Draft Minutes - Housing and Communities 12 08 26
West Dunbartonshire Council · 12 August 2026
Back to Housing & Communities Committee — 12 August 2026 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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HOUSING AND COMMUNITIES COMMITTEE At a Hybrid Meeting of the Housing and Communities Committee held in the Civic Space, 16 Church Street, Dumbarton on Wednesday, 12 August 2026 at 2.01 p.m. Present: Provost Karen Murray Conaghan, Councillors Kevin Crawford*, Ian Dickson, Gurpreet Singh Johal, David McBride, Michelle McGinty, Lauren Oxley, Martin Rooney, William Rooney, Hazel Sorrell and Sophie Traynor. *Arrived later in the meeting. Attending: Peter Barry, Chief Officer – Housing Services; John Kerr, Housing Development and Homelessness Manager; Nicola Pettigrew, Housing Operations Manager; Claire McKay, Housing Development Co-ordinator; Craig Wilson, Building Services Manager; Christopher Anderson, Section Head and Principal Solicitor; and Nicola Moorcroft, Committee Officer. Also attending: Divisional Commander Gary I’Anson, Detective Inspector Graham McCreadie and Chief Inspector Colin Cameron, Police Scotland; Group Commander Kevin Rennie and Group Commander Barry McCutcheon, Argyll and Bute, East and West Dunbartonshire, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. Apology: An apology for absence was intimated on behalf of Councillor Lawrence O’Neill. Councillor Gurpreet Singh Johal in the Chair STATEMENT BY CHAIR – AUDIO STREAMING Councillor Singh Johal, Chair, advised that the meeting was being audio streamed and broadcast live to the internet and would be available for playback. DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST It was noted that there were no declarations of interest in any of the items of business on the agenda.
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RECORDING OF VOTES The Committee agreed that all votes taken during the meeting would be carried out by roll call vote to ensure an accurate record OPEN FORUM The Committee noted that no open forum questions had been submitted by members of the public. MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING The Minutes of Meeting of the Housing and Communities Committee held on 13 May 2026 were submitted and approved as a correct record. SCRUTINY REPORTS (a) POLICE SCRUTINY REPORT A report was submitted by the Divisional Commander, Police Scotland providing Members with an update Quarter 1 on local policing in West Dunbartonshire. After discussion and having heard the Divisional Commander and the Chief Inspector and Detective Inspector, in further explanation of the report and in answer to Members’ questions, the Committee agreed to note the update provided. Note: Councillor Crawford arrived in the meeting during discussion of this report. (b) FIRE AND RESCUE SCRUTINY REPORT A report was submitted by the Local Senior Officer, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, providing appropriate performance data against priorities in the West Dunbartonshire Local Fire and Rescue Plan. After discussion and having heard the Group Commander in further explanation of the report and in answer to Members’ questions, the Committee agreed to note the update provided. WEST DUNBARTONSHIRE HOUSING ALLOCATION POLICY REVIEW A report was submitted by the Chief Officer – Housing Services highlighting the changes to the allocations policy and seeking approval for following a
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comprehensive consultative review. Including details of the benefits and reasoning behind the proposals, along with a summary of the feedback received through consultative exercise. After discussion and having heard the Chief Officer – Housing Services and the Housing Development Co-ordinator in further explanation and in answer to Members’ questions, Councillor Singh Johal seconded by Councillor Sorrell, moved:- (1) to approve the proposed changes to the West Dunbartonshire Council Housing Allocation Policy, as set out in paragraphs 4.2 to 4.7 of the report; (2) to note the summary of consultation feedback in paragraphs 9.1 to 9.3 of the report, with full details provided in Appendix 1 of the report; (3) to invite the Chief Officer – Housing Services to ensure successful implementation of the revised Housing Allocation Policy and to report progress to the Housing and Communities Committee through established monitoring arrangements; and (4) to the introduction of a 12-month underoccupancy pilot, as detailed in paragraph 4.8 and Appendix 2 of the report, to help alleviate housing pressures in the context of the Council’s housing emergency declaration. As an amendment, Councillor Traynor seconded by Councillor Dickson moved:- Taking into consideration the ongoing housing emergency facing West Dunbartonshire, the Committee agrees to accept the proposed changes outlined in sections 4.2 to 4.7 of the report, with the exception of section 4.6, which proposes increasing the age limit for children of the same sex sharing a bedroom from 10 to 16 years. In light of the negative feedback received through the consultation and recognising that the proposed change would represent a significant six-year increase to the existing age limit, the Committee agrees to amend section 4.6. the age limit for children of the same sex sharing a bedroom should instead be increased from 10 to 13 years. On a roll call vote being taken, 5 Members voted for the amendment namely Provost Murray Conaghan and Councillors Crawford, Dickson, Oxley and Traynor and 6 Members voted for the motion namely, Councillors McBride, Singh Johal, McGinty, Martin Rooney, William Rooney, and Sorrell. The motion was accordingly declared carried. HOUSING EMERGENCY ACTION PLAN A report was submitted by the Chief Officer – Housing Services providing an update on the Housing Emergency Action Plan (HEDAP) which was formulated to address the emergency following the Council’s housing emergency declaration on 1 May 2024.
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After discussion and having heard the Chief Officer – Housing Services and the Housing Development Co-ordinator in further explanation and in answer to Members’ questions, the Committee agreed:- (1) to note the progress to date and the implementation of the key actions of the Housing Emergency Action Plan; (2) to note that a review of the Council’s Allocations Policy has been undertaken and is subject to a separate report to this Committee, as referenced in paragraph 4.8 of the report; (3) to note the proposed 12-month pilot to permit the allocation of selected two bedroom properties to households assessed as requiring one-bedroom accommodation, where this supports the allocation of homes to applicants with the highest assessed housing need, as set out in paragraph 4.9 of the report; (4) to note updates on the Scottish Government response to the national emergency in paragraphs 4.13 - 4.18 of the report and what it means for West Dunbartonshire Council’s Housing and Homelessness Services; and (5) that the Chief Officer – Housing Services will continue to provide update reports to future meetings of the Housing and Communities. MORE HOMES WEST DUNBARTONSHIRE – WEST DUNBARTONSHIRE COUNCIL’S AFFORDABLE HOUSING SUPPLY DELIVERY PROGRAMME A report was submitted by the Chief Officer – Housing Services providing an update on progress with West Dunbartonshire’s More Homes Programme which oversees the delivery of the Council’s new home building programme. After discussion and having heard the Chief Officer – Housing Services and the Housing Development and Homelessness Manager in further explanation and in answer to Members’ questions, the Committee agreed:- (1) to note the content of the report and the progress made to date in the delivery of the Council’s More Homes West Dunbartonshire approach; (2) to note the nomination of Mount Pleasant and the award win of the Willox Court development in the Excellence in Accessibility and Inclusion category at the 2026 Scottish Home Awards; (3) to note the commendation award of Mount Pleasant and the award win for Willox Court in the 2026 Homes for Scotland ‘Affordable Development of the Year - Small’ category; (4) to note the successful completion and forthcoming completion of the Bonhill Gap Sites at Braehead and Campbell Street;
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(5) to note that the Chief Officer – Housing Services, in collaboration with the Chief Officer – Regulatory and Regeneration explores the potential for a design and build contract to be placed with Barrat Group of Companies for the Queen’s Quay Site C development, subject to costs returned being deemed acceptable by the Service and an approach being found which is compliant with procurement requirements; (6) to note the mainly positive feedback of the West Dunbartonshire Council Strategic Housing Investment Programme (SHIP) from the Scottish Government; and (7) to approve and invite the Chief Officer – Housing Services, in collaboration with the Chief Officer – Regulatory and Regeneration and the Chief Officer – Resources, to conclude a short-term leasing arrangement for the vacant site at Vale of Leven Industrial Estate to support the temporary decant of Dennystoun Forge tenants while the wider regeneration works are completed. SCOTTISH SOCIAL HOUSING CHARTER/ANNUAL ASSURANCE STATEMENT A report was submitted by the Chief Officer – Housing Services seeking approval for the annual progress report on meeting the requirements of the Scottish Social Housing Charter and the Scottish Housing Regulator’s Regulatory Framework for social housing, including the approval of the Annual Assurance Statement. After discussion and having heard the Chief Officer – Housing Services, the Building Services Manager and the Housing Operations Manager in further explanation and in answer to Members’ questions, the Committee agreed:- (1) to note the content of our current Engagement Plan published by the Scottish Housing Regulator on 2 April 2026; (2) to note our performance in terms of achieving the Scottish Social Housing Charter outcomes during 2025/26; (3) to note that a comprehensive assessment of 2025/26 performance has been carried out and that this has informed our Charter Improvement Plan for 2026/27, with key areas of focus for the Housing Improvement Board outlined at 4.16 of the report; (4) to note that the Annual Charter Performance Report for tenants and other customers based on 2025/26 performance, will be produced and published by the end of October 2026, as per the regulatory requirement; (5) to approve our Annual Assurance Statement attached as Appendix 1 of the report, to be signed by the Housing Convener on behalf of the Committee and submitted to the Scottish Housing Regulator as per the regulatory requirement, and
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(6) that a further progress report on the Scottish Social Housing Charter be submitted to the November 2026 meeting of the Committee, which will include benchmarking data comparing our performance against all local authorities in Scotland. Note: Councillor Crawford left the meeting during discussion of this report. ‘MORE THAN A ROOF’ - WEST DUNBARTONSHIRE’S HOUSING SOLUTIONS STRATEGY UPDATE AND NEW APPROACHES TO HOMELESSNESS PROGRESS REPORT A report was submitted by the Chief Officer – Housing Services providing an update on “More than a Roof” West Dunbartonshire Council’s Housing Solutions Strategy for the period 2025-28 and new approaches to homelessness. After discussion and having heard the Chief Officer – Housing Services and the Housing Development and Homelessness Manager in further explanation and in answer to Members’ questions, the Committee agreed:- (1) to note and agree the progress made and challenges experienced during Year 1 of “More than a Roof” and agree the main objectives proposed for Year 2 as set out in paragraphs 4.28 - 4.48 of the report; (2) to note that the Council’s housing allocation letting target for homeless households is 59% for 2026/27 as set out in paragraph 4.36 of the report; (3) to note that Scottish Government Housing Solutions funding of £236,015 was awarded for 2026/27 for the delivery of West Dunbartonshire’s Housing Solutions Strategy; and (4) to note continued uncertainty around future Housing Solutions funding beyond 2026/27 and the need to review any ongoing commitments in line with confirmed future funding. HOUSING REVENUE ACCOUNT (HRA) REVENUE BUDGETARY CONTROL REPORT TO 30 JUNE 2026 (PERIOD 3) A report was submitted by the Chief Officer – Resources advising of the 2026/2027 HRA budget position on 30 June 2026 and the forecast position of the HRA Reserves as of 31 March 2027. After discussion and having heard the Chief Officer – Housing Services in further explanation, the Committee agreed:- (1) to note the HRA revenue account was forecasting a deficit of £0.863m. If required, HRA reserves would be used to fund the deficit.
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(2) to note that the forecast deficit would reduce HRA reserves to £0.259m on 31 March 2027, significantly less than the HRA revenue prudential target for 31 March 2027 of £1.222m. (3) to note that work would continue to explore opportunities to remove the in- year deficit and to rebuild reserves, including the targeting of efficiencies across all areas of the HRA revenue account budget. HOUSING REVENUE ACCOUNT (HRA) CAPITAL BUDGETARY CONTROL REPORT TO 30 JUNE 2026 (PERIOD 3) A report was submitted by the Chief Officer – Resources providing an update on the HRA capital programme to 30 June 2026 (Period 3). After discussion and having heard the Chief Officer – Housing Services in further explanation, the Committee agreed:- (1) to note the current position of the 2026/27 HRA capital budgets and the 5 year HRA capital plan; (2) to note that project life performance was monitored against a project life estimate of £336.506m and a project life income estimate of £53.821m, a borrowing requirement of £282.685m; (3) to note that in year financial performance was monitored against a 2026/27 capital expenditure budget of £58.434m and a 2026/27 capital income budget of £13.064m, a one-year borrowing requirement of £45.370m; (4) to note that at this early stage all projects are on track regarding achieving the planned completion dates and delivering within the project life estimate; and (5) to note that there was an anticipated underspend of £2.340m against 2026/27 budgets reducing the forecast one-year borrowing requirement to £43.030m. GENERAL FUND HOUSING AND COMMUNITIES FINANCIAL REPORT 2026/27 AS AT PERIOD 3 (30 JUNE 2026) A report was submitted by the Chief Officer – Resources providing an update on the financial performance to 30 June 2026 (Period 3) of General Fund Revenue Services under the remit of the Housing and Communities Committee. After discussion and having heard the Chief Officer – Housing Services in further explanation the Committee agreed:- (1) to note the account currently showed a projected favourable variance of £0.117m (9.1% of the net expenditure budget); and (2) to note the progress on efficiencies incorporated into 2026/2027 budgets.
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The meeting closed at 3.37 p.m.