Archive for the ‘housing’ Topic
Consultation Response: Response to Wider planning for an ageing population – housing and communities
Published: 30 September 2010
Consultation on the workstream report and its suggested actions.
Consultation Response: Response to ‘New Thinking, Fresh Ideas’
Published: 29 September 2010
Consumer Focus Scotland response to this Scottish Government Policy Document
News: Tackling fuel poverty: time to turn up the heat
Published: 6 August 2010
A major new Consumer Focus Scotland report, Turning up the Heat, Benchmarking Fuel Poverty in Scotland, says that a step change is needed now at Scottish and UK level if targets to eradicate fuel poverty by 2016 have any chance of being achieved. Scottish Government figures estimate that the number of Scottish households living in [...]
Consultation Response: Response to eviction of tenants in the social rented sector
Published: 31 May 2010
Consumer Focus Scotland welcomes the opportunity to respond to this consultation, which we see as an important accompaniment to the work on protection for home owners through the Home Owner and Debtor Protection Act 2010. Sarah O’Neill, Head of Policy at Consumer Focus Scotland, was a member of the Repossessions Sub-Group of the Debt Action [...]
Consultation Response: Response to the Scottish Government’s consultation on a proposed private rented sector housing bill
Published: 30 April 2010
Consumer Focus Scotland welcomes the opportunity to respond to the Scottish Government’s consultation paper on a proposed housing bill covering the private rented sector, licensing of mobile home sites, and the twenty year rules.
Evidence: Written evidence to the Local Government and Communities Committee on the Housing (Scotland) Bill
Published: 30 March 2010
Consumer Focus Scotland welcomes the opportunity to provide written evidence on the Housing (Scotland) Bill. We have been actively involved in the development of key aspects of this Bill through the Sounding Board on Social Housing Regulation and the Private Rented Sector Group, both established by the Scottish Government. Consumer Focus Scotland supports the general [...]
News: Response to OFT home buying and selling report
Published: 18 February 2010
Responding to today’s publication of the Office of Fair Trading Market Study report on Home Buying and Selling, Sarah O’Neill, Consumer Focus Scotland’s Head of Policy, said: “This report confirms that people in Scotland are generally more satisfied with the process of buying and selling a home than buyers and sellers in other parts of [...]
Briefing: Consumers and the home maintenance market in Scotland
Published: 8 December 2009
This briefing reports on the findings of a Consumer Focus Scotland survey into consumer experience of buying home-maintenance services. These services include plumbers, decorators, electricians and other individuals and companies that consumers might employ to repair or maintain their homes. Consumers were interviewed if they had recent experience of using these types of services; in [...]
Briefing: Consumers and the estate agent/house-purchase market in Scotland
Published: 8 December 2009
This briefing reports on the findings of a Consumer Focus Scotland survey into consumer experiences of buying estate agent/house-purchase services. In total, 500 consumers in Scotland who had recent experience of using estate agent/house-purchase services were interviewed.
Report: Improving the private rented sector in Scotland for the benefit of consumers
Published: 8 December 2009
This paper sets out the joint position from Consumer Focus Scotland and Shelter Scotland on some of the key issues affecting tenants in the PRS in Scotland. The paper particularly focuses on the specific needs of the most disadvantaged tenants in this sector. Everyone in Scotland should have access to housing that is safe, affordable [...]