addition to the residential properties the larger area plan creates the opportunity to include larger anchor loads including a church and community hall and Long Calderwood Primary School which currently has a gas boiler and ground space for boreholes. In addition to the public buildings there is a privately owned care home and assisted living complex that could be included. Town Centre Masterplans In response to the challenges facing our town centres, masterplans have been developed for Hamilton and East Kilbride. Both the Hamilton and East Kilbride plans share an ambition to achieve local and national net zero goals. This will be achieved by working towards carbon zero objectives and a more circular economy, generating localised renewable energy and recycling 241
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Error! Reference source not found. 28 materials. For example, both masterplans will consider district heating networks as part of new housing provision and, following the principles of NPF4, both plans look to repurpose and reuse of buildings alongside reuse of materials. 4.2. Summary of actions for social housing and mixed- tenure properties Action Priority Description Responsibility Engage with Registered Social Landlords in South Lanarkshire to establish progress and future plans against LHESS outcomes Immediate Engage with RSLs to ensure their plans and progress are included within the LHEES and Delivery Plan. Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources and RSLs Improve the energy efficiency of Council housing stock Immediate Implement a programme to improve the thermal performance of council housing stock, as part of the Housing Capital Programme. Fabric first approach is embedded in the Council’s Housing Investment Plan to 2032. Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources Target capital investment in housing in areas at risk of fuel poverty Immediate Energy efficiency measures as part of the Housing Capital Programme are prioritised in areas where tenants are at a higher risk of fuel poverty or extreme fuel poverty, based on the findings from the fuel poverty analysis. Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources Cease all gas-boiler installations in council housing stock Immediate The Council will no longer programme gas boiler replacements except in exceptional cases (e.g., system failure where there is no time to install a zero-emissions heating system). Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources Calderwood multi-storey heating upgrades Immediate Progress with recommendations from feasibility study. Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources Use ABS programmes to retrofit mixed-tenure buildings Immediate Previous Area Based Schemes have been highly effective in delivering measures in mixed tenure buildings. The Council will work with Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources in 242
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Error! Reference source not found. 29 Housing Associations and other local stakeholders to identify and deliver mixed tenure projects, as this is an LHEES priority for South Lanarkshire. partnership with Housing Associations and other local stakeholders Programme of decarbonisation for existing communal heating systems Medium- term Identify appropriate heat sources and upgrade the 15 existing systems. Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources Meet Social Housing Net Zero Standard3 (SHNZS) requirements when confirmed Medium- term Develop South Lanarkshire Council’s strategic approach to meeting the new standard. Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources 4.3. Funding available for social housing and mixed tenure Social housing The Social Housing Net Zero Heat Fund supports social housing landlords across Scotland to install zero direct emission heating systems and energy efficiency measures. Funding for “fabric first” energy efficiency projects is also available; however, applicants are required to demonstrate a commitment to installing eligible ZDEH systems into these properties. There is currently £200 million available over five years up to 2026 and the fund supports capital costs and resource support to help build a pipeline of future projects. The fund can cover up to a maximum of 60% of total capital expenditure costs for ZDEH elements and 50% of the fabric and energy efficiency measures. Mixed tenure Energy Efficient Scotland: Area Based Schemes (ABS) are designed and delivered by local authorities, in combination with utility companies and local delivery partners. This funding is provided by Scottish Government. Schemes are targeted in areas in or at risk of fuel poverty and is intended for owner-occupiers and private landlords. ABS has historically focussed on installing single insulation measures but is now expanding to a ‘whole house’ approach and includes other measures such as zero emissions heating systems. By working on an area-based delivery model, the programme enables mixed-tenure projects, bringing together homeowners, housing associations, and private landlords. 3 See Social housing net zero standard: Consultation. An explanation of the relevance of SHNZS to LHEES is given in South Lanarkshire’s LHEES Strategy. 243
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Error! Reference source not found. 30 5. Private Tenure Housing Delivery Areas 5.1. Priority Delivery Areas The delivery areas detailed below have been identified in line with two of South Lanarkshire’s priorities set out in the LHEES Strategy: Priority 1: Reduce heat demand using a fabric first approach to improve the condition and energy efficiency of housing across all tenures to ensure that poor energy performance is removed as a driver of fuel poverty. Priority 2: Transition to zero direct emissions heating systems in buildings across South Lanarkshire to tackle climate change. 2b: South Lanarkshire Council will actively support, encourage, and enable owner-occupiers and private sector landlords to retrofit homes. Owner-occupied homes The Heat in Buildings Bill Consultation proposes a minimum energy efficiency standard which owner-occupied homes must meet by 2033. The outcome of this consultation is yet to be published. However, this will determine the drivers, goals, and timescales to which owner- occupiers will need to respond. The Council will revise plans at this stage to understand the best way to support households. Private Rented Sector Private rented accommodation generally has poorer energy efficiency than domestic tenures. It is likely that homes in the private rented sector will be required to meet a minimum energy efficiency standard sooner than owner-occupied homes. The Scottish Government is currently consulting on the proposal to create a new ‘Heat in Buildings Standard’. Private landlords are likely to be required to meet the standard by the end of 2028. Identifying delivery areas South Lanarkshire Council is using data outputs from LHEES to identify suitable clusters of private tenure housing for retrofit. Key characteristics such as construction type, heating systems, EPC and SIMD ratings will be used to develop a short list of clusters for further engagement. The Council will facilitate stakeholder engagement sessions with relevant parties to discuss next steps in developing a targeted retrofit strategy with property owners (landlords and owner- occupiers). At this stage a process of data confirmation will also be carried out. 244
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Error! Reference source not found. 31 5.2. Summary of actions for private tenure housing Action Priority Description Responsibility Confirm delivery areas for private tenure housing Immediate Using the Power BI tool developed as part of this LHEES, the Council will identify and confirm delivery areas. Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources Community group engagement Immediate Support community groups and other stakeholders to promote retrofit and assist householders with navigating the challenges. Lanarkshire Climate Hub/Community & Enterprise Resources/Finance & Corporate Resources Direct engagement with property owners (both owner-occupiers and private landlords) Immediate Develop a targeted retrofit strategy with property owners, in response to Heat in Buildings Bill. South Lanarkshire Council Website/Home Energy Scotland Target ABS funding to facilitate retrofit of private housing at risk of fuel poverty Immediate The identified delivery areas will be used to help inform the targeting of area-based schemes. ABS programmes will reflect the needs of local communities set out in Local Housing Strategies (LHS) and LHEES. Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources with Housing Associations and other local stakeholders Target ECO4 funding to facilitate retrofit in areas with a high risk of fuel poverty. Immediate Use identified delivery areas to inform targeting of ECO4 Flex. This may require a review of the current Statement of Intent. Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources in partnership with energy suppliers and installers. Support private sector landlords to meet the minimum energy efficiency standards Immediate Support landlords of privately rented properties to understand and meet their obligations. Signpost to advice and funding available. Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources with partners such as Home Energy Scotland 5.3. Funding available for private tenure housing Energy Efficient Scotland: Area Based Schemes (ABS) are designed and delivered by local authorities, in combination with utility companies and local delivery partners. As described in 4.3, 245
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Error! Reference source not found. 32 by working on an area-based delivery model, the programme enables mixed-tenure projects, bringing together homeowners, housing associations, and private landlords. Owner-occupiers The HES grant and loan is available to homeowners and offers grant funding for heat pumps of £7,500, or £9,000 to those living in rural areas. There is also £7,500 available as an optional interest free loan to further help towards the installation of a heat pump. £6,000 of interest free loan funding is available for households for solar PV panels when taken as a package of measures including a heat pump. In addition to this funding, up to 75% of the cost of energy efficiency measures can be covered by grant funding, up to a maximum of £7,500 or £9,000 in rural areas. The final 25% can be covered by an interest free loan or paid by the customer as the loan is optional. These energy efficiency measures include but are not limited to cavity wall insulation, solid wall insulation, loft insulation, and floor insulation. Warmer Homes Scotland (WHS) offers funding and support to households struggling to stay warm and keep on top of energy bills. This programme is available for homeowners and private sector tenants. WHS takes a ‘whole house’ approach, offering eligible households a bespoke package of measures that take account of both the needs of the property and the needs of the household. Heating measure installations are not available in private rented properties. This programme is most often fully grant funded and potential improvements include wall insulation, loft insulation, draught-proofing, central heating, and renewables. Households must meet the eligibility criteria4 and live in a property with a low efficiency rating. Interest free loans of up to £10,000 are available for homeowners or landlords who require further assistance to help pay a contribution towards the work. The Energy Company Obligation (ECO 4) is in its fourth round as grant/subsidy scheme which provides insulation and heating measures for low income, vulnerable owner occupiers. The measures and funding available are based on specific eligibility criteria and can include insulation, district heating connection, renewable measures, heating installation and repair. This funding is managed through Ofgem, with energy companies determining which retrofit projects they choose to fund and what level of funding they provide. It is available to households in an Affordable Warmth Group in receipt of benefits or tax credits. This fund is also available to households in properties with and EPC D, E, F, or G. ECO Flex is a household referral mechanism made available through the wider ECO 4 scheme. This program allows local authorities to widen the eligibility criteria to include households that would otherwise not be eligible through the ECO 4 standard criteria. Under this scheme, participating local authorities can refer owner occupied and private tenured households considered to be at risk of living in fuel poverty or on low income and vulnerable to the impacts of living in a cold home. The Great British Insulation Scheme (GBIS) complements ECO 4 and is designed to deliver improvements to the least energy efficient homes in Great Britain. The aim of the scheme is to tackle fuel poverty and help reduce energy bills by supporting low-income and vulnerable 4 Eligibility criteria detailed on the Home Energy Scotland website 246
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Error! Reference source not found. 33 households. Unlike the ECO 4 ‘whole house’ approach, GBIS will mostly deliver single insulation measures. In Scotland this scheme is available to homes with an EPC rating of D-G and within council tax bands of A-E. Private rented sector The Private Rented Sector Landlord loan offers loan funding for registered landlords. This funding can be used to cover the costs of energy efficiency improvements including but not limited to glazing, insulation, renewables, and even connections to district heating schemes. The funding available varies based on the number of properties owned by the landlord and the measures that are being installed. Generally, up to £15,000 can be borrowed per property for energy efficiency measures and conditions vary dependant on the amount borrowed. Up to £17,500 is available for up to two renewable systems per property and a maximum £6,000 is available for energy storage. 247
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Error! Reference source not found. 34 6. Non-Domestic Delivery Areas 6.1. Priority Delivery Areas Data is limited on non-domestic buildings, as many existing datasets are incomplete. Energy efficiency upgrade information is not currently well-reported in the non-domestic sector. 5 This is an issue across Scotland. Therefore, a priority action to enable to identification of delivery areas is to collect data on non-domestic buildings in South Lanarkshire, for example through undertaking Building Assessment Reports (BARs6). The role of a BAR is to help assess the suitability of a non- domestic property for connecting to a heat network, as defined in Part 5 of the Heat Networks (Scotland) Act 20217. The primary use of BAR information is to inform decisions on the particular suitability of areas for the construction and operation of a heat network, and subsequently to inform designation decisions, should these areas be progressed for consideration for designation. Primary School Estate South Lanarkshire Council has undertaken feasibility studies carried out into the works required to meet the zero emissions targets by 2038. The Council will identify measures and suitable technologies to be implemented across the whole primary school estate, where possible, upgrading the whole building envelope. The Council will also investigate the feasibility of installing solar PV on all primary schools. Our Lady of Lourdes Primary The Council were recently successful with a bid to Scotland’s Public Sector Heat Decarbonisation Fund to support the retrofit and refurbishment works to Our Lady of Lourdes Primary in East Kilbride by delivering a Net Zero schools demonstrator project. The project will replace the current gas heating system with a clean heat Air Source Heat Pump array. This project will be delivered alongside East Kilbride Community Growth Area and will ensure that we are satisfying anticipated increase in demand from new housing development and increased nursery provision locally. The refurbishment works will include: • replace existing gas boilers with new ASHP system • replacement roofing including insulation • over cladding including insulation • new electrical light fittings and rewire • mechanical ventilation The energy efficiency/ new heating phase of the project commenced in April 2024 and is due to complete by August 2024. 5 An evidence review of data associated with non-domestic buildings (2022) 6 Heat networks: Building Assessment Report (BAR) guidance - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) 7 Heat Networks (Scotland) Act 2021 (legislation.gov.uk) 248
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Error! Reference source not found. 35 Larkhall Leisure Centre The Council are constructing a new leisure centre in Larkhall. The outline design is based on facilities prioritised by residents in an online survey carried out in 2022. This building will be built to a high energy efficiency standard (for example Passivhaus or Breeam excellent) including a low or zero carbon heating solution, with any residual carbon being offset through carbon sequestration. To meet future climate change and sustainable energy targets, it is essential that this building is planned and designed to be carbon neutral (embodied and operational) through orientation of building, use of natural resources such as ventilation, light, heat and water, green infrastructure, sourcing materials and equipment, energy efficiency achieved by latest technology. 6.2. Summary of actions for non-domestic buildings Action Priority Description Responsibility Continue to improve the energy efficiency of Council-owned non-domestic properties Immediate Utilise the Central Energy Efficiency Fund (CEEF) Programme to undertake energy efficiency projects. Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources All new or replacement heating systems in Council buildings to be zero direct emissions Immediate The Council will take a zero emissions-first approach to heating system replacement, with new or replacement heating systems designed to be compliant with public bodies duties set under Section 44 of the Climate Change Act and the net zero declarations made by the Council. Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources Primary school solar PV feasibility Immediate Carry out a desktop study of the entire primary school portfolio of all 128 schools using existing data to assess the schools and consider if the roofs can have PV panels installed, or in the case of the existing PV arrays on the school roofs, could these be expanded or increased. Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources Net zero primary schools Medium-term Based on the findings from net zero feasibility studies of primary schools, the Council will identify measures and suitable technologies to be implemented across the whole Executive Director of Housing & Technical Resources 249
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Error! Reference source not found. 36 primary school estate, where possible, upgrading the whole building envelope. Complete BAR updates for all non- domestic stock Medium-term Improve accuracy of non-domestic data by carrying out building assessment reports. Using this new dataset, further assessments of heat network viability will be carried out using the LHEES standard methodology. Section Leader (Legislative), Housing & Technical Resources 6.3. Funding available for non-domestic buildings The Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES) aims to accelerate progress towards the Scottish Government’s target of 2GW of community and locally owned energy by 2030. CARES encourages local or community ownership of renewable energy across Scotland and provides funding and support for community groups to install renewable energy generation. This is achieved by working with a network of regional development officers that provide free impartial advice and support to communities. CARES supports a wide variety of projects ranging from renewable technologies in community buildings, community benefits, and shared ownership. CARES funding is expected to form part of a project’s funding package along with other loans, community shares, bonds, etc. It offers a range of support which can be found below. • The Community Heat Development Programme is a service designed to provide community organisations and groups of householders help to develop their ideas for locally generated, low, and zero carbon heat projects. This programme does not offer direct funding but will discuss the feasibility of the community heat project idea and provide advice on next steps, including advise on where to look for potential funding. • The Community Buildings Fund offers an 80% grant of up to £80,000 to decarbonise your community building. This fund can cover the costs of installing energy efficiency measures and renewable technologies such as heat pumps, batteries, and solar PV. This fund is set to run until the end of March 2025, subject to availability. • The Let’s Do Net Zero: Off Electricity Grid Communities Fund provides capital funding through to March 2024. There is no upper limit of application amount and up to 90% grant funding is available. This fund can be used for a range of projects including but not limited to developing zero carbon heat, upgrading energy infrastructure, energy storage and/or renewable energy generation, project management, and professional advice. The overall funding available for capital works for 2023-2024 is £3,000,000 and therefore CARES may not be able to fully meet the requested funding. The Scottish National Investment Bank is supporting the public and private sector to provide long-term capital to businesses and projects across Scotland to help develop a fairer, more sustainable economy. The Bank’s ambition is to not only use public capital but to leverage additional private capital to support the delivery of its mission. The Bank will receive its capital returned along with additional income generated at the end of the investment term. The bank will 250
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Error! Reference source not found. 37 help identify, develop, and assess investment opportunities and make investments to deliver its mission. The Scottish Public Sector Heat Decarbonisation Fund is delivered by Salix on behalf of the Scottish Government. The Scottish Government has made £20 million grant funding available in the financial year 2023/24 for projects to decarbonise heating systems by installing zero direct emissions systems, and for retrofit energy efficiency measures to support the overall decarbonisation of heat in buildings. Applications should take a ‘whole building’ approach to improve the energy efficiency of buildings as well as to ensure the optimal performance of zero- direct emissions heating systems. Eligible organisations are local authorities, arm's length external organisations (ALEOs), and universities The fund is currently closed for applications. The Scottish Public Sector Energy Efficiency Loan Scheme is also provided through Salix and offers zero-interest loans to public sector bodies to facilitate energy efficiency improvement projects that result in financial and carbon savings. This scheme is funded by the Scottish Government and the loan can cover up to 75% of the total project cost. Salix offers ongoing client and technical support on project delivery alongside networking and knowledge sharing opportunities with other public sector peers. This scheme has a minimum loan value for a single project of £500 with a total minimum application value of £5,000. There is no maximum loan value. 7. Summary This Delivery Plan is designed to sit alongside the LHEES Strategy. It provides a more detailed view of the actions required over the next five years to decarbonise South Lanarkshire’s domestic and non-domestic building stock. This Delivery Plan details the immediate and medium-term actions that can be delivered now, given the existing policy landscape. It is a statutory duty for the Council to update the LHEES every five years. Due to the urgency of the climate emergency, and the rapidly evolving policy landscape, the Strategy and Delivery Plan will both be reviewed and updated on an annual basis. This means they should be treated as live documents which will respond to the introduction of new standards, regulation, and delivery programmes, to any changes in the LHEES process, and to future opportunities within South Lanarkshire. 251
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 26 June 2024 Report by: Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) Subject: South Lanarkshire’s State of the Environment Report 2023 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] inform the Committee of the completion of the South Lanarkshire State of the Environment Report 2023 report on the key findings from the Report [1purpose] 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Committee is asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- [recs] (1) that the State of the Environment Report 2023 be approved and disseminated across the Council and to relevant Council partners and external agencies for use in the preparation of plans, policies, programmes and strategies and their Strategic Environmental Assessment and as an information resource. [1recs] 3. Background 3.1. The Environmental Assessment (Scotland) Act 2005 requires all public bodies, including the Council, to undertake Strategic Environmental Assessments (SEAs) of all plans, policies, programmes and strategies (plans). A wide range of Council-led plans have, or are undergoing, SEA including the Community Plan, Council Plan, Local Development Plan and the Sustainable Development and Climate Change Strategy. 3.2. An integral part of the SEA process is the identification and monitoring of a wide range of environmental issues. The South Lanarkshire State of the Environment Report is the body of data used to monitor and report Council activity against key environmental indicators. It is the recognised source for the core data which allows SEAs on our plans to be undertaken. 3.3. With the declarations of ecological and climate emergencies, the State of the Environment Report will be a vital resource in outlining South Lanarkshire’s progress in reducing its contribution to global warming and associated impacts from climate change on communities, the natural environment and inclusive growth and for protecting and enhancing the area’s biodiversity assets. 13 253
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3.4. The Covid-19 global pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis have had far reaching impacts on South Lanarkshire across environmental considerations, particularly related to people and their health, local air quality, waste services and climate change. The State of the Environment Report provides an invaluable insight to these environmental impacts. 3.5. The first comprehensive State of the Environment Report was prepared in 2009 and has been reviewed biennially to support SEAs and to fulfil the Council’s monitoring obligations. The Report provides an effective means of tracking changes in the local environment. This ensures that the council not only has a clear understanding of the current condition of the local environment but also has the accurate environmental baseline data needed to allow its statutory SEA and monitoring work to be undertaken. The Report also helps to promote awareness of local environmental issues and priorities. 3.6. The Report itself provides and assesses data across a suite of SEA environmental issues and also includes transport. The SEA environmental issues are: Population and human health Biodiversity, fauna and flora Historic and cultural heritage Material assets and landscape Waste Soil Air, noise and light Water Climate change The trends identified across these issues allow the Council to assess the overall condition of South Lanarkshire’s environment. The Report captures these as key indicators to consistently identify where there is an opportunity to improve environmental issues and the progress being made towards a sustainable South Lanarkshire. 3.7. Officers from Community and Enterprise, and Education Resources have ‘converted’ the State of the Environment Report to Glow, the digital platform used by all South Lanarkshire Council’s schools to be used as a teaching resource. The State of the Environment Glow site was launched in May 2019 and will be further updated following approval of this report. 4. Development of the Report 4.1. The 2023 edition of the State of the Environment Report has been prepared by the Council’s Planning Officer (SEA) within Community and Enterprise Resources with data and other contributions sourced from across the Council, partners, government bodies and external agencies. Development of the Report has been overseen by the Corporate SEA Working Group. 4.2. A comprehensive review of the indicators used in the Report was undertaken by the Corporate SEA Working Group. This was, in part, driven by the availability of new data and also recognition that a broader range of indicators was required for monitoring and reporting purposes. For example, indicators on the local economy, housing and tree canopy cover have been included in the 2023 edition. This review resulted in a reduction from 55 indicators to 47. 254
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4.3. A healthy environment provides us with natural resources like clean air, clean water, fertile soils, food, energy, medicine and building materials. Our long term economic and social wellbeing ultimately depends on the environment and our natural resources. Sustainable development is about achieving economic and social development in a way that also enables us to protect and enhance our environment both now and for the future. 4.4. Sustainable development is a set of fundamental values by which we make decisions and how we chose to live. These values are outlined in the 17 Global Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Within the 2023 edition of the State of the Environment Report, the relevant Sustainable Development Goal(s) are assigned to each chapter. This will support understanding of how South Lanarkshire can contribute to achieving the goals at both a national and global level. 4.5. The report requires to be formally approved by the Executive Committee as its approval has not been delegated to officers. The Report and its findings will be promoted to a wide range of stakeholders including the Community Planning Partnership Board and presented to other groups and forums upon request. 5. Key Findings 5.1. The 47 indicators in the 2023 Report have each been assigned a status of ‘good’, ‘fair’ or ‘poor’, and traffic lighted as green, amber and red, respectively. Each of these indicators also has a directional trend of either ‘improving’, ‘no change’ or ‘deteriorating’. The basis for the status identified within the tables, and accorded to each indicator along with its trend, is demonstrated by the information contained within the explanation column included as part of Appendix 1. The status of each indicator is based on an opinion agreed by the Corporate SEA Working Group. 5.2. The findings from the Report are illustrated in the following table and summarised in Appendix 1. Status/Trend Improving Unchanged Deteriorating Total Good 11 6 0 17 36.2% Fair 8 14 1 23 48.9% Poor 3 2 2 7 14.9% Total 22 22 3 47 100% 5.3. The Report highlighted that 17 (36.2%) of the 47 key indicators had ‘good’ status and that 11 of these have a trend that is improving. These improvements include a continuous reduction in our greenhouse gas emissions and an increase in our renewable energy capacity. There has been a decrease in vacant and derelict land and an increase in declared Local Nature Reserves. Household waste collected has returned to pre-pandemic levels and the number of complaints received about airborne nuisance and the occurrences of flytipping have also significantly fallen. 5.4. Six of the indicators with a ‘good status’ had an ‘unchanged’ trend from the previous edition. These include the number of various historic and cultural assets in South Lanarkshire and the return of traffic growth to pre-pandemic levels. The number of people who have not experienced traffic congestion has remained constant for the past four years. 255
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5.5. None of the indicators with a ‘good’ status show a deteriorating trend compared to five from the previous Report. This improvement can be attributed to the relaxation of Covid19 restrictions and recovery from some of its impacts. 5.6. There are 23 (48.9%) indicators with a ‘fair’ status, eight of which have an improving trend. These cover a wide range of environmental issues and indicators, including improvements to our woodlands, greenspace and recreational land. The local economy is showing signs of recovering from the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis and we continue to deliver new homes across all tenures. There have been significant improvements to local air quality, with no areas in excess of national limits set to protect human health. Improvements to the quality of our rivers and watercourses have also been noted. 5.7. The Report identifies 14 indicators with a ‘fair’ status which have an ‘unchanged’ trend. This is because some environmental issues have stabilised or where there are limitations on available data. Initiatives such as park and ride improvements and an increase in concessionary travel have helped to increase an uptake in public transport but train and passenger numbers have yet to return to pre-pandemic levels. There has been an increase in poor mental health and poor general health following the pandemic. Only one indicator is bordering on falling into the ‘poor’ category. This relates to an increase in complaints about artificial light pollution since the last Report. 5.8. Seven (14.9%) of the indicators, based on an assessment of the information contained in the State of the Environment Report, are judged to be of ‘poor’ status. Of these, three are ‘improving’. These include a reduction in fuel consumption and kilometres travelled for personal use but an increase in consumption from commercial vehicles and, despite various initiatives to improve uptake, active travel remains poor. 5.9. Two indicators with a poor status have a trend which is ‘unchanged’. The first of these relates to the prevalence of early and premature death from cancer, heart disease and drugs and alcohol. However, the number of deaths from stroke have reduced. The second is because there has been no significant change in the area of tree canopy cover or urban canopy cover. 5.10. There are two indicators with a ‘poor’ status and a deteriorating trend. The first of these relate to deprivation due to the cost-of-living crisis and the ongoing recovery from the pandemic, and secondly, the overall condition of peatland remaining poor and important sites being recorded as ‘unfavourable’. 5.11. It is not possible to have a direct comparison with the findings in the 2023 Report, particularly within population and health, due to the indicators review. Of those which are directly comparable to previous editions, there have been eight changes in status, principally due to the ongoing recovery from the pandemic. (These are highlighted in yellow in Appendix 2). For example, reductions in complaints relating to domestic noise and airborne nuisance, a reduction in traffic emissions and stabilisation of traffic congestion. 256
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5.12. Analysis of the changes from the 2011 Report highlights ‘continuous improvement’ in seven indicators. These include, greenhouse gas emissions, local air quality, environmental awareness, and road safety. The trend within eleven indicators has ‘stabilised’, including, outdoor and countryside access, historic and built heritage, energy consumption and traffic growth. Six indicators have an ‘improving’ trend such as environmental waste, airborne nuisance and the quality of our rivers and watercourses. The analysis highlights that no indicators have a deteriorating trend within the same timeframe. 5.13. Following Committee approval, the State of the Environment Report will be uploaded to the Council’s website. It is the intention to develop infographics to relay the key messages from the Report to the general public. 6. Employee Implications 6.1. There are no employee implications as a result of this report. 7. Financial Implications 7.1. There are no financial implications as a result of this report. 8. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 8.1. The State of the Environment Report is a valuable resource for the Council and partners in strategic planning. It provides the environmental baseline used in the Strategic Environmental Assessment of all Council-led plans, policies, programmes and strategies. Strategic Environmental Assessment helps to safeguard South Lanarkshire’s natural and built environment and raises awareness of climate change impacts and directs climate action. 9. Other Implications 9.1. There are no significant risks or other implications associated with the recommendations contained in this report. 10. Equality Impact Assessment and Consultation Arrangements 10.1. This report does not introduce a new policy, function or strategy or recommend a significant change to an existing policy, function or strategy, and therefore, no impact assessment is required. 10.2. The draft State of the Environment Report has been subject to internal consultation, facilitated through the Corporate SEA Working Group. Comments received have been reviewed, and where appropriate, the Report has been amended. Following approval by the Executive Committee it is intended to further disseminate the Report to relevant partners and stakeholders and to make it available to the general public through the corporate website. It will also be reported to a future meeting of the Community Planning Partnership Board. David Booth Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) 7 June 2024 257
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Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Values Focused on people and their needs Working with and respecting others Ambitious, self-aware and improving Fair, open and sustainable Priorities We will work to put people first and reduce inequality We will work towards a sustainable future in sustainable places We will work to recover, progress and improve Outcomes Good quality, suitable and sustainable places to live Thriving business, fair jobs and vibrant town centres Caring, connected, sustainable communities People live the healthiest lives possible Previous References None List of Background Papers South Lanarkshire State of the Environment Report 2023 South Lanarkshire Council Sustainable Development and Climate Change Strategy 2022 - 2027 Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact: Jennifer Murphy, Advanced Planning Officer (SEA) E-mail: jennifer.murphy@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 258
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Appendix 1 Key findings from State of the Environment Report 2023 Current status: Good Environmental Issue Indicator Status and Trend Explanation Biodiversity, fauna and flora Local Nature Reserves The council has augmented the number of Local Nature Reserves across South Lanarkshire, with an additional 16 sites declared within the past two years. Langlands Moss has also been significantly extended. Material assets and landscape Vacant and derelict land The area of vacant and derelict land decreased by 48.5% since 2003 through re-development and greening, The number of sites also significantly decreased. Material assets and landscape Built facilities There are a wide range of education, academia, sport, leisure and cultural facilities in South Lanarkshire. A review of the number and use of halls and community centres across the Council area is ongoing. Waste Household waste management The amount of household waste collected by the council has returned to pre-pandemic levels. Waste per household is now at its lowest level, partly driven by the increase in the number of households. Household recycling rates fell in the last financial year to 40.5%. In 2022, recycling rates at Household Waste and Recycling Centres increased to 69.4%, an increase from 62.5% from the previous year. Compostable waste materials collected fell in 2022 compared to 2020. Waste Environmental waste Street cleanliness in the area continues to improve and satisfaction levels remain above the Scottish average. The occurrences of flytipping have reduced to pre-pandemic levels. However, there has been a notable increase in the number of abandoned cars reported to the council. Air, noise and light Airborne nuisance The number of airborne nuisance complaints received has decreased significantly over recent years as in now at the lowest level since this data was collected. There had been an increase during lockdowns, particularly related to garden bonfires and smoke. Garden bonfires and smoke are the main nuisances reported to the council. Water Water pollution Point source pollution remains a threat to the quality of the water environment. This is closely monitored by SEPA. It has not been possible to update this indicator from the previous Report. 259
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Environmental Issue Indicator Status and Trend Explanation Climate change Greenhouse gas emissions Carbon emissions continue to decrease in South Lanarkshire year on year. Emissions per capita remain below the Scottish average. Climate change Renewable capacity South Lanarkshire’s renewable energy capacity continues to increase year on year mainly due to wind energy developments. There has been a tenfold increase in renewable energy capacity since 2011. The area is an energy exporter. Climate change Environmental awareness The council is implementing its new Sustainable Development and Climate Change Strategy. Initiatives such as Beat the Street, Eco-schools and the John Muir Award continue to help raise environmental awareness in schools. Transport Road safety The council is making a positive contribution towards the Scottish Government’s 2030 casualty reduction targets. Data within this report reflects the reduced volume of traffic during Covid19 restrictions. The number of child fatalities as a result of road traffic collisions has remained at zero for the past four years. Historic and cultural heritage Gardens and Designed Landscapes The number of Gardens and Designed Landscapes areas in South Lanarkshire remains unchanged since 2016. Historic and cultural heritage Historical heritage The area has a wealth of historic and tourist attractions, including the New Lanark World Heritage Site. These continue to attract large numbers of visitors to South Lanarkshire. Material assets and landscape Landscape The importance of quality landscapes in the area continues to be recognised and protected through the local planning process. Soils Soil quality and capacity Current data indicates good soil quality in a Scottish or regional context. At present there is limited data on soil quality specifically within South Lanarkshire. There has not been a significant level of development within the Green Belt. Transport Traffic growth Road traffic growth is returning to pre- pandemic levels following the relaxation of Covid19 restrictions. Transport Congestion The number of residents who did not experience congestion in the area has remained consistent over recent years Improving No change Deteriorating 260
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Current status: Fair Environmental issue Indicator Status and trend Explanation Population and human health Economy The area has been impacted from both the Covid19 pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis. However, it is evident that progress is being made towards recovery from recent challenges. Biodiversity, fauna and flora Native woodland Although total native woodland cover is increasing, further work is required to improve connectivity of habitats, expanding native broadleaf woodland cover. Historic and cultural heritage Archaeological sites The number of archaeological sites recorded across the area continues to increase year on year, as does the number of applications approved with archaeological conditions. Material assets and landscape Recreational land Investment in greenspace will be informed by the Open Space Strategy that is under preparation. The number of community allotments and plot holders has increased considerably from previous years. Material assets and landscape Housing A further 3,166 homes have been delivered since 2021 increasing the number across all tenures to around 157,657. The Local Housing Strategy has been renewed. Air, noise and light Local air quality Air quality across South Lanarkshire is generally good and improving with no areas in excess of national limits set to protect human health. Work is ongoing to revoke the Air Quality Management Area status for Lanark. Air, noise and light Noise The number of noise complaints, particularly residential noise complaints, received by the council has significantly decreased since the pandemic lockdown periods. However, noise complaints about licensed premises have increased. Water Water quality The number of rivers achieving High/Good overall status under the Water Framework Directive (WFD) has increased since the last Report. Population and human health Demographic The area’s population is growing at a slower rate than the Scottish average, with the proportion of older population showing the greatest increase. However, the population of people aged less than 25 years is declining. Population and human health Morbidity Covid19 has impacted on the health and wellbeing of communities across the area. There has been an increase in poor mental health and poor general health. 261
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Environmental issue Indicator Status and trend Explanation Biodiversity, fauna and flora Designated areas Not many sites have been surveyed since the previous report. Although there has been some isolated improvement, in general the condition of the designated features remains similar to previous reports. Biodiversity, fauna and flora Ancient woodland There is no change in the area of ancient semi-natural woodland cover. There is limited data on the overall condition of this habitat. Historic and cultural heritage Built heritage There has been minimal change in the number of designated built heritage features in South Lanarkshire. The number of Conservation Areas remain constant. Material assets and landscape Countryside and outdoor access There is an extensive path network across South Lanarkshire. Investment to maintain and improve the condition and standards of paths and other access infrastructure is kept under review. Material assets and landscape Minerals Minerals remain an economically important resource across South Lanarkshire. Mineral recycling is being further developed. Air, noise and light Point source emissions Due to the cyber-attack on SEPA, it has not been possible to update the number of permits issued for industrial activities in South Lanarkshire. Soils Contaminated land Since 2005, 33% of potentially contaminated sites have been investigated and remediated under the planning system. Further progress has not been made since the last Report. Water River flow The annual water flow rates in the rivers across the region have remained similar to previous years with the exception of 2020. The high level is closely linked to the increase in annual precipitation rates, associated with severe weather events. Water Groundwater and wetlands The number of groundwater bodies with a good status in South Lanarkshire has remained the same since the previous Report. The data available on ponds and wetlands remains limited. Climate change Energy consumption Gas and electricity consumption has significantly decreased compared to the baseline albeit at a slower rate in recent years. Transport Road network condition The condition of the road network remains similar to previous years, although it remains better than the Scottish average. Emerging statistics for 2023/2024 indicate a deteriorating picture across all categories of road. 262
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Environmental issue Indicator Status and trend Explanation Transport Public transport The number of park and ride facilities increased to help facilitate an uptake in public transport. However, due to Covid19 restrictions, the number of train and bus passengers significantly reduced. A large number of residents are using concessionary bus passes, particularly secondary school pupils. Air, noise and light Light Complaints about artificial light pollution have increased over recent years. Improving No change Deteriorating 263
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Current status: Poor Environmental issue Indicator Status and trend Explanation Water Flooding Severe weather events continue to impact and have resulted in increased flood incidents in the area. The council’s approach to flood management continues to improve. Climate change Transport emissions Fuel consumption and kilometres travelled for personal vehicles have reduced compared to pre-pandemic levels, partly due to the increase in numbers of people working from home. However, consumption from commercial vehicles has increased due to the rise in online retail consumerism. Work continues to promote the use of electric vehicles. Transport Active travel Although the number of people walking and cycling remains low these remain higher than pre-pandemic levels. Active travel amongst school pupils remains constant and the uptake of cycling continues to improve due to initiatives in schools such as Bikeability. Population and human health Mortality Premature deaths in South Lanarkshire remain significant across a range of parameters, particularly cancer, heart disease, alcohol specific deaths and drugs related deaths. However, there has been a reduction in the number of deaths from stroke. Biodiversity, fauna and flora Tree canopy cover There is no significant change in the area of tree canopy cover or urban tree canopy cover. Population and human health Deprivation The cost-of-living crisis and the ongoing recovery from the Covid19 pandemic has exacerbated the need for financial and other supports across communities. Soils Peatland The overall condition of raised and blanket bogs across the area is relatively poor with a number of designated sites recorded as unfavourable. Improving No change Deteriorating 264
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Appendix 2 Changes from 2011 SOE Report Indicator Status and trend Comment 2011 2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 Environmental issue: Biodiversity, fauna and flora Designated areas Stabilised Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Ancient woodland Stabilised Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Environmental issue: Historic and cultural heritage Built heritage Stabilised Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Historical heritage Stabilised Good Good Good Good Good Good Good Environmental issue: Material assets and landscape Recreational land Continuous improvement Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Countryside and outdoor access Stabilised Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Environmental issue: Waste Household waste management Improving Good Good Good Good Good Good Good Environment al waste Improving Fair Fair Good Good Good Good Good Environmental issue: Air, noise and light Local air quality Continuous improvement Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Airborne nuisance Improving Good Good Good Good Good Good Good Noise Improving Poor Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Environmental issue: Water Water quality Improving Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair River flow Stabilised Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Groundwater and wetlands Stabilised Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Flooding Continuous improvement 265
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Indicator Status and trend Comment 2011 2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 Poor Poor Poor Poor Poor Poor Poor Environmental issue: Climate change Greenhouse gas emissions Continuous improvement Fair Good Good Good Good Good Good Energy consumption Stabilised Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Traffic emissions Improving Poor Poor Poor Poor Poor Poor Poor Environment al awareness Continuous improvement Fair Fair Good Good Good Good Good Environmental issue: Transport Road network condition Stabilised Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Fair Congestion Stabilised Good Good Good Good Good Good Good Traffic growth Stabilised Good Good Good Good Good Good Good Road safety Continuous improvement Good Good Good Good Good Good Good Active travel Continuous improvement Poor Poor Poor Poor Poor Poor Poor 266
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 26 June 2024 Report by: Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) Subject: Strategic Environmental Assessment Progress 2023/2024 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] inform the Committee of the progress in carrying out Strategic Environmental Assessments (SEA) on the Council’s policies, plans, programmes and strategies [1purpose] 2. Recommendations 2.1. The Committee is asked to approve the following recommendations:- [re] (1) that the statutory requirement for SEA to inform the development of Council-led policies, plans, programmes and strategies be noted; and (2) that progress in conducting SEAs be noted. [1recs] 3. Background 3.1. The Environmental Assessment (Scotland) Act 2005 requires the Council as a ‘Responsible Authority’ to carry out a Strategic Environmental Assessment of all its policies, plans, programmes and strategies (plans). 3.2. The SEA process helps to integrate environmental considerations into the preparation and adoption of plans. The SEA is carried out in a staged process alongside the preparation of the proposed plan. Throughout the process, the plan can be adjusted to mitigate negative, or enhance beneficial environmental effects. 3.3. SEAs help to promote the Council’s commitment to sustainability and is a key priority within the Sustainable Development and Climate Change Strategy. SEAs are a valuable resource in raising the profile of environmental considerations and for facilitating holistic approaches to address the climate and nature emergencies. 3.4. The Corporate SEA Working Group continues to meet regularly to oversee the progression of SEAs across the Council. Its remit also includes development and mainstreaming of employee knowledge and understanding of the SEA process and development of the skills needed to undertake assessments. The Group is chaired by the Planning Officer (SEA). 14 267
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3.5. The SEA process is further supported by the publication of the biennial South Lanarkshire State of the Environment Report which provides the baseline environmental data. The 2023 edition of this report is being presented to the Executive Committee for approval alongside this report. Work on the 2025 edition will be progressed in early 2025. 3.6. As part of the SEA process, the Council is also required to formally consult with the statutory Consultation Authorities (Historic Environment Scotland, Scottish Environment Protection Agency and NatureScot). This is facilitated by the Scottish Government’s SEA Gateway. 3.7. In March 2009, the Executive Committee delegated authority to the Chief Executive to make determinations on whether a Council-led plan is exempt from SEA or if a full SEA would be carried out. In January 2020, the Chief Executive delegated this authority to the Executive Director of Community and Enterprise Resources. These determinations are collated by the SEA Gateway and issued to the statutory Consultation Authorities for consultation and agreement. This process is facilitated within the Council by the Planning Officer (SEA). 3.8. Although it is not a legal requirement to report on SEA progress to Committee, it is considered good practice to keep members informed. 4. Progress in Carrying Out SEAs 4.1. The Council has a statutory duty to consider and carry out an SEA for all its policies, plans, programmes and strategies as they are being developed or refreshed. During 2023/2024, a number of Council-led plans were subject to SEA. 4.2. The SEA Act requires the Council to assess whether plans are within the scope of the legislation and whether SEA is required. This can be considered through either Pre- screening or Screening. 4.3. Four assessments of plans were completed at the Pre-screening stage. At this stage, the Council informed the Scottish Government’s SEA Gateway of their opinion that these plans were exempt from SEA as their implementation would have no or minimal effect on the environment. These are detailed in Table 1. Table 1: Pre-screening completions 2023/2024 Lead Resource Plan Community and Enterprise Bereavement Services Cemetery Strategy Community and Enterprise Social Enterprise Strategy Housing and Technical Customer Involvement Strategy Housing and Technical Anti-Social Behaviour Strategy 4.4. Three plans were finalised at Screening stage. A formal determination was made and agreed by the Consultation Authorities that further SEA work was not required for them. These are detailed in Table 2. Table 2: Screening completions 2023/2024 Lead Resource Plan Community and Enterprise Biodiversity Strategy Community and Enterprise Biodiversity Duty Implementation Plan Housing and Technical Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy 268
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4.5. During 2023/2024, 2 scoping reports were submitted for consideration by the Consultation Authorities. These were for the forthcoming Local Transport Strategy and the revised Management Plan for the New Lanark World Heritage Site. Both of these Scoping Reports, which set out how the environmental assessment is to be conducted, were agreed by the Consultation Authorities. Following a comprehensive process, the assessment methodology for each of these plans were set out in Environmental Reports and submitted to the SEA Gateway. The assessments of these plans will be conducted during the current financial year and the findings will be set out in an Environmental Report. These Environmental Reports will be submitted to the Consultation Authorities for their consideration and agreement. 4.6. The final stage of the SEA process is the preparation and submission of a Post Adoption Statement to the SEA Gateway. The Post Adoption Statement sets out the key findings from the SEA and how these have been taken account of in the final adopted plan. In 2023/2024, the Local Housing Strategy was adopted and a Post Adoption Statement was submitted as statutorily required. 4.7. In 2024/2025, SEA work will focus on a range of Council-led plans, including the forthcoming Local Development Plan 3, Open Space Strategy, Air Quality Strategy and the Tree Strategy. 4.8. The Strategic Environmental Assessment work continues to promote the protection and enhancement of the South Lanarkshire environment for our people and communities. 5. Employee Implications 5.1. SEAs are resourced by existing staff. 6. Financial Implications 6.1. SEAs are resourced within existing budgets. 7. Other Implications 7.1. Failure to make a formal determination in relation to a plan could result in the SEA process having to be restarted leading to a delay in the development of the plan. Council actions in relation to SEA are also open to legal challenge and it is, therefore, important to ensure compliance with the legislation. 8. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 8.1. Strategic Environmental Assessment is a valuable tool for the council and partners in strategic planning. It safeguards South Lanarkshire’s natural and built environment and is a useful tool to help address both the climate and nature emergencies. 9. Equality Impact Assessment and Consultation Arrangements 9.1. This report does not introduce a new policy, function or strategy or recommend a significant change to an existing policy, function or strategy and, therefore, no impact assessment is required. The report is for information only and consultation on its contents is not required. David Booth Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) 6 June 2024 269
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Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Values Focused on people and their needs Working with and respecting others Ambitious, self-aware and improving Fair, open and sustainable Priorities We will work to put people first and reduce inequality We will work towards a sustainable future in sustainable places We will work to recover, progress and improve Outcomes Good quality, suitable and sustainable places to live Thriving business, fair jobs and vibrant town centres Caring, connected, sustainable communities People live the healthiest lives possible Previous References Executive Committee, 25 March 2009 List of Background Papers South Lanarkshire State of the Environment Report 2021 (approved by Executive Committee, March 2022) South Lanarkshire State of the Environment Report 2023 (report for approval by the Executive Committee 26 June 2024) South Lanarkshire Council Sustainable Development and Climate Change Strategy 2022 - 2027 Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact:- Jennifer Murphy Advanced Planning Officer (Strategic Environmental Assessment) Email: jennifer.murphy@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 270
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1 Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 26 June 2024 Report by: Executive Director (Housing and Technical Resources) Subject: South Lanarkshire Local Housing Strategy Annual Review 2023/2024 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- provide Executive Committee with an update on the progress made during 2023/2024 against delivering the agreed outcomes set out in the Local Housing Strategy (LHS) 2022 to 2027 2. Recommendations 2.1. The Executive Committee is asked to approve the following recommendations:- (1) that the progress on actions for delivering the agreed LHS priority outcomes across the five chapters, be noted. 3. Background 3.1. The Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 requires local authorities to carry out an assessment of needs and demand for housing and related services, and to prepare and submit a five-year Local Housing Strategy (LHS) to Scottish Ministers. The LHS is the main plan for all housing tenures in the local authority area. 3.2. The LHS was developed during 2022, building on the good work undertaken by the Council and its partners under the LHS 2017 to 2022. The LHS works alongside the Council’s Local Development Plan 2 (LDP2), to set the strategic framework for local housing development and aligns with corporate and community planning objectives. 3.3. The LHS was peer reviewed by Scottish Government Policy Teams, the More Homes Division Area Team, and Fife Council and highlighted several key areas of strength: engagement and consultation, housing delivery, place making and communities, and specialist provision, independent living, armed forces, key workers and Gypsy/Travellers. 3.4. The peer review also identified a number of areas for improvement including more information to support people interested in self-build and considering clear actions to bring non-compliant stock up to energy efficiency standards. 3.5. The Executive Committee approved the LHS on 30 November 2022 and noted the annual monitoring and reporting arrangements. This is the first annual review of the LHS 2022 to 2027. 15 271
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2 4. Context and Wider Policy Changes 4.1. A number of significant changes have taken place both locally and nationally since the LHS was approved in November 2022. In particular, the housing sector has faced significant challenges with the Scottish Government, the Chartered Institute of Housing and a number of local authorities declaring a housing crisis based on sharp increases in demand for homelessness services and the severe pressure being placed on housing and wider services. 4.2. In addition, a range of legislative and budgetary changes implemented nationally have increased uncertainty around new affordable housing supply and standards. A summary of these has been set out below:- on 19 December 2023, the Scottish Government announced a significant reduction in the available national Affordable Housing Supply Programme budget, with this reduction expected to impact all local authority areas. Implications to the local supply programme are currently being reviewed, with increased uncertainty around funding for future years a key factor in the Council and partners ability to increase supply of affordable homes published in March 2024, the Housing (Scotland) Bill 2024 fulfils the 2023/2024 Programme for Government commitment to bring forward housing legislation. The Bill outlines proposals as part of the delivery of their 'New Deal for Tenants'; continued reform of the rented sector, with some aspects of ‘Housing to 2040’; and contributing to their ambition to end homelessness in Scotland following a review of the second Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing (EESSH2), the Scottish Government published a consultation in November 2023 on the proposed new Social Housing Net Zero Standard to enable progress towards net zero and fuel poverty targets. The new standards will come into force during the timeframe of the LHS 2022 to 2027, currently anticipated to be within 2025 in November 2023, the Scottish Government launched proposals for the Heat in Buildings Bill which aims to regulate the way and speed in which Scotland transitions from carbon-based heating systems to clean heating systems, and in a way that is affordable, fair and feasible for households, business, services and the Third Sector. The Bill’s proposals would require changes to the heating and energy efficiency of most domestic and non-domestic properties across Scotland in August 2023, the Scottish Government published a consultation document setting out final proposals for Energy Performance Certificate reform to ensure the certificates contain the right information to inform decisions that support the improvement of homes and buildings towards net zero and prohibit the use of polluting heating systems after 2045 4.3. Despite this increasing challenge and uncertainty, Housing and Technical Resources will continue to monitor national and local developments in all areas and ensure that significant changes are appropriately reflected within the LHS and associated plans or reports. 272
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3 5. Annual Review 2023/2024 5.1. The LHS is structured around five chapters and eight priority outcomes. There are 107 indicators against which the Council monitors progress including 72 actions and 35 measures. In line with wider reporting arrangements across the Council, these indicators can be categorised into ‘green’, ‘amber’ and ‘red’ depending on the progress made against them. Actions can also be recorded as ‘completed’ where appropriate, or ‘to be reported later’ if they are planned for delivery in a future year of the Strategy. 5.2. As at the end of 2023/2024, 60% of the indicators were in line with projected targets or have been completed. Table 1 outlines the 2023/2024 categorisation of the 107 indicators. Completed Green Amber Red To be reported later Total 3 62 10 3 29 107 Table 1: Categorisation of LHS indicators 2023/2024 5.3. The review demonstrated good progress has been made for 62 indicators and a further three have been completed in full. The higher number of indicators ‘to be reported later’ reflects that this is the first annual review with a number of actions scheduled for delivery in future years of the Strategy. Performance highlights for 2023/2024 are provided in Appendix 1. 5.4. There were 10 indicators categorised as ‘amber’ within the review, including work to launch a matching scheme for owners and prospective buyers of empty homes, paused to await the outcome of a national review, and access rates for Council properties impacting legislative compliance programmes. Work is currently underway to ensure progress is made on each of the indicators during 2024/2025. 5.5. In line with trends across Scotland, South Lanarkshire continues to experience unprecedented demand for statutory homeless services. Within this, the number of homelessness presentations in 2023/2024 rose to 2,728, the homelessness case load at year end rose to 1,579 and the number of homeless households spending more than 12 months in temporary accommodation rose to 143. 5.6. Reflecting the severe pressure in relation to homelessness, three measures from within the Addressing Homelessness chapter have, therefore, been categorised as ‘red’, below anticipated performance:- M6.1 Number of homeless presentations M6.2 Level of Homeless Households (homelessness caseload at year end) M7.4 Number of homeless households who spend more than 12 months in temporary accommodation 273
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4 5.7. A series of actions to mitigate the impact of the demand for statutory homelessness services have been reported to Housing and Technical Resources Committee and Executive Committee and include:- Addressing the significant increase in the number of households in temporary accommodation by continuing to focus on prevention activities, ongoing delivery of housing pathway plans for more vulnerable clients and continuing to prioritise the needs of children within homeless households to minimise the adverse impact Maintaining a sufficient supply of appropriate temporary accommodation by continuing to monitor the Temporary Accommodation Strategic Plan to identify and respond to any shortfalls in temporary accommodation provision, exploring opportunities to increase First Stop and supported accommodation which would reduce supply of self-contained furnished properties and better meet service and customer needs, and enter a partnership with Social Bite, drawing in funding to deliver 15 units of supported accommodation Improving access to permanent homes by working towards the increased Housing Supply target to deliver an increase in stock, taking forward the new- build programme 5.8. 29 indicators were identified as ‘to be reported later’ in line with the timescale identified for implementation within the strategy. Updates will be provided to Executive Committee on these as part of future annual reviews. 6. Proposed revisions to LHS Performance Framework 6.1. The annual review provides the opportunity to assess and report on the progress made against each of the actions and measures contained within the plan. It also allows for a general re-examination of the LHS to ensure that the objectives, actions, and measures identified, remain appropriate, relevant, and measurable. 6.2. During the annual review seven proposed revised actions have been identified. Details of the proposed changes are detailed in the table below. These revisions will be incorporated into the LHS action plan for 2024/2025. Ref. Current action/measure Status Ref. Proposed replacement action/measure (where appropriate) A.1.6 Develop and implement a ‘Housing Options for Older People’ framework Green A.1.6 In line with policy developments, the Housing Options for Older People framework has developed into the Progressive Housing Framework, which was developed jointly within the Health and Social Care University Partnership during 2023/2024. This action will be amended to now implement the Progressive Housing Framework with key partners. 274
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5 Ref. Current action/measure Status Ref. Proposed replacement action/measure (where appropriate) A.2.9 Implement Short Term Let licensing scheme and establish appropriate services to implement across South Lanarkshire. Blue A.2.9 This has been completed with a fully operational scheme now in place with the council’s Legal Services the lead partner, supported by services across Housing and Technical Resources and Community and Enterprise Resources. The action will be amended to monitor the delivery of the new Short Term Let licensing scheme. A.3.4 Complete a review of current council housing properties to inform investment programmes to achieve EESSH2 for as many as practically possible. Blue N/A A review of the Council’s domestic stock has been completed, ready to inform programme of works once the new Social Housing Net Zero Standard has been agreed. This action will therefore be removed, with a new action introduced once the standard has been agreed and introduced. A.3.6 Establish appropriate council services to provide a full ECO scheme in South Lanarkshire to aid energy efficiency improvements in private homes. Blue A.3.5 Housing and Technical Resources has fully launched a new ECO Scheme within 2023/24, focusing on supporting vulnerable households. This action will be amended to monitor the delivery of ECO Scheme in South Lanarkshire. A.4.6 Develop and implement South Lanarkshire Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy (LHEES) and associated Delivery Plan Green A.4.6 The LHEES and associated Delivery Plan have been developed with key partners throughout 2023/2024, with draft strategy submitted to Executive Committee on 26 June 2024. Subject to approval of the LHEES, this action will be amended to co-ordinate the delivery of the LHEES and support services and partners to implement projects or actions within it. M.6.1 Number of homeless presentations. Red M.6.1 This measure will be revised to ‘maintain’ current levels, in line with changes made to the Rapid Rehousing Transition Plan, reflecting current pressures within homelessness services. M.6.2 Level of Homeless Households (homelessness caseload at year end) Red M.6.2 This measure will be revised to ‘maintain’ current levels, in line with changes made to the Rapid Rehousing Transition Plan, reflecting current pressures within homelessness services. 275
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6 7. Looking ahead 7.1. The delivery of the second full year of the Local Housing Strategy 2022 to 2027 will continue against the backdrop of the most challenging operational context for housing and homelessness, both in terms of service demand and lack of clarity over national standards and funding. In addition to the indicators being progressed within the Strategy, the Council and its partners will continue to take forward a wide range of other work, including: monitoring the progress through the Scottish Parliament of the Housing (Scotland) Bill 2024, which includes provisions around homelessness prevention and the private rented sector, submitting evidence to parliamentary committees where requested to highlight any anticipated impact on the delivery of the LHS contributing to the revised Strategic Commissioning Plan being developed by the University Health and Social Care Partnership, ensuring ongoing alignment with the Local Housing Strategy 2022 to 2027 contributing to the development of Local Development Plan 3, ensuring housing land supply and design of new homes and places reflects the needs and demands of South Lanarkshire monitoring the outcome of the Scottish Government consultations on proposals for the Heat in Buildings Bill and the Social Housing Net Zero Standard which will replace EESSH2 8. Next Steps 8.1. The review identified that the Council and its housing, health and homelessness partners have made good progress in 2023/2024 towards delivering on the eight priority outcomes. 8.2. The Council will continue to monitor, influence where possible and enact any national policy changes that relate to the Local Housing Strategy 2022 to 2027. 9. Employee Implications 9.1. There are no employee implications as a result of this report. 10. Financial Implications 10.1. There are no financial implications as a result of this report. 11. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 11.1. There are no direct climate change, sustainability and natural environment implications arising from this report. 12. Other Implications 12.1. The actions in the LHS link closely to the wider Strategic Commissioning Plan, Local Development Plan 2, and Climate Change and Sustainability Strategy. 12.2. A full Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) was completed as part of the development of the LHS 2022-27 with feedback from statutory consultation authorities incorporated into the Strategy. 276
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7 13. Equality Impact Assessment and Consultation Arrangements 13.1. An Equality Impact Assessment (EQIA) and Fairer Scotland Duty Assessment were completed as part of the development of the LHS 2022-2027, identifying the relevance to individuals covered under the “protected characteristics” as defined in the Equality Act 2010 and the positive impact it could achieve for communities across South Lanarkshire. 13.2. The LHS is subject to ongoing consultation and engagement with key partners and stakeholders through the Local Housing Strategy Steering Group and ongoing links with tenants and other stakeholders. Stephen Gibson Executive Director (Housing and Technical Resources) 31 May 2024 Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Values Focused on people and their needs Working with and respecting others Accountable, effective, efficient and transparent Ambitious, self-aware and improving Fair, open and sustainable Priorities We will work to put people first and reduce inequality We will work towards a sustainable future in sustainable places We will work to recover, progress and improve Outcomes Our children and young people thrive Good quality, suitable and sustainable places to live Thriving business, fair jobs and vibrant town centres Caring, connected, sustainable communities People live the healthiest lives possible Previous References Executive Committee Report, ‘Local Housing Strategy (LHS) Annual Review 2021-22’, 3 November 2021 Executive Committee Report, ‘Local Housing Strategy 2022-27’, 30 November 2022 List of Background Papers Local Housing Strategy 2022-27 South Lanarkshire Rapid Rehousing Transition Plan 2019-24 South Lanarkshire Strategic Commissioning Plan 2022-25 Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact:- Claire Frew, Strategy Co-ordinator E-mail: claire.frew@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 277
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8 Appendix 1 Progress Highlights 2023/24 Key highlights within each of the five chapters of the LHS have been provided below: Chapter 1: Housing Supply, Choice and Affordability • To improve the availability of affordable housing in South Lanarkshire, a total of 269 additional council homes for social rent were delivered in 2023/24. This included 165 homes acquired through the council’s enhanced Market Purchase Scheme and 104 new build homes across Larkhall, Strathaven and Hamilton. A further 144 new build homes and 33 acquisitions were also completed by Registered Social Landlords (RSL) in areas of high housing need. • Through working with owners of long-term empty homes and partner services, 28 long-term empty homes were successfully supported back into use by the council during the year, exceeding the annual target of 15. • The Progressive Housing Framework has been developed jointly with the Health and Social Care University Partnership to re-focus operating models with the aim of promoting independent living and meet people’s needs as their lives and health circumstances change over time. Chapter 2: Housing Quality, Energy Efficiency and Decarbonisation • In 2023 the council became one of the first local authorities in Scotland to fully launch a new ‘Energy Company Obligation Scheme’ through existing resources. This scheme allows national energy company funding to be used by locally based contractors to make energy efficiency improvements to eligible homes at no cost to the homeowner. Since launching, 332 energy efficiency measures have been installed in 127 properties, including solar panels, boiler upgrades, and upgrades to insulation. Through its administrative role, the council are able to direct contractors to particular household types, with an initial focus on lower income households with very young children, older people and people with health issues. • Despite the uncertainty surrounding new energy efficiency standards for socially rented homes in Scotland, the council has continued to invest in its housing stock to ensure tenants benefit from improved energy efficiency within their homes, aiming to reduce the heat required and associated costs. • The council continues to progress new opportunities for district heat networks, with a feasibility study completed in partnership with Zero Waste Scotland in 2023/24 for central Hamilton, and discussions underway for a network covering the council’s domestic premises in the Calderwood area of East Kilbride in line with the proposed new Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy. Chapter 3: Specialist Provision and Supporting Independent Living • Of the 248 new build council and RSL homes delivered for social rent during 2023/24, 12% are categorised as amenity properties which are wheelchair accessible. This exceeds the LHS target of 10%. All new homes within the council’s programme meet the housing for varying needs standard and are ‘future proofed’, meaning they are designed in such a way that they can be easily adapted to meet the specific needs of a wide range of customers, now and into the future. 278
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9 • A new Housing Protocol for Care Experienced Young People, jointly delivered by Housing and Technical Resources and Social Work Resources, was launched in January 2024. Funding has been secured from the National Lottery Community Fund for partnership working between the children’s charity Barnardo’s and Social Work Resources to deliver youth housing support for Care Experienced Young People to assist them to transition into settled housing. • Throughout 2023/24 the council has continued to invest within the two South Lanarkshire Gypsy/Traveller sites, with priorities for improvements agreed co- developed with site residents. Improvements included a new play area at Shawlands Crescent, jointly funded by the Scottish Government, alongside the installation of new security fencing, upgraded CCTV and the commencement of work to improve amenity blocks. At the Springbank Park site, pitches have been extended in preparation for new amenity units to be delivered during 2024/25 with a new play area also being proposed. Chapter 4: Addressing Homelessness • Despite sustained pressures on homelessness services throughout the year, the council has achieved a 5% reduction in the average time spent in temporary accommodation, compared with performance at the end of the previous LHS in 2022. A further 12 temporary accommodation properties have also been ‘flipped’, allowing settled homeless households to remain in their property and prevent any further upheaval. • In addition, there has been a 3% increase in both the percentage of all new council tenancies allocated to homeless households, rising to 62.9%, and the percentage of homeless households sustaining their tenancy for more than 12 months has risen to 91.2%. • Through close partnership working new posts have been secured to work with vulnerable people experiencing homelessness. This includes two part-time Domestic Abuse Support Worker posts funded by the Alcohol and Drug Partnership to work with women impacted by substance and alcohol use and homelessness, and one part-time Support Worker post provided by SAY Women to assist young women aged 16-25 who have experienced sexual abuse, assault or rape and who were homeless or threatened with homelessness. Chapter 5: Sustainable Places • Following successful funding bids to the Linter Trust’s Community Wellbeing Fund and Connecting Scotland, a further 28 wi-fi enabled devices were provided for tenant use during 2023/24 through a library-style system. This has significantly upscaled the scope and reach of digital connectivity for sheltered housing tenants and the service’s five volunteer digital champions continue to support tenants to access a range of online services. 279
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 26 June 2024 Report by: Chief Executive Subject: Resource Plans and Connect Reporting 2024/2025 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] provide the Committee with the Resource Plans for 2024/2025, for noting, together with an indication of how the Council Plan, Connect, will be reported in the 2024/2025 financial year [1purpose] 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Committee is asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- [] (1) that the Resource Plans 2024/2025, prepared in line with the corporate guidance, be noted; and (2) that the reporting intention in relation to Connect, summarised at Section 5 of this report, be noted. 3. Background 3.1. This report presents the suite of Resource Plans 2024/2025. These plans are submitted to the relevant Resource Committees for approval and can be accessed at the following link Plans and progress - South Lanarkshire Council. This report also provides an indication of how the Council Plan, Connect, will be reported in the 2024/2025 financial year. 4. Resource Planning Process 2024/2025 4.1. The Resource Plans for 2024/2025 were prepared in line with corporate Resource Planning guidance and a template. 4.2. As part of the Resource Planning process, Resources undertake a horizon-scanning and situational-awareness exercise covering Social Change, Legislation and Policies; Areas for Improvement, including LGBF, customer views and external inspection results; and other triggers for action such as top risks. 4.3. From this exercise, a maximum of ten topics are selected as key areas of focus for inclusion and development in the Resource Plans. The key areas are shown in table 1 below and are provided to give Committee an overview of the most significant Resource Plan issues identified for 2024/2025. 16 281
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Table 1: Key areas of focus in Resource Plans 2024/2025 CER • Cost of living crisis • Economic Development and Renewal/Town centre regeneration • External Funding • Glasgow City Region City Deal • Deliver effective employability services to support individuals and business • Sustainable Development and Climate Change • Circular Economy • Health and Wellbeing • Legislative and Policy Changes EDR • Cost of living crisis • Health and wellbeing for learning • Equity and Equality • Curriculum, learning, teaching and assessment • Digital learning and inclusion • Climate change and Sustainability • United Nations Convention on the rights of the child • Communication and engagement FCR • Cost of living crisis • Financial Strategy • Involving our Communities • Workforce Planning and People Strategy • New financial management, HR and Payroll system • Strategic digital developments • Sustainable development and climate change • Continued development of the council transformation programme HTR • Cost of living crisis • Housing to 2040 • Financial Considerations • Severe pressure on Homelessness services • Continuing to improve the supply and availability of housing • Provision of Services to Gypsy/Travellers • Health and Social Care • Development of Integrated Housing and Property Management System • Health and Safety • Sustainable development and climate change • Refugee re-settlement programme and asylum dispersal SWR • Challenges and service demand • Regulation and inspection of services • Recruitment and retention • Cost of living crisis • Children, young people and families • South Lanarkshire University Health and Social Care Partnership • Carers Strategy • Social Work IT system replacement • National Care Service • Consultation and engagement 4.4. The cost of living crisis features as the main challenge in the year ahead in all Resource Plans. Financial considerations and sustainability and climate change feature strongly, as does tackling inequalities and achieving equity in the aftermath of Covid-19. Other topics which feature across a number of Plans include service transformation and efficiencies, health and wellbeing, and engagement with communities. 282
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5. Resource Plans – Outcomes, Measures and the Link to Connect 5.1. Resources have used the six Connect outcomes to generate their own Resource outcomes, supported by a range of actions and measures. Recognising that the Council continually aims to improve and ensure effective and efficient use of resources, additional actions and measures have been developed under the heading Delivering the Plan and achieving Best Value. 5.2. Table 2 below shows the number of measures from each Resource Plan selected to be reported against Connect. The figures for 2024/2025 are based on the Resource Plans for 2024/2025. Table 2: Number of measures from Resource Plans selected to be reported against Connect Number of measures 2022/23 2023/24 2024/25 Community and Enterprise 26 49 53 Education 65 64 44 Finance and Corporate 46 32 37 Housing and Technical 59 68 70 Social Work 38 28 27 TOTAL (Resource Plans) 234 241 231 Council Plan, Connect 66 70 61 (Note – 2024/2025 figures correct per Resource Plans as at May 2024; the final number of measures may vary following internal verifications and cross-checks.) 5.3. As part of the performance reporting arrangements Connect progress reports will be presented to the Performance and Review Scrutiny Forum for monitoring at the mid- year point (Quarter 2) and at the end of the financial year (Quarter 4). 6. Next steps 6.1. Committee is asked to note the suite of Resource Plans 2024/2025, and that progress reports will be taken to the appropriate Resource Committees for monitoring at Quarter 2 and Quarter 4. 7. Employee Implications 7.1. There are no direct employee implications. 8. Financial Implications 8.1. There are no direct financial implications. 9. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 9.1. There are no direct climate change, sustainability and natural environment implications arising from this report. 9.2. The Council acknowledges the serious and immediate threat of climate change and is committed to accelerating the pace of action in response to the climate emergency and in Scotland’s transition to a net-zero and climate resilient society and economy. All Resource Plans have recognised sustainable development and climate change as a key area of focus for 2023/2024. 283
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10. Other Implications 10.1. Considering the detail of the report and identifying actions as appropriate contribute towards effective risk management. 11. Equality Impact Assessment and Consultation Arrangements 11.1. This report does not introduce a new policy, function or strategy or recommend a change to an existing policy, function or strategy and, therefore, no impact assessment is required. 11.2. Consultation was undertaken internally with Resources through the annual Resource Planning process and associated guidance. Paul Manning Chief Executive 24 May 2024 Link(s) to Council Values/Outcomes/Priorities Accountable, effective, efficient and transparent Ambitious, self-aware and improving Previous References Draft Resource Plans and Connect Reporting 2023/2024: Executive Committee - 21 June 2023 List of Background Papers None Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact:- Tom Little, Head of Communications and Strategy Ext: 4904 (Tel: 01698.454904) E-mail: Tom.Little@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 284
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 26 June 2024 Report by: Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) Subject: Amendments to Committee Membership 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] advise of the action taken, in terms of Standing Order No 37(c), due to the timescales involved, by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources), in consultation with the Chair and an ex officio member, to amend the membership of the Education Appeals Committee. [1purpose] 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Committee is asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- [recs] (1) that the action taken, in terms of Standing Order No 37(c), by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources), in consultation with the Chair and an ex officio member, to replace Councillor Celine Handibode with Councillor Kirsty Williams as a member of the Education Appeals Committee be noted. [1recs] 3. Background 3.1. On 5 June 2024, a request was received from the Business Manager of the Scottish Labour Party that Councillor Williams replace Councillor Handibode as a member of the Education Appeals Committee. 3.2. To facilitate the request and allow the continuation of Council business, in terms of Standing Order No 37(c) of the Council’s Standing Orders on Procedures, the Chief Executive, in consultation with the Chair and an ex officio member, approved the recommendations contained in paragraph 2.1 of the report. 4. Employee Implications 4.1. There are no employee implications in terms of this report. 5. Financial Implications 5.1 There are no financial implications in terms of this report. 6. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 6.1 There are no climate change, sustainability or environmental implications in terms of this report. 17 285
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7 Other Implications 7.1. There are no risk implications in terms of this report. 8. Equality Impact Assessment and Consultation Arrangements 8.1. There was no requirement to carry out an EIA or formal consultation process. Jackie Taylor Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) 7 June 2024 Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Accountable, effective, efficient and transparent Previous References None List of Background Papers None Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact:- Elizabeth-Anne McGonigle, Administration Adviser Tel: 07385403101 E-mail: elizabeth-anne.mcgonigle@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 286