Community groups wanting to build affordable homes in ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and Bute will now be able to benefit from the council’s Strategic Housing Fund.
At a recent meeting of ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥, members agreed to extend the funding criteria to include community groups, as well as registered social landlords, providing they secure a Rural Housing Fund and/or Islands Housing Fund grant from the Scottish Government.
Those who qualify will then be awarded £12,000 per affordable house delivered, for new build properties which meet the affordable criteria.
The council’s Policy Lead for Housing, Councillor Robin Currie, said: “We have projected delivery of more than 790 affordable homes between now and 2021. This is on top of the 336 affordable homes that have already been delivered in the current ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and Bute Local Housing Strategy for 2016 to 2021. This makes a potential total of over 1,100 affordable homes - far exceeding the target of 550 that we set back in 2016.
“The extension of this fund is a great opportunity for community groups across ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and Bute to help meet the needs of their local area and build affordable housing in remote and rural communities.â€