Home help

A scheme of assistance to stop areas becoming rundown has been given the green light by East Renfrewshire council.

Full details of what is available to owners will be published next month and deputy council leader Douglas Yates is confident the initiative will help stop homes and gardens across the area from falling into disrepair.

He said: "Around 33,000 of East Renfrewshire's 36,000 homes are privately owned, so this is a major area.

"Our scheme of assistance will be published so all homeowners are clearabout their rights and duties as well as our obligation to them toensure that the housing stock of the area all meets the minimum, tolerable standard.

"While the bulk of our housing stock is well-maintained and extremely comfortable, we do have pockets of poverty where the householder, often an older person, has fallen behind with maintenance.

"We need to meet that need as well as look after disabled residents whose homes need tobe adapted to allow them to continue living there".

Improvement grants will no longer be pay out in line with nationalchanges but the council says will work with residents to reduce the number of homes failing to meet the national tolerable standard.

Owners in communal blocks will also be assisted to carry out essentialmaintenance and repairs and work with private landlords and tenants to improve standards in the private rented sector.

The benefits to disabled people will also be spelled out in the scheme, with the council carrying out various improvements in their homes.

David O'Brien (38), a homeowner in Thornliebank, said: "It will be good to see exactly what I'm entitled to and what my obligations are when it comes to maintaining the house.

"A lot of people I know do not realise what help they can receive fromtheir local council so by publishing this new scheme residents will bemore fully informed.

"I think it's a great idea and I'll be looking to get my hands on a copy of the publication once it's released next month".