Published 24 February 2025
West Dunbartonshire Council joined forces with local partner organisations recently as part of work to address the area’s Housing Emergency.
Ideas and experiences discussed at the Council’s housing summit focused on the main pressures on housing services including supply and demand.
Key points for discussion were collated to develop a list of recommended actions, and these will be fed into the Housing Emergency Action Plan and reported back to members of the Council’s Housing and Communities committee.
Attendees included Council officers, representatives from West Dunbartonshire Health and Social Care Partnership, Elected Members, housing associations, major house builders from across Scotland, delegates from the Scottish Government and delegates from other public sector agencies.
The Council declared a housing emergency in West Dunbartonshire in May 2024.
Since then, a project board has been established in West Dunbartonshire, led by the Chief Housing Officer and supported by senior council officers. The board meets monthly to discuss how the Housing Emergency Action Plan is progressing, with regular updates reported to the Housing and Communities committee.
Four main themes were identified within the action plan focusing on the delivery and maintenance of homes; making best use of existing stock; enhancing housing access and preventing homelessness; and strengthening the financial viability of existing housing budgets.
The housing summit is one of the key actions to be taken forward since the action plan was published in August 2024.
Meanwhile work is progressing on each of the themes with an update due to be given to the Housing and Communities Committee later this month.
Speaking about the event, the Council’s Convener of Housing and Communities, Councillor Gurpreet Singh Johal said: “It was great to get everyone in the room and talking about what can be done to address the housing emergency which was declared in West Dunbartonshire last May.
“I am heartened that all of the different agencies who attended showed a real willingness to work together for better outcomes for our citizens.”
Vice Convener of Housing and Communities, Councillor Hazel Sorrell added: “It is imperative that work continues at a local level in order to address the housing emergency being experienced here in West Dunbartonshire.
“The housing summit is just one of the ways in which Council officers are working to improve housing supply and tackle key challenges such as homelessness.”