Work to resume on improvements to existing council house stocks, Highland Council announces

WORK on improvements to existing council housing in the region will restart shortly, Highland Council has confirmed.

The local authority's move to restart "capital investment works" on its current housing stock comes shortly after it revealed that construction on new homes was back under way.

Both aspects of the council's housing investment had been put on hold during the Covid-19 coronavirus lockdown.

Confirming the latest development, the chairman of the Housing and Property Committee, Cllr Ben Thompson, said that contractors had supplied the council with detailed work plans for safe working, social distancing and compliance with all Covid-19 rules and guidance.

Tenants whose homes have been identified for capital works will be contacted in the coming weeks to provide assurance on proposed work plans and to discuss arrangements. Works are likely to take longer than in previous years because of the enhanced safety measures.

Cllr Thompson said: “Work on tenant’s homes will only restart when tenants and council officers feel it is safe to do so. I would like to thank everyone for their patience and their support in this matter.

"We will be contacting tenants on our capital programme in the coming weeks to help develop a safe and efficient schedule for the capital programme.”

Phased starts will begin later this month and will initially be focused on external works such as re-roofing and windows and doors. It is anticipated that works such as heating replacements and rewiring will be unable to re-start for a number of weeks as a result of the nature of the work involved.

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