Affordable housing is most pressing crisis

Standfirst

 

Arran Economic Group has just published their quarterly report for April to June 2019 and in his summary chairman Tom Tracey outlines the work which has been done during this time. Here is his report.

 

Main story

 

On the face of it the Arran economy is in good shape. The latest tourist information reports show us with continued growth of 5 per cent in revenue year on year. Our quality of life survey shows that Arran remains in the top 10 per cent in Scotland.

 

But whether this can be sustained in the medium to long term depends on how quickly we can resolve our most pressing crisis - the lack of affordable housing on Arran. With rents in excess of 40 per cent mainland rates and household incomes among the lowest in North Ayrshire, the only question is why our labour shortages in every sector of our economy are not higher.

 

The 34 houses to be built by North Ayrshire Council in Brathwic Terrace will start to solve the problem. The Arran Development Trust has now placed detailed plans and grant applications with the Scottish Government for 43 affordable homes and 14 self-build plots. Meetings have been held with Ministers for Housing, Islands and Rural Economies to explain the problem and outline the solution. All are sympathetic. We will know over the next three months if this sympathy translates to funding. Meetings have also been held with the CEO of North Ayrshire Council and we are working closely with them. The ball is firmly in the government's court and our MSP is working for a positive outcome.

 

Arran Ferry Committee’s continuous drive to establish a problem solving and customer service ethos with CalMac. This paid dividends over Easter with an additional capacity for 11,800 passengers,3,200 cars and 700 meters of freight.  However, the underlying problems remain. CMAL/CalMac infrastructure; boats/harbours/information systems, need urgent and significant capital investment which seem to be on the horizon but never quite manage to get here. The ferry committee continue to press for this solution and in the meantime mitigate the infrastructure inadequacies where possible. On a more positive note several new initiatives are being developed by Eco Savvy, ACVS and Health and Social Care Partnership to encourage environmentally friendly transport and reduce social isolation caused by a lack of transport.

 

Work continues to develop and implement the skills plan across the four key sectors; construction, health and social care, visitor economy and shared provision. Each group has identified priorities, actions, partners, barriers to success and potential solutions.

 

Progress also in communication with eight events held over the period and the completion of the Discover Arran website and social media platforms.

 

In conclusion, the top line performance figures are encouraging but the underlying divergence in the availability and cost of social housing with the mainland exacerbates labour shortages in all sectors. Some of these, as we saw in a recent Banner headline, are critical and threaten our long-term sustainability. There are grant funds available and a detailed proposal to access them is with the government. We will keep you updated on progress but would also encourage you to get involved directly.

 

 

Tom Tracey 01_B30tracey