Annual Impact Report 2024

CASE STUDY

North Ayrshire Council

North Ayrshire local authority resumed their empty homes service this year, after it was put on hold during the pandemic. Emma Anderson, the Team Manager, tells us about how the team are now working to reduce the number of long term empty homes.

In North Ayrshire, we have 3 Housing Officers who undertake empty homes as part of their remit. Each Officer has an area that they cover, a model that works really well for us. We specifically work from the council tax levy reports as well as any enquiries from the public. The Housing Officers combine empty homes work with property condition work, allowing us to reduces site visits.

Prior to 2020 we would send owners subject to the levy an empty homes survey which was several pages long but with very little return. When empty homes work resumed, we began using the Shelter Empty Homes Partnership postcard, customising it for our own needs. This has saved us administrative time and has resulted in a much higher response from owners.

We have also developed a series of bespoke reports using Power Bi which allows each Officer to see a breakdown of all their empty homes by town, the length of time empty and also to identify clusters of empty homes and/or “problem” areas.

Having this information at our fingertips has really made a difference. Going forward we will be targeting specific areas where empty homes are prevalent with a view to trying to reduce the number of empty homes across North Ayrshire.