The effectiveness of the housing needs and demand

Abstract

PurposeLiterature reveals that local authorities in Scotland are required under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 to undertake housing need and demand assessment. Local authorities are required to ensure that their local housing strategies are evidenced with an assessment of housing need and demand. The housing needs and demand assessment (HNDA) framework was designed to help local authorities in Scotland provide the evidence base for local strategies. Since its introduction in 2014, there is a limited literature highlighting whether or not the framework has been effective. To this end, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the HNDA framework as set in Scottish local authorities; this paper aims to highlight those factors that have been effective in the framework.Design/methodology/approachAn evaluation to asses empirically the effectiveness of the HNDA framework in Scotland was conducted. The research involved a review of literature on the current HNDA framework in Scotland. A measure of the effectiveness of the HNDA framework was conducted via a questionnaire survey to get the practitioner’s perception from 32 Scottish local authorities. This was conducted to advance specific features that have been effective in the HNDA framework. The features were then ranked in terms of their degree of effectiveness.FindingsThe research in this paper identifies initial findings cited in literature of effective factors that impact on the effectiveness of typical projects and contextualises them in the HNDA framework in Scotland, the HNDA framework having all hallmarks of a project. Results from this study identified effectiveness factors that have a greater influence on the HNDA framework’s general effectiveness. These factors include amongst others: clearly defined and detailed scope; project monitoring and control; competent and experienced project managers; and sufficient and well-allocated resources.Research limitations/implicationsBy examining the factors individually, it can be stated that overall and based on literature and survey, the HNDA framework as used in Scotland has largely been successful. The success, however, is on a case by case basis. For example, those in remote-based local authorities expressed reservations on whether some of the identified effectiveness factors in the framework were effective while those in more metropolitan or larger local authorities were more upbeat with the HNDA framework.Originality/valueNo similar study has been carried out on effectiveness factors in the HNDA framework used in Scottish local authorities. The findings in this research, therefore, contribute to the literature that seeks to understand the mechanisms of an effective HNDA in general and the HNDA framework in Scotland in particular. Overall, it contributes to the housing debate by offering a Scottish perspective. The study is a precursor to the mechanism for the housing need and demand and funding success in Scotland.