Housing Options for Existing Council Tenants

 

Council tenants' rights and responsibilities

  • Every Council tenant is given a copy of the Shetland Islands Council Tenants Handbook, which provides useful and easy-to-follow information on both the rights and responsibilities of Council tenants and the services that the Council provides for them.
  • A copy of The Shetland Tenants Charter, which was agreed between the Council and the Shetland's Tenants Forum in 2002, is also available from the Council on request. The Shetland Tenants Forum includes representatives of all the active tenant associations in Shetland and was set up to improve communication with the Council. If you need assistance or are interested in setting up a tenants association in your area the Tenant's Forum telephone number is 01595 695197, e-mail Joann@shetlandtf.plus.com.

 

Right to Consultation

  • Under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 all landlords are required to consult with individual tenants and tenants groups in the development of its procedures and policies. Work is ongoing to develop a tenant participation strategy and there will be further information available in the near future.

 

Repairs and Maintenance

  • The responsibility for repairs to Council houses is shared between the Council and the tenant. In essence, the Council is responsible for maintaining the fabric and permanent fittings of the building in good condition whereas the tenant is responsible for internal decoration, furnishings and removable fittings like clothes lines, TV aerials, curtain rails and so on.
  • Repairs are categorised by the Council as emergency, urgent, routine or 'other' and dealt with accordingly (see below). Planned maintenance - to replace and/or upgrade parts of the building fabric - takes place according to priorities and a programme set by the Council after consultation with the Shetland Tenants Forum.

    Tenants have the right to a repair being done within the specified times set out below. If this does not happen, then the tenant has the right to request a contractor to complete the repair, and the Council will have to pay for this. For further information and for a list of contractors please see the bottom right menu on this page.

 

Out of Hours Emergency Repairs

(response within 4 hours)

Emergency Repairs

(response within 4 hours)

Urgent Repairs

(response within 3 working days)

  • *Completely blocked flue to open fire, boiler, room heater , solid fuel cooker
  • *Repairs to locks on external doors or windows, where house is insecure
  • Dripping waste/water pipe (containable)
  • *Burst or severely leaking hot or cold water service pipes, tank, cylinder, boiler
  • Partially blocked flue to open fire, boiler, room heater, solid fuel cooker
  • Single light not working - except bathroom light (see Emergency Repairs)
  • Total loss of electric power or heating
  • Leaking water pipes
  • *Loss of heating in more than one room
  • *Broken windows (may be recharged to tenant)
  • *Blocked toilet, soil pipe, drain or sink (where not dealt with above)
  • Broken (not loose) WC seat
  • *Broken glass in external doors (may be recharged to tenant)
  • Partial loss of electric power (eg all lights, all sockets or bathroom light)
  • Walls, roof, doors and windows leaking
  • Tenant locked out of house (will be recharged to tenant)
  • Total loss of hot water
  • *Repairs on safety issues eg loose stairs handrail, loose kitchen wall unit, damaged flooring
  • No water throughout house
  • All emergency lighting (Sheltered Housing)
  • Repair/replace smoke detector
  • ALL OTHER REPAIRS to be attended to during normal working hours
  • *Loss of heating in Livingroom (other individual rooms Routine Repairs)
  • Broken glass in roomheater
 
  • *Toilets not flushing - where there is no other toilet in the house
  • *Urgent safety issues on external works
 
  • ALL OTHER REPAIRS to be attended to at a lesser category
  • Replacement firebars to solid fuel appliances or glass to roomheaters
   
  • ALL OTHER REPAIRS to be attended to at a lesser category
     

Routine Repairs

(response within one calendar month)

Three month repairs

(response within 3 calendar months)

 
  • ALL OTHER REPAIRS not included in other categories
  • Faulty double glazing replacement in Kitchens and Livingrooms only
 

*Please note those repairs listed with asterixes are those which are Right to Repair qualifying repairs (see third paragraph above under Repairs and Maintenance).

 

Address Phone Numbers

Shetland Islands Council
Executive Services Department
Housing
Fort Road
Lerwick
ZE1 0LW

Telephone:01595 744360
Fax: 01595 744395
E-mail: housing@shetland.gov.uk

Outwith office hours
Council House Repairs:  
01595 693972

Homelessness:  
01595 695611

 

Housing Adaptations