Case Study: Argyll & Bute Care & Repair Project

Partners
· Argyll CVS
· Bute Community Links
· Isla & Jura CVS
· Mull & Iona Community Trust
· Argyll & the Islands Enterprise
· Argyll & Bute Council
· Argyll & Clyde Health Board
· Care & Repair Forum
· Dunbritton Housing Association
· Rural Housing Service
· Scottish Homes

      
DEVELOPMENT OF PROPOSAL

· Origin
The impetus behind the development of Care & Repair in Argyll & Bute was a visit to Tiree in 1998 by Derek Logie, Project Manager, Rural Housing Service at the invitation of Tiree Forum on Disability. The group were concerned that there were a number of people on the island living in poor housing conditions who were either elderly, disabled or had mental health problems. The Group were also concerned that some of the work which had been carried out under a Housing Action Area in the 1980's was badly done and required more work.

The Group were able to show several instances of elderly and disabled people living in housing in poor repair and a community meeting confirmed that the island would support the development of a Care & Repair project to help to overcome some of the housing issues on Tiree.

The other major catalyst to the development of the Project was the astounding fact that despite having proportionately the highest number of houses below the tolerable standard in Scotland, Argyll & Bute had just a small Care & Repair project which covered the Helensburgh area. This project was an inheritance from Dunbartonshire Council when the Helensburgh & Lomond area was transferred to Argyll & Bute on reorganisation in 1996.
 
 
   
   
  
 
    
  
  

Surprised by this omission and spurred on by the Tiree visit, in January 1999 the Rural Housing Service organised a meeting between the four "umbrella" voluntary and community groups in Argyll & Bute (Argyll CVS, Bute Community Links, Islay & Jura CVS, Mull & Iona Community Trust), Argyll & Bute Council, Scottish Homes, Care & Repair Forum and the Rural Housing Service.

The purpose of the meeting was to find out what the housing bodies were doing to develop a Care & Repair scheme which would cover the whole of Argyll & Bute. The meeting was organised at the right time because the Council were renewing their interest in Care & Repair. Council Housing Plans and the Strategic Agreement with Scottish Homes had highlighted Care & Repair as potential route through which improvement funds could be better targeted to those most in need of support. The community organisations were therefore in a sense pushing at an open door.

The result of the meeting was a commitment by the council and Scottish Homes to establish a Development Group involving the community groups and others to oversee the development of Care & Repair across Argyll.
 
      

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