GWSF Tenements pdf April 2015

The Scale of the ProblemIt is important to note that in gatheringinformation from GWSF memberswe used the phrase ‘sub-standard’tenements. This is a broad descriptionof tenements which, in an ideal world,would be subject to ComprehensiveTenement Improvement (or similar).There could be many reasons for this,including poor structural condition,lacking basic amenities or havingsevere long term management and/or maintenance problems affecting thefabric of the building.There are sub-standard tenements inall the local authority areas where ourmembers work. There are particularconcentrations in Glasgow andRenfrewshire. In Glasgow, the CityCouncil estimates that there are about7,000 tenement flats which are belowthe tolerable standard. This is 8% of thetotal number and is based on a 2010condition survey.In Renfrewshire, the Council hasestimated that there are about 1,200properties (mainly pre-1914 tenementflats) that did not meet the tolerablestandard. This is based on their mostrecent survey, in 2002.We received 37 detailed responses fromour members to a questionnaire aboutthe scale of sub standard tenementflats in their areas. Of the respondingassociations, almost 60% were able toidentify sub-standard tenements within,or close to, their area of operation. Theseassociations identified 7,354 sub-standardpre-1914 tenement flats and 2,893 substandardpost-1924 tenement flats. Thismakes a total of 10,247 sub-standardtenement flats.If we assume (reasonably) that theresponding associations are broadlyrepresentative of the total membership,this suggests that there are over 17,500sub-standard flats in or close to the areasof operation of CCHAs. Of these, about12,700 are pre-1914 tenements and about5,000 are post-1924 tenements.In most cases, CCHAs have no ownershipinterest in these sub-standard flats,and when they do, it is almost always aminority interest.The maps (of Glasgow and Paisley)indicate the broad distribution and scale ofthe sub-standard tenement flats identifiedby those responding to our survey.6