to consider the following question received in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 8.
(a) From Cllr Baldry to Cllr Bastone, lead Executive Member for Customer First
At the end of last year, Liberal Democrats asked local authorities questions about empty homes in their area. The only authorities in Devon not to reply to this FOI request were South Hams and West Devon. This is information which would inform Members, Officers and the public.
Why did we not reply?
What is the answer to the Questions?
2(a) How many homes in South Hams have been empty for over 6 months?
2(b) How many have been empty for over 2 years?
2(c) How many homes were brought back into use during the latest 12 months for which we have figures?
2(d) Have we made use of the Empty Dwelling Management Orders (EDMO) which allow local authorities to take over properties that have been empty for at least two years?
Minutes:
60/17
It was noted that one question had been received in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 8. This question was as follows:-
From Cllr Baldry to Cllr Bastone, lead Executive Member for Development Management
(a) At the end of last year, Liberal Democrats asked local authorities questions about empty homes in their area. The only authorities in Devon not to reply to this FOI request were South Hams and West Devon. This is information which would inform Members, Officers and the public.
1. Why did we not reply?
2. What is the answer to the Questions?
2(a) How many homes in South Hams have been empty for over 6 months?
2(b) How many have been empty for over 2 years?
2(c) How many homes were brought back into use during the latest 12 months for which we have figures?
2(d) Have we made use of the Empty Dwelling Management Orders (EDMO) which allow local authorities to take over properties that have been empty for at least two years?
In reply, Cllr Bastone informed that the Council had a requirement to respond to all Freedom Of Information (FOI) requests within 20 working days. This FOI was received and allocated within Case Management. However, due to other demands, the information required to respond to the FOI was not collated and the FOI failed to be responded to. The Case Management Manager, Catherine Bowen, would be reviewing the process to ensure that an instance such as this did not happen again and the Member of staff reminded of the importance of dealing with FOI’s in a timely fashion.
With regard to Question 2, Cllr Bastone replied that:
2(a) As of October 2017, there were 254 properties defined as empty for a period of over 6 months (37 of these were receiving a discount as they were considered uninhabitable for Council Tax purposes.
2(b) According to the Council Tax Government Return completed in October 2014 there were 62 properties shown as empty for over two years;
2(c) The Council had investigated a total of 51 properties on the Council Tax empty list. This list was generated in June 2017:
- 14 were now occupied;
- 6 confirmed as being 2nd homes;
- 4 were in the process of being sold;
- 7 either had planning issues or were going through planning;
- 1 had been demolished;
- 5 were going through refurbishment;
- 10 had been risk assessed and were currently being considered for further action; and
- 3 were being brought back into use: one using a Wessex Loan; one through a third party auction; and one through further engagement.
2(d) Cllr Bastone informed that the Council had not used the EDMO approach to date. However, this would be considered as part of the options appraisal for the 10 empty homes above.
In light of the great housing need in the South Hams, coupled with 254 properties being defined as ‘empty’, Cllr Baldry asked a supplementary question as to whether it was acceptable for the Council not to be using EDMO’s. In response, Cllr Bastone gave an assurance that a review into the potential use of EDMO’s would be undertaken within the next six months.