Mary Pritchard, manager of Isle of Arran Homes, discussed some of the points of local housing allocation policy with community councillors at their monthly meeting in the Ormidale Pavilion last week.
Corrie councillor John Inglis referred to the 24 local authority houses currently being built in the quarry at Corrie and told the meeting: ‘There is a terrific cynicism about housing allocation policy.’
Councillor Margie Currie agreed that it could be a problem and said: ‘It could become a separate enclave unless there is a means of integration with the existing Corrie community.’
Mary explained: ‘There is a local lettings policy and we will look at that, but we need to seek permission from our regulators. Every other property will be a North Ayrshire nomination, but they may be on our list as well. ‘Local’ could be someone who has a connection here but may not have ever lived here.’
John Inglis asked if Isle of Arran Homes could make a public statement about housing policy because of the degree of cynicism among those locals already on the housing list.
Ian Small pointed out the apparent anomaly that a tenant can make a private arrangement to exchange with another tenant from another area.
Mary said: ‘We can’t refuse permission for that unless there are grounds of rent arrears, anti-social behaviour or court action.
‘The points system is generated by computer, then the points are confirmed by recent home-assessment visits to ascertain that the truth is being told. If the applicant is in another housing association on the mainland, then that association will carry out the assessment.’
Ian Small claimed that some people were coming to Arran, staying in a caravan, and being re-housed from there. Then another person would get re-housed from the same caravan. Mary said: ‘It doesn’t happen very often; in four years we have only housed two separate people from the same address.
‘Where we are able to, those with a local connection will be given priority, but it must be in accordance with legislation.
‘We will let Corrie as sympathetically as we can.’
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