A NEW fund to help owners of long-term empty homes carry out repairs and refurbishments to bring properties back into everyday use will be launched later this month.
The fund sits within a wider programme of action outlined to members of The Highland Council on Thursday 14 May, as part of a progress report on tackling the Highland Housing Challenge, which was declared in June 2024.
There are currently 2,466 long-term empty properties in Highland, with 41% vacant for more than three years.
Grants of up to £30,000 in rural areas, and up to £25,000 in urban areas, will be available to eligible applicants. In return, properties must be brought back into use and either let at affordable mid-market rent or occupied as the owner’s main residence for a minimum of five years. To qualify, properties must have been empty for at least 12 months.
The Empty Homes Challenge Fund is one of several measures being taken forward by the Council to tackle the housing challenge. It is estimated 24,000 new homes are needed by 2035 to meet housing demand and support people to live, work, and stay in the Highlands. There is a need for housing across all tenures, including properties for social rent, private rent and properties to buy.
Alongside bringing existing homes back into use, the Council is pursuing a range of innovative solutions to increase housing supply. This includes coordinated actions to unlock investment, increase land supply, speed up planning processes, and build delivery capacity and confidence across the public and private sectors.
Convener of The Highland Council, Cllr Bill Lobban, said: “There is no single solution to the Highland Housing Challenge. That is why we are taking a series of practical, coordinated actions - from bringing empty homes back into use to creating mechanisms that speed up development, and identifying land. The availability of local housing for people to live and work in the region is critical to the future sustainability of our communities and the wider socio-economic transformation of our region.”
As part of this work, members were also updated on progress relating to Master Consent Areas (MCAs), which can accelerate housing delivery by delivering planning permission in advance of a formal development plan allocation, as long as the developments aligns with a masterplan that is co-developed by the community, developer and the council.
Feedback from recent public engagement on the principle of introducing MCAs at Essich Road in Inverness, Embo, and Ardersier, has resulted in all three sites being scaled back, with the Council now proposing a reduced number of 400 homes at Ardersier, 315 at Essich, and 60 at Embo. Other feedback will also be taken forward to shape the masterplans, including:
- A requirement for a minimum of 25% to 35% affordable housing, depending on location.
- Safeguarded land for community facilities.
- Strong requirements on schools, transport, active travel, drainage and environmental mitigation.
- Formal Good Neighbour Agreements to ensure developers are held to account.
Members agreed to progress a proposed masterplan consent area scheme for all three sites, including the commissioning of an independent masterplan adviser to assist in the co-authoring of the draft masterplan between the local community, council, and the developer. These plans will be subject to further consultation before being considered for approval by the relevant planning committees.
Further activity underway includes the development of a mid-market rental model to support people looking for affordable private rental property; expansion of the Council’s landbank, which currently has capacity to deliver around 1800 homes over the next 10 years; and a round-table discussion with developers, scheduled before the end of June, to explore opportunities to accelerate housing development across the Highlands.
This joined up response is part of a wider package of measures, which includes workforce development through Workforce North, use of Inverness and Cromarty Firth Green Freeport business rates, and Social Value Charter investment.
Leader of the Highland Council, Cllr Raymond Bremner, said: “The Council is investing £1 million in an Empty Homes Challenge Fund, aimed at increasing the availability of affordable housing while supporting rural regeneration. Empty homes are a real challenge for Highland, which has more long-term empty homes than any other local authority in Scotland. This fund will build on our Empty Homes Strategy by offering practical support to owners to help them bring properties back into everyday use.”
Applications for the Empty Homes Challenge Fund will open on the Highland Council website when the fund goes live at the end of May. Early interest and enquires can be made to: empty.homes@highland.gov.uk
The infographic provides an overview of the Highland Housing Challenge, and actions Highland Council are taking to address the challenge.