Introduction to Craigdale Housing Association Craigdale Housing Association is a voluntary organisation which builds, improves and manages houses, mainly for rent in the Castlemilk area of Glasgow. Houses are provided for people with a variety of needs e.g. general family accommodation, houses for people with special needs.
The Association’s history started in Castlemilk, an economically deprived peripheral estate. The area suffered from high unemployment, high dependence on welfare and housing benefit, physical isolation, neglected unimproved houses owned and managed by Glasgow City Council with high void and turnover rates, and problems linked to poverty, crime, security and drugs.
A local residents group was established which led to a housing solution in the form of a stock transfer from the Council to Craigdale Housing Association Ltd. Craigdale is a community based Housing Association. We registered with the Registrar of Friendly Societies in December 1988 and operates under an approved set of rules; and with Scottish Homes (Communities Scotland) in April 1989, and so is subject to monitoring and supervisory controls by this government agency.
The Association differs from private landlords and developers as it does not trade for profit. It is also different from local authorities in that Craigdale is controlled by a (up to 15 person) Voluntary Management Committee – elected from the local membership at the Annual General Meeting. Committee Members are not paid for the work they do – they have six professional full-time staff, plus two part-time service agencies who are employed to look after the day to day running of the business.
Craigdale has focused on improving the physical appearance and the appeal of the area. Seven phases of development have been completed generating 326 new and improved homes for rent and 24 homes for shared ownership and for sale. Each phase has been developed with the needs and aspirations of tenants and the community in mind.
Craigdale allocates its housing based on housing needs; sets its own rents and carries out its own repairs. The Association receives grant from the government (through Glasgow City Council) which covers part of the cost of providing houses in each development. The rest of the cost is covered by a bank loan. Craigdale repays the loan and finances from the rents paid by its tenants.
Housing Associations are very highly regulated organisations with external and internal audits, and audits from Communities Scotland, which in 2000 awarded a Very Good B Grade. Comment was made that Craigdale Housing Association demonstrates several Housing Management strengths such as void management, arrears recovery, allocations and nominations, a high profile estate management service, and seeks to play a role in the community which is more than that of being just a good landlord. The maintenance services sets and achieves challenging repair targets. There is a strong focus on performance and on achieving value for money. All of these comments confirm the recent Tenant Satisfaction Survey results. The future will bring further opportunities for growth, and the Association has a bright future.
MEMBERSHIPWhy become a Member?
If you are interested in the area, concerned about improving the housing and making sure the improvements are maintained, then you should become a member.
The Association – How it Works
Craigdale Housing Association was formed in 1989 by local residents concerned about their area, and committed to improving it. Since then local people have given countless hours of their own time to running the Association through its Management Committee and Sub-Committee’s, and have worked progressively towards improving the housing in our area.
They have achieved this by buying, renovating and building houses on a non-profit making basis. The money to do this work comes largely from public funds and private loan finance with our rents providing all the costs in managing and maintaining the houses.
The Management Committee
Our Management Committee is made up of local people working on a voluntary basis. The Committee is responsible for making decisions on all aspects of our work, maintaining the Association’s commitment towards providing homes for people in “HOUSING NEED” and helping to make the area a better place to live in.
What are Sub-Committees?
Sub-Committee’s deal with specific areas of work such as Housing Management and Maintenance, Development, Finance and Staffing.
At present Craigdale has one active Sub-Committee who meet once a month to discuss business prior to the full Committee meeting at the end of each month.
Close Representatives
The Association are also keen to promote tenant participation and regular communication within our area, and if you’d like to become more involved, but are pushed for spare time – you might want to consider becoming a Close Representative.
A Close Representative is the link between your close and the Association. If you or your neighbours have a problem or a complaint, or want more information about something, the Association can make arrangements with the Close Representative – it may be a meeting in the property or just distributing information.
If you feel you would like to be a Close Representative discuss it with your neighbours and contact the Association. Membership entitles you to have a say in what we do, through election of Management Committee Members and by standing for election yourself. It also keeps you fully informed about what is going on through our Annual Report and Financial Statement. So why not think about becoming a member?
Life Membership costs £1.00 and is open to all local residents over the age of 16.
Please complete and return the membership form to our Office. Download form here.
Craigdale Housing Association Ltd
83/85 Dougrie Road
Castlemilk, Glasgow, G45-9NSTelephone: 0141-634-6473