Tenant grant fund update

On 23 June 2021 the Scottish Government announced the launch of a £10 million grant to support private and social rented tenants who had incurred rent arrears as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic. More recently local authorities have been authorised to use any remaining funding for tenants adversely impacted by the Cost of Living crisis.

The Scottish Government has provided SAL with an update on the operation of the fund up to 31 March 2023. As of 31 March 2023, local authorities have reported a total of 6,621 payments totalling £8,814,588.

Notably, the following local authorities still have 10% or more of their funding to allocate: Aberdeen City, Angus, Clackmannanshire, East Ayrshire, Falkirk, Glasgow City, Scottish Borders and South Ayrshire. Argyll & Bute and Dumfries & Galloway have more limited funding remaining. Landlords who have tenants in rent arrears in any of these local authorities may wish to encourage them to apply for grant funding. Details of how to apply are set out below.

How do you apply to get this grant?

Any tenants who have been financially impacted by the pandemic or the Cost of Living crisis and need help to avoid eviction should contact their local authority housing options or homelessness departments to enquire about the grant. Landlords and letting agents can also initiate an enquiry on behalf of their tenants. There is no application process to use for the grant funding. Instead, local authorities will use their discretion to determine whether a grant payment is appropriate in individual circumstances.

The grant can be used to pay off arrears which have arisen since 23 March 2020 and the money is paid directly to the landlord. Tenants will need to satisfy the local authority that they can afford future rent payments to sustain the tenancy once the grant is used to pay off arrears. Landlords must demonstrate that they are complying with the pre-action requirements for rent arrears and agree not to progress a repossession on the basis of Covid-19/Cost of Living related rent arrears where a grant is paid and the tenant meets all future agreed rent and repayment obligations.

Local authority contacts are below. This is information provided to us by local authorities. Please let us know if you find any of the contacts are now out of date.