An interim report has been published by the Working Group on Maintenance of Tenement Scheme Property.

The group was established in March 2018, and comprises MSPs from all parliamentary parties and sector experts, including PMAS.

The report, published on 16 January, is calling for regular inspection, ownership associations and sinking funds to improve and protect tenement buildings across Scotland.

The report comes as the issue of tenement repair and maintenance has been rising up the Scottish parliamentary agenda. During a parliamentary debate in early 2018, SNP MSP Ben Macpherson called for the Scottish Government to review current legislation and mechanisms for facilitating communal repairs, and to consider any potential legislative changes and new initiatives that could help owners to better maintain their tenements. In May 2018, Graham Simpson MSP then secured a commitment from the Housing Minister to review existing legislation during a vote in the Scottish Parliament.

Recommendations from the interim publication will provide the basis of a solutions report, to be published in summer 2019.

Recommendations cover three areas: tenement inspections, owners’ associations and sinking funds, and how these aspects could operate and be implemented. They are outlined as follows:

• The Common Parts of all tenements should be inspected every five years and a report prepared that will be publicly available to existing or prospective owners and tenants, neighbours and policy makers.
• Establishing compulsory owners’ associations – linked to:-
• Sinking Funds should be introduced on a compulsory basis, ensure regular affordable payments contribute to a growing fund to deal with future major expenditure.

PMAS has long campaigned for action to help Factors to help their clients to maintain their properties. We believe these three key elements are key to improving the current situation, where lack of support from individual owners, often driven by lack of funds, prevents needed maintenance and repair proceeding.

Graham Simpson MSP, Shadow Housing & Planning Minister, who chairs the group, commented: “This interim report is a product of the hard work and determination of a dedicated working group, representing a cross section of the public and industry. Tenement maintenance is in a critical state and the time to act is now. I look forward to hearing people’s views on this interim report and its draft recommendations and improving our ideas into formulated policy ideas for the Scottish Government to consider.”

We are asking for our members to please respond to the consultation, which you can do here. The more support registered for the recommendations, the more weight they will have. The closing date for responses is 27th February.

PMAS is aware that MSPs are keen to read the opinions and experience of individual members of the public. Responding to the consultation might be too much to ask of your owner clients, however PMAS is also on the stakeholder group for the Under One Roof Website. Please encourage your owners to respond to the UOR short SurveyMonkey questionnaire here.